The product is designed to provide a simple step-by-step guide for developing intergenerational projects. The how-to guide is a derivative product of the UN Global report on ageism and forms part of a toolkit. The Guide is informed by a specific evidenced-based review and lessons from years of grass roots intergenerational community practice.
Social isolation and loneliness are serious yet underappreciated public health risks that affect a significant portion of the older adult population. Approximately one-quarter of community-dwelling Americans aged 65 and older are considered to be socially isolated, and a significant proportion of adults in the United States report feeling lonely. People who are 50 years of age or older are more likely to experience many of the risk factors that can cause or exacerbate social isolation or loneliness, such as living alone, the loss of family or friends, chronic illness, and sensory impairments. Over a life course, social isolation and loneliness may be episodic or chronic, depending upon an individual's circumstances and perceptions. A substantial body of evidence demonstrates that social isolation presents a major risk for premature mortality, comparable to other risk factors such as high blood pressure, smoking, or obesity. As older adults are particularly high-volume and high-frequency users of the health care system, there is an opportunity for health care professionals to identify, prevent, and mitigate the adverse health impacts of social isolation and loneliness in older adults. Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults summarizes the evidence base and explores how social isolation and loneliness affect health and quality of life in adults aged 50 and older, particularly among low income, underserved, and vulnerable populations. This report makes recommendations specifically for clinical settings of health care to identify those who suffer the resultant negative health impacts of social isolation and loneliness and target interventions to improve their social conditions. Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults considers clinical tools and methodologies, better education and training for the health care workforce, and dissemination and implementation that will be important for translating research into practice, especially as the evidence base for effective interventions continues to flourish.
With the collective knowledge of expert contributors in the field, The International Handbook on Ageing and Public Policy explores the challenges arising from the ageing of populations across the globe. With an expansive look at the topic, this com
This volume analyzes intergenerational solidarity from diverse interdisciplinary angles within the social sciences. It provides analytical tools to advance research and documents how societies are adjusting to major changes that affect the core of the social fabric.
In Intergenerational Contact Zones, Kaplan, Thang, Sánchez, and Hoffman introduce novel ways of thinking, planning, and designing intergenerationally enriched environments. Filled with vivid examples of how ICZs breathe new life into communities and social practices, this important volume focuses on practical descriptions of ways in which practitioners and researchers could translate and infuse the notion of ICZ into their work. The ICZ concept embraces generation and regeneration of community life, parks and recreational locations, educational environments, residential settings and family life, and national and international contexts for social development. With its focus on creating effective and meaningful intergenerational settings, it offers a rich how-to toolkit to help professionals and user groups as they begin to consider ways to develop, activate, and nurture intergenerational spaces. Intergenerational Contact Zones will be essential reading for academics and researchers interested in human development, aging, and society, as well as practitioners, educators, and policy makers interested in intergenerational gathering places from an international perspective.
This open access book provides a comprehensive perspective on the concept of ageism, its origins, the manifestation and consequences of ageism, as well as ways to respond to and research ageism. The book represents a collaborative effort of researchers from over 20 countries and a variety of disciplines, including, psychology, sociology, gerontology, geriatrics, pharmacology, law, geography, design, engineering, policy and media studies. The contributors have collaborated to produce a truly stimulating and educating book on ageism which brings a clear overview of the state of the art in the field. The book serves as a catalyst to generate research, policy and public interest in the field of ageism and to reconstruct the image of old age and will be of interest to researchers and students in gerontology and geriatrics.
Healthy mental, emotional, and behavioral (MEB) development is a critical foundation for a productive adulthood. Much is known about strategies to support families and communities in strengthening the MEB development of children and youth, by promoting healthy development and also by preventing and mitigating disorder, so that young people reach adulthood ready to thrive and contribute to society. Over the last decade, a growing body of research has significantly strengthened understanding of healthy MEB development and the factors that influence it, as well as how it can be fostered. Yet, the United States has not taken full advantage of this growing knowledge base. Ten years later, the nation still is not effectively mitigating risks for poor MEB health outcomes; these risks remain prevalent, and available data show no significant reductions in their prevalence. Fostering Healthy Mental, Emotional, and Behavioral Development in Children and Youth: A National Agenda examines the gap between current research and achievable national goals for the next ten years. This report identifies the complexities of childhood influences and highlights the need for a tailored approach when implementing new policies and practices. This report provides a framework for a cohesive, multidisciplinary national approach to improving MEB health.
