Handbook of Health Psychology and Aging
Edited by Carolyn M. Aldwin, Crystal L. Park, and Avron Spiro
Foreword by Ronald P. Abeles
Hardcover
Hardcover
orderJanuary 26, 2007
ISBN 9781593850579
Price: $85.00 450 Pages
Size: 6" x 9"
Meeting a growing need, this authoritative reference and text comprehensively examines the interplay of biological, psychological, and social factors in health and illness in older adults. The volume explores how and why some people adapt more successfully than others to age-related stressors such as chronic illness, disability, and loss, and identifies ways to promote coping and resilience. With contributions from leading researchers in health psychology and gerontology, the Handbook integrates state-of-the-science theories and methods from both fields. Key topics include how aging affects the cardiovascular, neuroendocrine, and immune systems; the influences on adult development and health of personality, emotions, social support, and religiousness; and effective interventions in healthcare settings.
“Each chapter reads as a review paper in its own right, contributing to the whole but standing alone too. Handbook is truly accurate—you can dip in and read and re-read as preferred....Whatever your background and work focus, if you're interested in work with older people there is something in here for you.”
—International Psychogeriatrics
“An authoritative reference text examining how biological, psychological, and social factors influence health in later life. Contributors are leading researchers in the fields of health psychology and gerontology. This work has a broad scope, aiming at health professionals who work with older adults and their caregivers. It can also be used as a text for courses on aging and health.”
—American Reference Books Annual
“It is well organized, it flows well, and it forms a cohesive whole. Chapters are well researched....Chapters provide a rich blend of theory and empirical data, presenting well-documented support for a perspective of health, well-being, and aging as multiply determined by the complex interaction of biological, psychological, social, and environmental factors, and encouraging the reader to take a life-span perspective on adult development.”
—PsycCRITIQUES
“Highly recommended to professionals who would like to better understand the aging process and to examine issues and barriers to healthier living for older adults.”
—Australasian Journal on Ageing
“Excellent up-to-date information and data. Excellent topics! A wonderful blend of the biological and psychosocial aspects.”
—Grant D. Chikazawa-Nelson, PhD, Assistant Professor, MFT Program, Argosy University
“This is a much-needed, state-of-the-art resource. It is a 'must read' for students and professionals interested in the basics of health psychology and aging. Key theoretical and methodological issues are discussed, along with biological, psychosocial, and clinical issues central to an understanding of aging and health. This book provides a strong foundation for anyone interested in pursuing a career in one of the most important and rapidly growing research areas within such diverse disciplines as psychology, sociology, public health, nursing, and medicine.”
—Richard Schulz, PhD, University of Pittsburgh
“This valuable book is the perfect antidote to the biological reductionism that characterizes much of contemporary medical research. It provides a sweeping perspective on the interface of physical and psychosocial risk factors for diseases associated with old age, as well as sources of resiliency and opportunities for prevention and intervention. A distinguished group of authors addresses the most current and exciting ideas about health, behavior, and aging. The chapters are informative, engaging, and highly readable. This book is an essential resource for health researchers and for students from any discipline concerned with aging and health.”
—Steven H. Zarit, PhD, Penn State University
“This book comes just in time, as the first wave of the baby boomer generation is finishing its sixth decade of life. It is an impressive volume that provides a comprehensive overview of critical issues related to aging. It will be a major resource for those who are concerned about the social, psychological, and health issues facing our aging population, including researchers, graduate students, and practitioners. The editors are to be congratulated for their vision and for bringing together such a distinguished and thoughtful group of contributors.”
—Nancy E. Adler, PhD, University of California, San Francisco
“The fields of health psychology and psychology of aging have considerable overlap in content and in the populations studied, yet books that directly address their commonality are rare. This volume is likely to become a landmark in the development of a truly shared theoretical and empirical approach to common questions—a lifespan perspective on the transactional relationships between developmental aging and the chronic illnesses of later life. Covering a broad range of topics, this is one of those rare books that left me thinking, 'I'll want to read many of these chapters again.' This is a valuable reference for psychologists and other health professionals working with older and chronically ill adults. It is a great text for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses in health psychology, and an important resource for courses in psychology and aging.”
