Handbook of the Psychology of Aging

The Handbook of the Psychology of Aging, Sixth Edition provides a definitive reference source for information on the psychology of adult development and aging. It provides comprehensive reviews of research on biological and social influences on behavior and age-related changes in psychological function. The Sixth Edition contains several new chapters on concepts, theory, and methods in the psychology of aging as well as new chapters on behavioral neuroscience, stress, minority aging, autobiographical memory, sexual behavior, and religion and aging. Chapters on classic subjects continued from earlier editions have been written by all new contributors, making the Sixth Edition virtually 100% new material. The Handbook is an essential reference for researchers in adult development and gerontology and suitable as an advanced textbook for courses on the psychology of aging.

Handbook of the Psychology of Aging, 6e provides a comprehensive summary and evaluation of recent research on the psychological aspects of aging. The 22 chapters are organized into four divisions: Concepts, Theories, and Methods in the Psychology of Aging; Biological and Social Influences on Aging; Behavioral Processes and Aging; and Complex Behavioral Concepts and Processes in Aging.

The 6th edition of the Handbook is considerably changed from the previous edition. Half of the chapters are on new topics and the remaining half are on returning subjects that are entirely new presentations by different authors of new material. Some of the exciting new topics include Contributions of Cognitive Neuroscience to Understanding Behavior and Aging, Everyday Problem Solving and Decision Making, Autobiographical Memory, and Religion and Health Late in Life.

The Handbook will be of use to researchers and professional practitioners working with the aged. It is also suitable for use as a textbook for graduate and advanced undergraduate courses on the psychology of aging.

The Handbook of the Psycology of Aging, Sixth Edition is part of the Handbooks on Aging series, including Handbook of the Biology of Aging and Handbook of Aging and the Social Sciences, also in their 6th editions.

Part 1 Concepts, Theory, and Methods in the Psychology of Aging 1. Theoretical Issues in the Psychology of Aging 2. Design and Analysis of Longitudinal Studies on Aging

Part 2 Biological and Social Influences on Aging and Behavior 3. Behavior Genetics and Aging 4. Contributions of Cognitive Neuroscience to the Understanding of Behavior and Aging 5. Health, Behavior, and Optimal Aging 6. Environmental Gerontology

Part 3 Behavioral Processes and Aging 7. Vision and Aging 8. Aging, Complexity, and Motor Performance 9. Changing Role of the Speed of Processing Construct in the Cognitive Psychology of Human Aging 10. Memory Aging 11. Applied Learning and Aging 12. Language Comprehension and Production in Normal Aging 13. Selection, Optimization, and Compensation as Developmental Mechanisms of Adaptive Resource Allocation 14. Everyday Problem Solving and Decision Making 15. Aging and the Intersection of Cognition, Motivation, and Emotion 16. Personality and Aging 17. Attitudes toward Aging and Their Effects on Behavior 18. Improving the Mental Health of Older Adults 19. Adaptive Technology

Part 4 Complex Behavioral Concepts and Processes in Aging 20. Wisdom and Aging 21. Autobiographical Memory and the Narrative Self over the Life Span 22. Religion and Health in Late Life

James E. Birren is currently Associate Director of the Center on Aging at the University of California, Los Angeles, and serves as an adjunct professor in medicine, psychiatry, and biobehavioral sciences. He is also professor emeritus of gerontology and psychology at the University of Southern California. Dr. Birren's previous postions include service as Chief of the section on aging of the National Institute of Mental Health, founding Executive Director and Dean of the Ethel Percy Andrus Gerontology Center of USC, founding Director of the Anna and Harry Borun Center for Gerontological Research at UCLA, and President of the Gerontological Society of America, the Western Gerontological Society, and the Division on Adult Development and Aging of the American Psychological Association. Dr. Birren's many awards include the Brookdale Foundation Award for Gerontological Research, the Sandoz prize for Gerontological Research, and the award for outstanding contribution to gerontology by the Canadian Association of Gerontology. Author of over 250 scholarly publications, Dr. Birren has research interests including how speed of behavior changes with age, the causes and consequences of slowed information processing in the older nervous system, the effect of age on decision-making processes, and the role of expertise in skilled occupations. He has served as a delegate to several White House Conferences on Aging and continues to have a strong interest in developing national priorities for research and education related to issues of aging.
K. Warner Schaie holds an appointment as affiliate professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Washington. He is also the Evan Pugh Professor Emeritus of Human Development and Psychology at the Pennsylvania State University. He received his Ph.D. in clinical and developmental psychology from the University of Washington, an honorary Dr. Phil. from the Friedrich-Schiller University of Jena, Germany, and an honorary Sc.D. degree from West Virginia University. He received the Kleemeier Award for Distinguished Research Contributions and the Distinguished Career Contribution to Gerontology Award from the Gerontological Society of America, the MENSA lifetime career award, and the Distinguished Scientific Contributions award from the American Psychological Association. He is a past president of the APA Division of Adult Development and Aging and currently represents that Division on the APA Council of Representatives. He is author or editor of more than 60 books including the textbook Adult Development and Aging (5th edition, with S.L. Willis) and of all previous editions of the Handbook of the Psychology of Aging (with J.E. Birren or S.L. Willis). He has directed the Seattle Longitudinal Study of cognitive aging since 1956 and is the author of more than 300 journal articles and chapters on the psychology of aging. His current research interest is in the life course of adult intelligence, its antecedents and modifiability, the impact of cognitive behavior in midlife upon the integrity of brain structures in old age, the early detection of risk for dementia, as well as methodological issues in the developmental sciences.