Deals with the aged and the process of aging and links this knowledge to interventions for improving the quality of life. Featuring expert gerontologists, this volume highlights the development of preventive, therapeutic, and rehabilitative interventions designed to assist older people maintain their independence and quality of life.

Foreword, James O. Mason, MD, DrPH Acknowledgments Contributors Introduction: Aging and Quality of Life-Celebrating New Discoveries, Marcia G. Ory, PhD, MPH, Donna M. Cox, PhD, Helen C. Gift, PhD, and Ronald P. Abeles, PhD Part I: Background Perspectives Historical Perspective on Aging and Quality of Life, Robert N. Butler, MD Conceptualizing and Measuring Quality of Life in Older Populations, Anita L. Stewart, PhD, and Abby C. King, PhD Part II: Life Styles and Quality of Life Behavioral and Social Factors in Healthy Aging, George A. Kaplan, PhD, and William J. Strawbridge, PhD Disability in Late Life, Lois M. Verbrugge, PhD, MPH Self-Care and Quality of Life in Old Age, Gordon H. DeFriese, PhD, Thomas R. Konrad, PhD, Alison Woomert, PhD, Jean E. Kincade Norburn, PhD, and Shulamit Bernard, RN, MS Part III: Physical Health, Quality of Life, and Aging Rehabilitation in Old Age, T. Franklin Williams, MD Psychosocial Status in Cancer Patients, Barrie R. Cassileth, PhD Biopsychosocial Risks for Cardiovascular Disease in Spouse Caregivers of Persons with Alzheimer’s Disease, Peter P. Vitaliano, PhD, Cynthia M. Dougherty, PhD, RN, and Ilene C. Siegler, PhD, MPH Part IV: Older People and Their Environments Social Support: Content, Causes, and Consequences, Robert L. Kahn, PhD Aging Well and Institutional Living: A Paradox?, Margret M. Baltes, PhD Human Factors and Aging: The Operator-Task Dynamic, Robin A. Barr, DPhil Maintaining a Sense of Control in Later Life, Margie E. Lachman, PhD, Mauri A. Ziff, MA, and Avron Spiro III, PhD Part V: Social Structures, Quality of Life, and Aging The Challenging Structure of Work Opportunities: Toward an Age- Integrated Society, Matilda White Riley, DSc, and Karyn A. Loscocco, PhD Socioeconomic Status and Health over the Life Course, Stephanie A. Robert, MSW, and James S. House, PhD New Directions in Socioeconomic Research on Aging, James P. Smith, PhD Minority and Socioeconomic Status: Impact on Quality of Life in Aging, H. Asuman Kiyak, PhD, and Nancy R. Hooyman, MSW, PhD Part VI: Policy Implications Public Policy and Long-Term Care, Carroll L. Estes, PhD, and Liz Close, MS Changing the Social Environment to Promote Health, Lennart Levi, MD, and Donna M. Cox, PhD Exploring the Future of Health Care for Older People, Robert H. Binstock, PhD, Dennis W. Jahnigen, MD, and Stephen G. Post, PhD Index