—Bob G. Knight, PhD, University of Southern California
Table of Contents
I. Theoretical and Methodological Issues1. Health Psychology and Aging: An Introduction, Carolyn M. Aldwin, Crystal L. Park, and Avron Spiro III
2. Challenging Assumptions about Adult Development: Implications for the Health of Older Adults, Sarit A. Golub and Ellen J. Langer
3. A Developmental Approach to Psychosocial Risk Factors and Successful Aging, Cynthia A. Berg, Timothy W. Smith, Nancy J. M. Henry, and Gale E. Pearce
4. Methods in Health Psychology: Relevance to Aging, Heather Young and Peter Vitaliano
5. The Relevance of a Lifespan Developmental Approach to Health, Avron Spiro III
II. Biological Issues
6. Psychoneuroimmunological Processes in Aging and Health, Tara L. Gruenewald and Margaret E. Kemeny
7. The Psychoneuroendocrinology of Aging: Anabolic and Catabolic Hormones, Elissa S. Epel, Heather M. Burke, and Owen M. Wolkowitz
8. Cardiovascular Reactivity in Older Adults, Denise C. Cooper, Leslie I. Katzel, and Shari R. Waldstein
III. Psychosocial Issues
9. A Lifespan Approach to Personality and Longevity: The Case of Conscientiousness, Howard S. Friedman and Leslie R. Martin
10. Sense of Control and Health: A Dynamic Duo in the Aging Process, Marilyn McKean Skaff
11. Coping, Health, and Aging, Carolyn M. Aldwin, Loriena A. Yancura, and Daria K. Boeninger
12. Health and Psychological Consequences of Caregiving, Richard H. Fortinsky, Howard Tennen, Natalie Frank, and Glenn Affleck
13. Psychosocial Stress, Emotion Regulation, and Resilience among Older Adults, Mary C. Davis, Alex J. Zautra, Lisa M. Johnson, Kate E. Murray, and Heather A. Okvat
14. Optimizing Social Relationships as a Resource for Health and Well-Being in Later Life, Karen S. Rook, Shahrzad Mavandadi, Dara H. Sorkin, and Laura A. Zettel
15. Issues of Diversity in Health Psychology and Aging, Barbara W. K. Yee and David A. Chiriboga
16. Religious and Spiritual Issues in Health and Aging, Crystal L. Park
IV. Clinical Issues
17. Self-Regulation of Health Threats, Affect, and the Self: Lessons from Older Adults, Howard Leventhal, Rachel Forster, and Elaine Leventhal
18. The Role of Clinical Health Geropsychology in the Health Care of Older Adults, Sara Honn Qualls and Charles C. Benight
19. Effects of Changes in Diagnostic Thresholds on Health Care for Older Adults, Robert M. Kaplan
20. Health Psychology and Aging: Moving to the Next Generation of Research, Carolyn M. Aldwin, Crystal L. Park, and Avron Spiro III
About the Editors
Carolyn M. Aldwin, PhD, is Professor and Chair of the Department of Human Development and Family Sciences at Oregon State University. She received a FIRST award from the National Institute on Aging for her study of psychosocial factors affecting health in aging early in her career, and has published over 60 articles and chapters in this area. She is a fellow of both Divisions 20 (Adult Development and Aging) and 38 (Health Psychology) of the American Psychological Association, as well as the Gerontological Society of America. She is the author of Stress, Coping, and Development, Second Edition: An Integrative Perspective.Crystal L. Park, PhD, is Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Connecticut. Her research and publications focus on stress, coping, and adaptation, particularly on how people’s beliefs, goals, and values affect their ways of perceiving and dealing with stressful events. She is on the editorial boards of the Journal of Clinical and Consulting Psychology and Psychology and Health, and is coeditor of Handbook of the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality and Positive Life Changes in the Context of Medical Illness.
