Discusses the applicability of three theoretical perspectives to specific relationships differing in self-perceived closeness in three groups of adults: first-year (n=37) and fourth-year (n=42) undergraduates and 42 retired teachers. Older adults had more expectations for long-term reciprocity. In most relationships, exchange was based on need…

In order to gain a comprehensive understanding of the interplay between women's life course work patterns and their financial planning for later life, we examined data from semi-structured interviews with retired women (n = 28) aged 59 to 92. The majority of women disrupted their careers at some point in time, for an average of 14 years, primarily…

Canadians have expressed concern that access to family physicians (FP) has declined. Anonymized physician services data for 1991/1992 to 2000/2001 were used to evaluate changes in supply and age-specific rates of use of FPs and specialists in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Physician-to-population ratios declined 7.5 per cent, FP-to-population ratios declined…

The present study was conducted to expand research showing that older adults' expectations that they will recall particular medication instructions do not coincide with their actual ability to do so. Seventy-one younger-old adults (M=68.10 years, range=57-74) and 62 older-old adults (M=80.31 years, range=75-89) made judgements about the likelihood…

Accessible support programs can improve health outcomes for family caregivers of older relatives with a chronic condition. Over the course of 6 months, 27 experienced family caregivers provided weekly support via the telephone to 66 individuals, either new family caregivers of seniors recently diagnosed with stroke or newly vulnerable family…

This paper examines access to bathtub grab bars in privately and publicly owned apartment buildings and explores the profile of seniors who have access to bathtub grab bars. Results indicate that bathtub grab bars were significantly more prevalent in apartments that were publicly owned (91.3%) as compared to privately owned (37.8%) (p lesser than…

The authors critically examine the research on physical activity in the elderly to assess the elderly's capacity for exercise and the benefits accruing from exercise. Lower-intensity exercise programs attract a more representative group of senior participants and overcome many barriers. Implications for program planning and efforts are discussed.…

Responses of 125 older adults to a life-history interview were rated for frequency and extent of off-target verbosity. Talkativeness was rated by participants, 125 peers, and 10 professionals. Talkativeness did not appear to be age linked, suggesting that irrelevance in discourse may instead reflect longstanding personality traits. (SK)

A British Columbia survey of 45 intermediate care residents and 45 nurses found significant differences between residents' and staff perceptions of the importance of activities and residents' level of choice. Staff members' erroneous assumptions may result in procedures that restrict residents' choice of activities. (SK)

This article provides a commentary on a set of five other articles reporting European and Canadian studies of loneliness among seniors. It places those works involving Canadian, Dutch, Finnish, and Welsh samples in the larger context of research on loneliness; offers reflections on the methods and findings reported in the articles; and addresses…

In recent years, considerable attention has been devoted to the value of unpaid work in the economy. One very important aspect of unpaid work is caregiving for chronically ill or disabled people and the question of whether or not family-and-friend caregiving eases the burden on the publicly funded system. Using data from the 1996 General Social…

The effects of long-term hospitalizations can be severe, especially among older adults. In Manitoba, between fiscal years 1991/1992 and 1999/2000, 40 per cent of acute care hospital days were used by the 5 per cent of patients who had long stays, defined as stays of more than 30 days. These proportions were remarkably stable, despite major changes…

Hospitalization is a sentinel event that leads to loss of independence for many seniors. This study of long-stay hospitalizations (more than 30 days) in seniors was undertaken to identify risk factors for not going home, to characterize patients with risk factors who did go home and to describe one year outcomes following home discharge. Using…

Drawing from the health belief model, cues to action have been theorized to influence health behaviours; however, few studies have examined these constructs explicitly. This study investigated the relationship between information cues to action and exercise self-care. It was hypothesized that reading about illness information, knowing about…

Based on a qualitative study of home care workers, this paper aims to understand elder abuse of Chinese Canadians. The findings show disrespect is the key form elder abuse takes in the Chinese community. As a culturally specific form of abuse, disrespect remains invisible under categories of elder abuse derived from a Western cultural perspective.…