The elderly have generally been portrayed as needy recipients of services; only recently has attention been paid to their contributory role. To explore the nature and characteristics of helping behavior among urban elderly, 117 residents of senior citizens' housing sites in Detroit completed the Altruism Scale for the Elderly and a second measure…

Research with older persons suffering from physical illness presents numerous challenges to gerontologists. Issues of conceptualization pertaining to the definition of illness, its location in the research paradigm, and the context in which illness occurs must be addressed prior to dealing with methodological problems. Access to physically ill…

Findings of this study indicate major service needs of urban aged in areas of housing, health, and financial needs. Similarities in service needs emerged despite cultural and life style differences in the two communities. (Author)

This review of the literature on prosocial behavior in the elderly provides empirical data on the prevalence of helping behaviors among the elderly and the range of motives underlying their helping. Implications of these data for theories of social behavior in later life are considered, and questions are raised about the validity of the models…

This study explored personal reports of problematic experiences with friends and family, agencies, and neighborhoods encountered by 402 older people living in two urban communities. Older people reported relatively few instances of victimization, with neighborhood problems presenting the greatest concern. Socioeconomic factors were the best…