Aging and Older Adulthood

Joan T. Erber is Emeritus Professor of Psychology at Florida International University, where she was a recipient of a State University System Professorial Excellence Program (PEP) Award. She has extensive experience teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in adult development and aging. Her research focuses on aging and memory and how stereotypes influence our perceptions of older adults. Her research has been published in journals such as Psychology and Aging, Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, and Experimental Aging Research. Dr. Erber is a Fellow of the Gerontological Society of America (GSA), the Association for Psychological Science (APS), and the American Psychological Association (APA). She is a past president of the APA s Division 20 (Adult Development and Aging). Her books include Aging and Older Adulthood, Second Edition, (Wiley-Blackwell, 2010) and Aging and Older Adulthood (Wadsworth/Cengage, 2005).

Contents ix Credits and Sources xix Integrated Themes in Aging and Older Adulthood xxiii Preface and Acknowledgments xxxiii 1 Introduction to Aging and Older Adulthood 1 2 Theory and Method in Studying Aging and Older Adulthood 33 3 Biological Aging and Health 61 4 Sensation, Perception, and Attention 100 5 Memory 132 6 Intellectual Functioning 165 7 Cognition and Problem Solving in the Everyday World 199 8 Personality and Coping 234 9 Social Interaction and Social Ties 265 10 Employment, Retirement, and Living Arrangements 298 11 Mental Health, Psychopathology, and Therapy 329 12 Coping with Death, Dying, and Bereavement 361 13 Looking Ahead: Aging in the Future 383 Glossary 394 References 408 Index 442