"Vital for any organization with multigenerational staffs, and for marketers, public relations professionals, HRD managers, or executives." Library Journal, Starred Review Gentelligence: The Revolutionary Approach to Leading an Intergenerational Workforce presents a transformative way to end the generational wars once and for all. This book first introduces Gentelligence as a powerful business strategy and shows why it is critical for the future of work. It then presents a practical guide and a call to action for leaders of all ages to unlock the potential strengths of each generation. Readers will learn how an intergenerational workforce can be reframed as a profound business opportunity and discover how Gentelligence can help them win the talent war, create strong, diverse teams, and build adaptable cultures that will flourish in an era of rapid change. Gentelligence shares groundbreaking evidence that will have readers thinking about their generationally diverse workforce in an entirely different way. Readers will discover: Where generational conflict originates, and how it results in both dangerous ageism and reverse ageism in today’s workplaces. Why the generation gap stems from a misunderstanding of shared core values across all generations. How to find essential common ground with colleagues, both older and younger, and recognize the unique needs that come with different generational identities. How generational shaming leads us to view those from other generations as competitors rather than collaborators, further damaging employee engagement, team dynamics, innovation, and organizational culture. How leveraging the unique strengths of each generation at work can lead to a win-win outcome for all. How traditional views on leadership have been turned upside down as a result of new generational dynamics, with many employees currently being led by managers that are younger than themselves, and older leaders struggling to make sense of changing norms around authority and power. Gentelligence reveals the opportunities within an intergenerational workforce and provides actionable tools to help leaders build Gentelligent organizations. Unlike other books on generational leadership, this book rejects common stereotypes assigned to different generations, replacing them with a deep understanding of why those who grew up in different times may behave in unique and valuable, ways. We challenge leaders to go beyond simply accepting generational differences to leverage them proactively to increase engagement, innovation, and organizational success.
Intergenerational Programs: Understanding What We Have Created focuses on research efforts to design, improve, and evaluate activities among younger and older individuals while examining how intergenerational activities impact children, families, and older adult participants. The first single volume to reflect the current state of research knowledge in this area, this vital guide provides practitioners, program developers, researchers, and students with case studies, research findings, and models and examples of productive activities. It will help you guide short- and long-term program development, document activity effectiveness, and ensure program survival during fiscal hardships to give participants constructive and positive experiences. Discussing the opportunity to transfer experience and knowledge of older persons in our society to future generations, Intergenerational Programs: Understanding What We Have Created examines the challenges that may arise in providing meaningful activities for younger and older persons. This helpful book explores research methods, such as qualitative approaches with large, national data sets; observations; program histories; and qualitative analyses of interviews with small numbers of program participants to help you create appropriate activities and foster interdependence between these two age groups. Intergenerational Programs: Understanding What We Have Created will help you research programs and produce successful activity outcomes with such techniques as: using an ethnographic approach, involving a holistic perspective and using field-based data collection methods, to meet the challenges of creating programs among two different age groups and the social problems each group faces using constructivist and sociocultural orientations, which are traditionally applied to a “classroom learning,” to offer new ways of viewing and assessing learning in community-based programs understanding the positive effects grandparents can have on their grandchildren, including helping parents resolve children's behavioral problems and assisting in providing positive environments incorporating knowledge of drug abuse issues, problem-solving skills, feelings of self-worth, and academic goals into programs to benefit youths developing elder-care services in conjunction with businesses to improve the quality of life for the elderly and the workers, as well as decreasing workers’absenteeism, mistakes, and time used to make personal calls to elderly relatives who need careComprehensive and intelligent, this current book contains studies and research that explore the negative and positive aspects of certain activities, allowing you to learn from the experiences of others. This book provides research methods and evaluation measures to help you decide what kinds of activities are needed in order to best benefit participants. As a result, you will be able to create relevant programs, assess their effectiveness, and help join different generations in working together for an improved quality of life for all group members.
The "intergenerational programming concept," now garnering increased interest in America, has been applied to Japanese society as a strategy for maintaining intergenerational and cultural continuity in the face of social and demographic changes. While Japan is known for its enduring and resilient family structure which provides support for people of all ages, the country's growing aged population, combined with a trend away from three-generation families and changing social values, exposes a need for new mechanisms beyond the family to promote intergenerational communication, support, and cultural continuity. The authors identify a rich geographically diverse set of intergenerational programs and activities that serve a wide range of human and community development objectives. Beyond promoting intergenerational understanding among participants, these initiatives function to help people to pursue their educational objectives, arts and recreation interests, desired states of health and welfare, environmental preservation and community development goals, and religious and spiritual well-being. Intergenerational endeavors constitute an integral approach for supplementing familial support systems and maintaining social cohesion in Japan as it enters the twenty-first century.