Avron Spiro III, PhD, is a Senior Research Scientist at the Normative Aging Study, part of the Massachusetts Veterans Epidemiology Research and Information Center, at the Department of Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System. He is also Associate Professor of Epidemiology at the Boston University School of Public Health as well as Associate Professor of Health Policy and Health Services Research at the Boston University Goldman School of Dental Medicine.
Contributors
Glenn Affleck, PhD, Department of Community Medicine and Healthcare, University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, ConnecticutCarolyn M. Aldwin, PhD, Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon
Charles C. Benight, PhD, Psychology Department and CU Trauma Studies and Resource Center, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, Colorado
Cynthia A. Berg, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah
Daria K. Boeninger, BA, Department of Human and Community Development, University of California at Davis, Davis, California
Heather M. Burke, PhD, Health Psychology Program, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, California
David A. Chiriboga, PhD, Department of Aging and Mental Health, Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida
Denise C. Cooper, MA, Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Baltimore, Maryland
Mary C. Davis, PhD, Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona
Elissa S. Epel, PhD, Department of Psychiatry and Health Psychology Program, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, California
Rachel Forster, BA, Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey
Richard H. Fortinsky, PhD, Center on Aging, University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, Connecticut
Natalie Frank, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of Hartford, West Hartford, Connecticut
Howard S. Friedman, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of California at Riverside, Riverside, California
Sarit A. Golub, PhD, MPH, Psychology Department, Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, New York
Tara L. Gruenewald, PhD, MPH, Department of Medicine/Geriatrics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California
Nancy J. M. Henry, MA, Department of Psychology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah
Lisa M. Johnson, MA, Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona
Robert M. Kaplan, PhD, Department of Health Services, School of Public Health, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California
Leslie I. Katzel, MD, PhD, Department of Medicine, Division of Gerontology, University of Maryland School of Medicine and Baltimore Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Baltimore, Maryland
Margaret E. Kemeny, PhD, Department of Psychiatry, Health Psychology Program, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, California
Ellen J. Langer, PhD, Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts
Elaine Leventhal, MD, PhD, Geriatric Assessment Center, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey
Howard Leventhal, PhD, Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey
Leslie R. Martin, PhD, Department of Psychology, La Sierra University, Riverside, CA
Shahrzad Mavandadi, PhD, Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Kate E. Murray, MA, Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona
Heather A. Okvat, MA, Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona
Crystal L. Park, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of Connecticut at Storrs, Storrs, Connecticut
Gale E. Pearce, PhD, Counseling Psychology Department, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah
Sara Honn Qualls, PhD, Department of Psychology, Colorado University, Colorado Springs, Colorado
Karen S. Rook, PhD, Department of Psychology and Social Behavior, University of California at Irvine, Irvine, California
Marilyn McKean Skaff, PhD, Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, California
Timothy W. Smith, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah
Dara H. Sorkin, PhD, Center for Health Policy Research, College of Medicine, University of California at Irvine, Irvine, California
Avron Spiro III, PhD, Normative Aging Study, Massachusetts Veterans Epidemiology Research and Information Center (MAVERIC), VA Boston Healthcare System; Department of Epidemiology, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA
Howard Tennen, PhD, Department of Community Medicine and Health Care, University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, Connecticut
Peter Vitaliano, PhD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
Shari R. Waldstein, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Baltimore, Maryland
Owen M. Wolkowitz, MD, Department of Psychiatry, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, California
Loriena A. Yancura, PhD, Department of Family and Consumer Sciences, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawaii
Barbara W. K. Yee, PhD, Department of Family and Consumer Sciences, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawaii
Heather Young, PhD, John A. Hartford Center of Geriatric Nursing Excellence, School of Nursing, Oregon Health and Science University, Ashland, Oregon
Alex J. Zautra, PhD, Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona
Laura A. Zettel, PhD, Department of Psychology, California State University, Fullerton, California