Previous research has been conducted regarding preferences of physicians for life-sustaining treatments for themselves, but there is a dearth of data on personal use of advance directives (ADs) by geriatricians specifically. Using a phone survey, we contacted all graduates of the geriatric fellowship program to assess their personal use of advance…

Student- or learner-centered teaching has an historical context--it is old and new. This article traces the path that has brought us full circle to once again concentrating on student learning instead of teacher teaching--from the era of learning being restricted to the wealthy and privileged, to today where learning institutions are inclusive.…

A sample of 65 healthy males (31 to 75 years old) memorized lists of six letters (familiar or unfamiliar organization). Age-related differences in the unfamiliar condition could not be wholly accounted for by psychomotor factors. The distributions of response latencies in the oldest groups had greater variance and skew. (Author)

Relation of male adult age and performance on memory for designs was determined by analyzing three cross-sectional samples, two longitudinal samples, and within-cohort comparisons of men born in same period, tested at different times. Results indicate age declines in memory-for-designs performance but only small vocabulary change. (Author)

Matching accuracy and strategy utilization in young, middle-aged, and elderly adults was examined in a series of intramodal, haptic match-to-standard problems. Results indicated that elderly adults were less successful in solving the haptic problems. They also displayed less systematic and logical haptic search strategies. (Author)

Examined the relationship between age and perceived health status in 660 adults. Number of symptoms was the strongest predictor of perceived health status employed in this analysis, followed by age, education, and race. Persons over 60 tend to perceive their own health in a significantly more positive fashion. (Author/JAC)

Two experiments were conducted to determine the effect of aging on encoding and response selection stages of a choice reaction time task. Results suggested reducing stimulus discriminability may affect information processing prior to the encoding stage, but the encoding stage is the primary locus of the slowing which accompanied aging. (Author)

Suggests that a careful review of the logical and empirical bases for the myth argument indicates that there is little to justify it. The evidence suggests that if one lives long enough, decrements in at least some of the important abilities of intelligence is likely to occur. (Author/AM)

Methodological issues in geropsychological assessment research are discussed and illustrated through recent investigations. Cross-sectional studies are needed to extend and diversify age norms, and short-term longitudinal studies should be planned to assess the predictive validity of test outcomes and diagnostic profiles of older adults. (SLD)

The selected bibliography contains about 400 references taken from a keysort file of more than 45,000 references, compiled from commercially available data bases and published sources, relevant to gerontology. Those of questionable accuracy were checked or deleted during the verification process. Most references are in English and were selected…

Compares adult and elderly clients of a Crisis Intervention Service in an urban metropolitan area, which included a telephone counseling/referral service and a mobile intervention team for home assessments. Findings indicated the importance of using a biopsychosocial model, particularly in the assessment of elderly persons. (JAC)

This lesson plan is designed for a 50-minute class to teach adult caretakers of the aged about the psychological aspects of aging. The lesson is part of a course for caregivers in residential facilities and in home care. The lesson plan contains references, a list of equipment needed, objectives, information on how to set up the classroom, and the…

This curriculum guide contains materials for a course that provides occupationally specific training designed to develop knowledge and skills for employment in the area of services for older adults. Contents include an introduction, the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) covered; sample course outlines; instructional strategies organized…