Aging: Concepts and Controversies

Presenting current research in an innovative text-reader format,Aging: Concepts and Controversies,Ninth Editionencourages students to become involved and take an informed stand on the major aging issues we face as a society. Not simply a summary of research literature, Harry R. Moody and Jennifer R. Sasser's text focuses on controversies and questions, rather than on assimilating facts or arriving at a single "correct" view about aging and older people. Drawing on their extensive expertise, the authors first provide an overview of aging in three domains: aging over the life course, health care, and the socioeconomic aspects of aging. Each section is followed by a series of edited readings, offering different perspectives from experts and specialists on that subject.
New readings focus on whether current federal spending on the elderly is sustainable and fair to other groups, how older consumers are reshaping the business landscape, and the challenges of marketing and selling to customers 60 and over. More emphasis is placed on how social class and inequality earlier in life can shape our final years and the number of older Americans living in poverty. The section onAging and Health Carehas been thoroughly updated to reflect the latest data about chronic diseases that affect the elderly, government spending on health care, and policy changes to programs like Medicaid and Medicare. The section on theSocial and Economic Outlook for an Aging Societygives the most current picture of the racial and ethnic diversity of older Americans, their participation in the labor force, and their income and wealth.