Gerontology Commons^™

How Has Grandparenthood Changed In Rural China?, Merril D. Silverstein

Population Health Research Brief Series

China’s rapid modernization and development have led to changes across Chinese society, including within the family. China is experiencing declining birth rates, meaning that fewer older adults are becoming grandparents. At the same time, there has been growing demand for grandparents to serve as caregivers for their grandchildren. This data slice examines the changes in grandparenting in rural China and calls for policies that decrease caregiver burnout, stress, and associated poor health outcomes.

A Look Towards The Future Of Eldercare: Lessons Learned From Social Care Models In Japan, Caroline M. Steil

Honors Theses

The rapidly accelerating trend of population aging is redefining the state of eldercare globally, as every country is currently or will soon face a gap in the excess demand for care versus the scarce supply of caregivers, both formal and informal. Specifically, there is a decrease in the number of elders seeking care through a family member as well as less caregivers in institutions to provide care for elders. Japan is at the vanguard of this caregiving gap, and thus provides key lessons, particularly from two innovative models of eldercare: Ibasho, a grass-roots, non-profit organization, and Japan's Long-Term Care Insurance …

African-American Lay Pastoral Care Facilitators’ Perspectives On Dementia Caregiver Education And Training, Nik M. Lampe, Nidhi Desai, Tomeka Norton-Brown, Alexandra C. H. Nowakowski, Robert L. Glueckauf

The Qualitative Report

The African-American Alzheimer’s Caregiver Training and Support Project 2 (ACTS 2) is a faith-integrated, skills-training and support program for distressed African American family caregivers of persons living with dementia across Florida. Caregivers participate in a 12-week, telephone-based, skills-building and support program led by faith community workers (i.e., lay pastoral care facilitators) who provide volunteer services to their denominations. In this case study, we examined facilitators’ perspectives and recommendations for supplementary audiovisual and written training materials to optimize group process and goal-setting skills. Utilizing a qualitative approach, we explored facilitators’ needs, experiences in using current training materials, and recommendations for supplementary …

Juggling Multiple Roles: An Examination Of Role Conflict And Its Brief Report: Relationship To Older Adult Volunteer Satisfaction And Retention, Jennifer Crittenden, Sandy Butler, Nicholas Silver, Abbie Hartford, Rachel Coleman

Maine Center on Aging Research and Evaluation

No abstract provided.

Getting The Most Out Of Your Volunteer Experience: Tips For Caregivers, Jennifer Crittenden

Maine Center on Aging Research and Evaluation

This tipsheet provides helpful hints and tips for older adult caregivers who are either currently volunteering or wish to become involved in volunteer activities. Tips focus on strategies for juggling multiple responsibilities and reaping the benefits of volunteering.

Supporting Older Workers And Caregivers: Tips For Volunteer Managers, Jennifer Crittenden

Maine Center on Aging Research and Evaluation

Volunteering has been linked to a number of positive outcomes for older adults such as good health and mental health, social connections, and a sense of purpose. However, older adults are increasingly giving their time to paid work, caregiving, and other important endeavors. For many older adults, especially those who are employed and those who are caring for loved ones, finding the time to volunteer can be a challenge. Volunteer programs can encourage older adults to volunteer by offering flexible and appealing program options for these two groups.

This tipsheet provides helpful hints and tips for volunteer managers for helping …

Role Enhancement For Older Volunteers: How Does Formal Volunteering Complement Other Life Roles?, Jennifer Crittenden, Sandy Butler

Maine Center on Aging Research and Evaluation

This poster presentation reviews findings from a recent national survey of older adult RSVP volunteers that examined role conflict and role enhancement among active older adult volunteers. Survey findings are presented along with implications for volunteer program administrators for how they can best engage with volunteers who are juggling additional life role responsibilities (paid work, caregiving, and informal helping/volunteering) in addition to their formal volunteer role.

The phase I survey for this project was implemented across 55 RSVP program sites nationally engaging a total of 1,697 older adult volunteer who returned surveys (response rate = 25%). These surveys yielded 1,229 …

Parenting A Second Time Around: The Strengths And Challenges Of Indigenous Grandparent Caregivers, Jessica Y. Hsieh, Kristen J. Mercer, Sarah A. Costa

GrandFamilies: The Contemporary Journal of Research, Practice and Policy

Background: There is a lack of knowledge and research of Indigenous grandparents rearing grandchildren. A burgeoning area of research, the literature only includes studies conducted from the year 2002 and onwards. In order to minimize the burdens that Indigenous grandparents encounter when assuming this role, a greater understanding of this population is crucial. This scoping review was undertaken in an attempt to gain insight into and generate awareness of this population, specifically concerning their needs and experiences. Methods: Sixteen databases were searched, including two medical databases and fourteen social science databases. A total of 92 titles and abstracts were independently …

Medicare Claims Indicators Of Healthcare Utilization Differences After Hospitalization For Ischemic Stroke: Race, Gender, And Caregiving Effects, David L. Roth, Orla C. Sheehan, Jin Huang, James D. Rhodes, Suzanne Judd, Meredith Kilgore, Brett Kissela, Janeet P. Bettger, William E. Haley

Aging Studies Faculty Publications

Background—Differences in healthcare utilization after stroke may partly explain race or gender differences in stroke outcomes and identify factors that might reduce post-acute stroke care costs.

Aim—To examine systematic differences in Medicare claims for healthcare utilization after hospitalization for ischemic stroke in a United States (US) population-based sample.

