Purpose of the Study: We compare the close family resources of Baby Boomers (BBs) to previous cohorts of older adults at population level and then examine individual-level cohort comparisons of age-related trajectories of informal care availability from midlife into old age. Design and Methods: Population data from the U.S. Census and from the…

Purpose of the Study: Our study provides a national portrait of the Baby Boom generation, paying particular attention to the heterogeneity among unmarried Boomers and whether it operates similarly among women versus men. Design and Methods: We used the 1980, 1990, and 2000 Census 5% samples and the 2009 American Community Survey (ACS) to document…

Purpose of the study: This study examines how employment status (worker vs. retiree) and life course influences (age, gender, and marital status) are associated with time spent on daily household chores. Second, this study assesses whether the associations between daily stressors and time spent on daily household chores differ as a function of…

Purpose of the Study: We aimed to investigate whether social capital (obtaining support through indirect ties such as from neighbors) and social cohesion (interdependencies among neighbors) within neighborhoods positively affect the well being of older adults. Design and Methods: This cross-sectional study included 945 of 1,440 (66% response rate)…

Purpose: This study examines sex differences among Baby Boom workers in the likelihood of coverage by an employer-provided retirement plan. Design and Methods: This study used a sample of Baby Boom workers drawn from the 2009 Current Population Survey. Independent variables were selected to replicate as closely as possible those in two 1995…

Purpose of the Study: This study examines health-risk behaviors among "Baby Boomer" caregivers and non-caregivers. Design and Methods: Data from the 2009 California Health Interview Survey of the state's non-institutionalized population provided individual-level, caregiving, and health behavior characteristics for 5,688 informal…

Purpose: As part of an ongoing effort to analyze the distributional implications of potential policy reforms to the U.S. Social Security system, we consider the widely discussed reform of earnings sharing. Such an approach has been viewed as a way to "update" Social Security's family benefits based on marital status and as a means to…

Purpose: Despite the growing evidence for effects of religious factors on cardiac health in general populations, findings are not always consistent in sicker and older populations. We previously demonstrated that short-term negative outcomes (depression and anxiety) among older adults following open heart surgery are partially alleviated when…

Purpose: Positing that successful aging has independent, yet related, dimensions that are both objective and subjective, we examine how early influences and contemporary characteristics define 4 groups of people. Design and Methods: Data were gathered from 5,688 persons aged 50-74 years living in New Jersey who participated in telephone…

Purpose: Transitions in caregiving, such as becoming a primary caregiver to grandchildren or having adult children and grandchildren move in or out, may affect the well-being of the grandmother. Design and Methods: This report describes caregiving patterns at 3 time points over 24 months in a sample of 485 Ohio grandmothers and examines the…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the association between Adult Day Health Center (ADHC) participation and health-related quality of life. Design and Methods: Case-controlled prospective study utilizing the Medical Outcomes Survey Form 36 (SF-36) to compare newly enrolled participants from 16 ADHC programs with comparable…

Purpose: To examine racial differences in (a) the prevalence of financial exploitation and psychological mistreatment since turning 60 and in the past 6 months and (b) the experience--perpetrator, frequency, and degree of upset--of psychological mistreatment in the past 6 months. Design and methods: Random digit dial telephone recruitment and…

Purpose: Retirement is often treated as a voluntary transition, yet selected circumstances can restrict choice in retirement decision processes. We investigated conditions under which retirees perceive their retirement as "forced" rather than "wanted." Methods: Analyses relied on Waves 1-4 of the Health and Retirement Survey (N = 1,160; 572 men…

Purpose: Valuation of life (VOL) represents a construct capturing active attachment to life put forward by M. P. Lawton (e.g., 1999). As old and very old individuals may differ in terms of endorsement and with respect to what makes a life worth living, the present study investigated whether mean levels and the explanatory value of…

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to describe the projected use for long-term-care services through 2012. Design and Methods: We constructed a static-component projection model using age, function, and other covariates. We obtained enrollee projections from the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and combined these with nursing home and…