Handbook of Health Psychology and Aging

by Aldwin, Carolyn M.; Park, Crystal L.; Spiro, Avron; Abeles, Ronald P.

• ISBN13: 9781593850579
• ISBN10: 1593850573
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2007-01-26
• Publisher: The Guilford Press

Summary

Meeting a growing need, this authoritative reference and text comprehensively examines the interplay of biological, psychological, and social factors in health and illness in older adults. The volume explores how and why some people adapt more successfully than others to age-related stressors such as chronic illness, disability, and loss, and identifies ways to promote coping and resilience. With contributions from leading researchers in health psychology and gerontology, the Handbookintegrates state-of-the-science theories and methods from both fields. Key topics include how aging affects the cardiovascular, neuroendocrine, and immune systems; the influences on adult development and health of personality, emotions, social support, and religiousness; and effective interventions in healthcare settings.

Author Biography

Carolyn M. Aldwin, PhD, is Professor and Chair of the Department of Human Development and Family Sciences at Oregon State University. She received a FIRST award from the National Institute on Aging for her study of psychosocial factors affecting health in aging early in her career, and has published over 60 articles and chapters in this area. She is a fellow of both Divisions 20 (Adult Development and Aging) and 38 (Health Psychology) of the American Psychological Association, as well as the Gerontological Society of America. She is the author of Stress, Coping, and Development, Second Edition: An Integrative Perspective.
 
Crystal L. Park, PhD, is Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Connecticut. Her research and publications focus on stress, coping, and adaptation, particularly on how people’s beliefs, goals, and values affect their ways of perceiving and dealing with stressful events. She is on the editorial boards of the Journal of Clinical and Consulting Psychology and Psychology and Health, and is coeditor of Handbook of the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality and Positive Life Changes in the Context of Medical Illness.
 
Avron Spiro III, PhD, is a Senior Research Scientist at the Normative Aging Study, part of the Massachusetts Veterans Epidemiology Research and Information Center, at the Department of Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System. He is also Associate Professor of Epidemiology at the Boston University School of Public Health as well as Associate Professor of Health Policy and Health Services Research at the Boston University Goldman School of Dental Medicine.

Table of Contents

Theoretical and Methodological Issues
Health Psychology and Aging: An Introduction	p. 3
Challenging Assumptions about Adult Development Implications for the Health of Older Adults	p. 9
A Developmental Approach to Psychosocial Risk Factors and Successful Aging	p. 30
Methods in Health Psychology: Relevance to Aging	p. 54
The Relevance of a Lifespan Developmental Approach to Health	p. 75
Biological Issues
Psychoneuroimmunological Processes in Aging and Health	p. 97
The Psychoneuroendocrinology of Aging: Anabolic and Catabolic Hormones	p. 119
Cardiovascular Reactivity in Older Adults	p. 142
Psychosocial Issues
A Lifespan Approach to Personality and Longevity: The Case of Conscientiousness	p. 167
Sense of Control and Health: A Dynamic Duo in the Aging Process	p. 186
Coping, Health, and Aging	p. 210
Health and Psychological Consequences of Caregiving	p. 227
Psychosocial Stress, Emotion Regulation, and Resilience among Older Adults	p. 250
Optimizing Social Relationships as a Resource for Health and Well-Being in Later Life	p. 267
Issues of Diversity in Health Psychology and Aging	p. 286
Religious and Spiritual Issues in Health and Aging	p. 313
Clinical Issues
Self-Regulation of Health Threats, Affect, and the Self: Lessons from Older Adults	p. 341
The Role of Clinical Health Geropsychology in the Health Care of Older Adults Sara Honn Qualls	p. 367
Effects of Changes in Diagnostic Thresholds on Health Care for Older Adults	p. 390
Health Psychology and Aging: Moving to the Next Generation of Research	p. 413
Author Index	p. 425
Subject Index	p. 441
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