Methods—Claims were examined over a 6-month period after hospitalization for 279 ischemic stroke survivors 65 years or older from the REasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) study. Statistical analyses examined differences in post-acute healthcare utilization, adjusted for pre-stroke utilization, as a function of race (African American …

The Role Of Workplace Supervisor Support In Cargivers' Marital Relationships, Kenona H. Southwell

Open Access Dissertations

Family caregivers make important contributions to care recipients and the economy. However, providing care for ill or disabled family members can be challenging, particularly when the role of caregiver is accompanied by additional roles such as employee, spouse, and parent ( Hammer & Neal, 2008). There is some evidence that the demands of caregiving may negatively influence the quality of caregivers’ marriages (Bookwala, 2009). Much of caregiving research, however, is focused on the influence of caregiving and multiple caregiving roles on caregivers’ health (see Pinquart & Sörensen, 2011), but less attention has been paid to other aspects of caregivers’ lives …

Factors Associated With Unmet Needs Among African-American Dementia Care Providers, P. J. Desin, Allison M. Caban-Holt, Erin L. Abner, Linda J. Van Eldik, Frederick A. Schmitt

Sanders-Brown Center on Aging Faculty Publications

Racial and ethnic minorities currently comprise 20% of the U.S. population; in 2050, this figure is expected to rise to 42%. As a result, Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the 5th leading cause of death for people aged 65 and older, is likely to increase in these groups. Most dementia caregiving for these populations comes from family and friends, especially among families with lower socioeconomic status. A convenience sample of 30 African-American dementia caregivers was interviewed to determine unmet needs. Participants expressed a limited desire for formal services, such as support groups, legal advice, case management, and homemaker services. Instead, commonly expressed …

The Role Of Unpaid Volunteers In A Group Caregiving Approach : Validation Of The Sharetm The Care Program, Amy Hegener

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The growing population of older adults will lead to a change in the age structure in the United States, with older people outnumbering younger people for the first time. The changing age structure will affect the current workforce and place demands on the health and long term services and supports system. Moreover, with the suspension of many government programs and hospitals working to cut readmissions the burden on caregivers is increasing. On the other hand, the new generation of older adults will be healthier and better educated than previous generations. They are expected to be more productive and civically engaged, …

A Review Of Research On Aging Families: Emerging Issues, Zheng Wu, Sean Browning

Population Change and Lifecourse Strategic Knowledge Cluster Discussion Paper Series/ Un Réseau stratégique de connaissances Changements de population et parcours de vie Document de travail

Against the background of the demographic shifts of population aging, increased immigration, and growing ethno‐cultural diversity in Canada, it is important that we gain a better understanding of the needs of aging families. To date, family gerontologists have begun producing research on aging families to better understand how their needs can be met. In order to assess the state of the literature on aging families, we conducted a literature search (2009‐ 2014) of eleven top, peer‐reviewed journals. This literature was then assessed, revealing five prevalent themes: (1) structural diversity in aging families, (2) family relationships in later life, (3) caregiving …

Fact Sheet: Cohort Differences In Parents’ Illness And Nursing Home Use, Maximiliane E. Szinovacz

Gerontology Institute Publications

Surviving parents of the war baby and baby boom cohorts are now reaching very old age. Given their increased longevity and postponement of morbidity into very old age (see Fact Sheets on parental mortality and care needs), it is essential to estimate whether and to what extent these parents will require informal or formal care. Such care is typically most burdensome and costly if it involves long-lasting illness prior to death. Furthermore, Medicare and especially Medicaid expenditures will depend on whether or not these parents require nursing home care. To obtain some estimates of the prevalence of long-lasting illness and …

Fact Sheet: Cohort Differences In Parental Care Needs, Maximiliane E. Szinovacz, Linda C. Lieber

Gerontology Institute Publications

There has been considerable concern about the availability of informal and especially family care when the baby boom cohorts reach old age (Ryan and Smith et al., 2012). However, as care needs typically arise in late old age (age 70 or later), a more immediate issue is the care burden faced by the baby boomer cohorts themselves as their parents now reach late old age. To assess the potential care burden faced by baby boom adult children one first needs to assess their parents’ care needs. Such assessment is also essential as research shows that parental care needs do not …

An Examination Of Caregiving Dyads: Community Dwelling Chronically Ill Older Adults And Their Caregivers, Jessica E. Haxton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Increases in life expectancy among older adults raise important concerns about the availability of resources for an aging population living with chronic and debilitating illnesses. Living longer is complicated by the fact that many elders prefer to reside in their homes until medical or other conditions require an alternative living arrangement. The strong desire to remain at home expressed by older persons in the United States has in turn created an increased demand on informal caregiving. Consequently, adult children often bear the burden of providing care to their aging parents. In view of this demand it is critical that research …

Changes In Formal-Informal Caregiving In Elderly Stroke Survivors, Holly Anne Beard

Health Services Research Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to determine the extent to which the Andersen and Aday Model of Health Services Use to predict cross-sectional and longitudinal differences in the caregiving source among stroke survivors (n=477) over a six-year period. This study involves a secondary analysis of a longitudinal panel study focusing upon three waves of interview data from the HAS/AHEAD study spanning 1998 through 2002. Multinomial logistic regression was utilized to examine caregiving source cross-sectionally at each wave. Clustered multinomial logistic regression was used to examine relationships between predictor variables in the model and caregiving source across waves while holding …