Social gerontology, or the sociology of aging, has two primary foci: (a) social factors during late life, and (b) social antecedents and consequences of aging. Thus, social gerontology includes examination of both the status of being old and the...

The study of aging, or gerontology, is a unique discipline that has emerged during the last half of the twentieth century. Advances in gerontology have been the result of a growing understanding of biomedical functions, behavior, and societal...

progressive physiological changes in an organism that lead to senescence, or a decline of biological functions and of the organism's ability to adapt to metabolic stress. Aging takes place in a cell, an organ, or the total organism with the passage of...

The physical deterioration of one’s body is an inevitable part of the ageing process. However, the ageist cultural and societal attitudes that often accompany ageing are not. The way in which Western culture both marginalises and stigmatises...

In the past, there has been a tendency to confuse aging with diseases that are frequently associated with old age. It is, however, important to clearly distinguish the biochemical and physiological processes occurring with the onset of years from...

Colloquially this term refers to those changes which occur in later life, but ageing more accurately refers to the changes which occur in any living system over its total lifespan. Where people are concerned, societies divide lifespan in various...

The proportion of older adults in the populations of western countries continues to increase and is estimated to reach around 13 per cent by the end of the twentieth century. An understanding of the kinds of changes in cognitive processes and mental...

A prodigy at ten, a genius at twenty, an ordinary man at thirty. (Japanese) Age and wedlock tame man and beast. (English) Age brings aches. (German) Age carries everything away, even the mind. (Roman) Age is a sorry traveling companion. (Danish) Age is...

Gradual change in an organism that leads to increased risk of weakness, disease, and death. It takes place in a cell, an organ, or the total organism over the entire adult life span of any living thing. There is a decline in biological functions and in...

Jones, T. (2001) The Elder Within , West Linn, OR: Elderhood Institute. Miller, R.S. and Schachter-Shalomi, Z. (1995) From Age-Ing to Sage-Ing, New York: Warner Books. See also: age and ageing; retirement; rites of passage TERRY...

The lifelong process of growing old, its study constitutes an important part of gerontology and education of older...

Aging is any change in an organism over time. Aging refers to a multidimensional process of physical, psychological, and social change (Hultsch and Deutsch). Some dimensions of aging grow and expand over time, while others decline. Reaction time, for...