{"title":"Emotional Robots: Principles and Experiences with Paro in Denmark, Germany, and the UK","authors":"B. Klein, L. Gaedt, G. Cook","doi":"10.1024/1662-9647/A000085","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1024/1662-9647/A000085","url":null,"abstract":"As societies age there will be a significant increase of those over 80 and a predicted increase in people with dementia. We know that loneliness increases with old age, and those living with dementia are at risk of social isolation. Also opportunities for sensory stimulation and engagement in pleasurable activities are reduced in old age. The question is what technologies can be used to extend the range of available interventions that can enhance well-being. Emotional robots have been developed for activity and therapeutic purposes. This article explores experiences of the emotional robot PARO in Denmark, Germany and UK, and provides principles of this robot as an activity or activity with a therapeutic purpose.","PeriodicalId":45525,"journal":{"name":"GeroPsych-The Journal of Gerontopsychology and Geriatric Psychiatry","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2013-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"57226963","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
S. Vieluf, Jasmin Mahmoodi, B. Godde, Eva-Maria Reuter, C. Voelcker-Rehage
{"title":"The Influence of Age and Work-Related Expertise on Fine Motor Control","authors":"S. Vieluf, Jasmin Mahmoodi, B. Godde, Eva-Maria Reuter, C. Voelcker-Rehage","doi":"10.1024/1662-9647/A000071","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1024/1662-9647/A000071","url":null,"abstract":"Age-related decline of fine motor control commences even in middle adulthood. Less is known, however, whether age-related changes can be postponed through continuous practice. In this study we tested how age and professional expertise influence fine motor control in middle-aged adults. Forty-eight right-handed novices and experts (35 to 65 years) performed submaximal precision grip force modulation tasks with index or middle finger opposing the thumb, either with the right hand or the left hand. Novices revealed expected age-related differences in all performance measures (force initialization, mean applied force, variability), whereas experts outperformed novices in all outcome measures. Expertise seems to contribute to maintaining manual skills into older age, as indicated by the age and expertise interaction for the force initialization.","PeriodicalId":45525,"journal":{"name":"GeroPsych-The Journal of Gerontopsychology and Geriatric Psychiatry","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2012-11-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"57226826","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Research on Active Aging in Germany","authors":"C. Tesch-Römer, S. Wurm","doi":"10.1024/1662-9647/A000067","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1024/1662-9647/A000067","url":null,"abstract":"The year 2012 is the European Year of Active Aging and Intergenerational Solidarity. On this occasion, the journal GeroPsych presents an overview of the contributions of gerontopsychology to active aging across Europe. Active aging comprises both individual processes and societal opportunity structures for health, participation and integration. The goal of interventions for active aging is to enhance the quality of life as people age. In the following, we will sketch the situation of gerontopsychological research on active aging in Germany. We firstly describe some important milestones in the history of gerontopsychology in Germany, secondly point to some research institutions and their contributions to active aging in Germany, and thirdly give some examples of research on active aging we are involved in ourselves.","PeriodicalId":45525,"journal":{"name":"GeroPsych-The Journal of Gerontopsychology and Geriatric Psychiatry","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2012-09-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"57226814","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Geropsychology Across Europe","authors":"D. Ferring, F. Lang","doi":"10.1024/1662-9647/A000060","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1024/1662-9647/A000060","url":null,"abstract":"Europe is aging. European countries currently have the highest proportions of older people in the world and will remain societies of long life over the next decades. Although this process may be less pronounced in some countries, due to a continuing decreasing fertility rate and a continuously increasing life expectancy the general trend shows a clear disproportion of the younger to the older generations especially in the West European countries. Recent extrapolations by Eurostat predict that there will be a dramatic increase of the “old old” above 80 years within the next 15 years, while the proportion of persons within the active age range between 15 to 64 years will decrease. Aging also has a remarkable gender specificity, the majority of very old people being women. These circumstances challenge societies on several dimensions, not the least with respect to the sustainability of public resources. Moreover, Europe has to simultaneously adapt to the challenges and demands of globalization, adding a further dynamic: the notion of resource fairness and distribution of resources. These challenges are not unknown, and several European countries are now focusing on developing “aging policies” and on the necessity of intergenerational solidarity. For instance, this is indicated by the fact that the year 2012 has been designated the “European Year for Active Ageing and Solidarity between Generations.” Parallel to this, geropsychology and geriatrics has become more and more prominent in national public discourses. Clearly, such demands require more effort to be invested in how the lives and health of older adults can be improved. This involves new challenges to the applied behavioral and medical sciences, requiring greater attention on how to organize intervention, nonpharmaceutical treatments, therapy, and higher education in psychogerontological fields of work. In fact, we believe that greater expertise and knowledge in geropsychology will be necessary for all fields of aging research and practice. The present issue of GeroPsych starts with instructive reports on intervention approaches and research in geropsychology across Europe describing new trends and providing insights into a flourishing field from various national perspectives. Stepankova and colleagues report on evaluation results of a memory training study from the Czech Republic. Schindler and colleagues investigate the extent to which perceived knowledge of dementia is associated with lower caregiver burden in a German sample of dementia caregivers. Despot Lucanin and coauthors from Croatia investigate who changes of subjective health are associated with objective physical and mental health over time. Fernandez-Ballesteros and Schettini evaluate university programs for older adults in Spain. The second section of this special issue includes four national reports giving an overview of the developments, research, and education in the field of geropsychology in Austria (Auer & Gatterer), the ","PeriodicalId":45525,"journal":{"name":"GeroPsych-The Journal of Gerontopsychology and Geriatric Psychiatry","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2012-09-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"57226756","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Associations of psychological, functional, and biological factors with age changes in the self-perceived health of old persons","authors":"J. D. Lučanin, D. Lučanin","doi":"10.1024/1662-9647/A000063","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1024/1662-9647/A000063","url":null,"abstract":"This research investigates the associations of psychological and biological factors with the self-perceived health of old persons. Participants were 411 residents of 11 retirement homes in Zagreb, Croatia: 104 men, 307 women, aged 56–96 years (average 79) at baseline, mobile, and not diagnosed with dementia. The variables measured, at baseline and at 2-year follow-up, were sociodemographics, self-perceived health, functional ability, cognitive function, depression, and social participation. Biochemical variables were measured from vein blood sample at baseline. Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses explained 33%–38% of self-perceived health variance. Functional ability, depressive symptoms, and age were significant predictors of self-perceived health in all analyses. Two biological cardiovascular risk factors variables – glucose and urea – were significantly associated with self-perceived health.","PeriodicalId":45525,"journal":{"name":"GeroPsych-The Journal of Gerontopsychology and Geriatric Psychiatry","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2012-09-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"57226767","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Effects of Depressive Syndromes on the Everyday Competence of Nursing Home Residents with Dementia","authors":"S. Verhülsdonk, S. Engel","doi":"10.1024/1662-9647/A000059","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1024/1662-9647/A000059","url":null,"abstract":"Depression in dementia is very common and has significant effects on the functional impairment of nursing-home residents. This study assesses depression, depression diagnosis, cognitive status, status of medication and functional status in 138 residents. Results: (1) 34.1% of the demented residents had a depressive symptomatology. (2) No diagnosis of “depression” was documented for a high percentage of depressed residents. (3) No correlation between depressive symptoms and treatment with antidepressants was present. (4) There was no correlation between the stage of dementia and the rate of depression. (5) There were significant differences in the everyday competence between depressive and nondepressive residents with dementia. The data suggest the need for an adequate diagnosis and treatment of depressive residents with dementia and underlines the need for improvement in care and treatment in primary care and nursing homes.","PeriodicalId":45525,"journal":{"name":"GeroPsych-The Journal of Gerontopsychology and Geriatric Psychiatry","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2012-08-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"57226699","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Multidimensionality in Developmental Conceptions Across Adulthood","authors":"Maida Mustafic, A. Freund","doi":"10.1024/1662-9647/A000055","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1024/1662-9647/A000055","url":null,"abstract":"Two studies demonstrate the usefulness of a newly developed, direct assessment method of subjective conceptualizations of development across adulthood. Results of Study 1 (N = 234, 18–83 years) suggest that older adults anticipate stronger decline in four domains of functioning (subjective well-being, social relationships, cognition, physical functioning) than younger and middle-aged adults. Study 2 (N = 166, 20–85 years) showed that older adults’ conceptualizations show less differentiation across domains than those of younger and middle-aged adults’. Results of both studies confirm lifespan notions of multidirectionality (expectations of gains and losses) but also show age-related differences in multidimensionality of developmental conceptions (i.e., differences in expected trajectories between domains). Moreover, results provide evidence that favorable conceptions impact perceived controllability and actual subjective well-being.","PeriodicalId":45525,"journal":{"name":"GeroPsych-The Journal of Gerontopsychology and Geriatric Psychiatry","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2012-07-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"57226612","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Perceived Rights of and Social Distance to People with Alzheimer’s Disease","authors":"E. Bourkel, D. Ferring, G. Weber","doi":"10.1024/1662-9647/A000052","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1024/1662-9647/A000052","url":null,"abstract":"The present study investigated how laypeople and professionals (N = 185) judge the rights of someone affected with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and whether social distance exists toward this person. Pa...","PeriodicalId":45525,"journal":{"name":"GeroPsych-The Journal of Gerontopsychology and Geriatric Psychiatry","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2012-03-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"57226600","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The Two Faces of Age Identity","authors":"David Weiss, F. Lang","doi":"10.1024/1662-9647/A000050","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1024/1662-9647/A000050","url":null,"abstract":"As people grow older they develop a sense of a dual age identity, referring to their age group and generation (Weiss & Lang, 2009). Two studies (N1 = 37, 60–85 years and N2 = 104, 65–88 years of age) compared and contrasted older adults’ cognitive representations of two types of age cohort groups (age group vs. generation). Analyses reveal that age-group identity was more frequently associated with loss and decline, whereas generation identity was more frequently associated with positive characteristics and increased levels of agency. Findings also show that generation identity may – especially in later adulthood – serve as a means to compensate for loss. The self-protective function of the dual age identity and the dynamic and flexible nature of identification are further discussed.","PeriodicalId":45525,"journal":{"name":"GeroPsych-The Journal of Gerontopsychology and Geriatric Psychiatry","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2012-03-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"57227005","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Philippe Rast, Stuart W S Macdonald, Scott M Hofer
{"title":"Intensive Measurement Designs for Research on Aging.","authors":"Philippe Rast, Stuart W S Macdonald, Scott M Hofer","doi":"10.1024/1662-9647/a000054","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1024/1662-9647/a000054","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Intensive measurement burst designs permit analysis of behavioral and biological processes as they unfold over short and long periods of time and providing the opportunity to identify change from an individual's normative level of functioning. The measurement burst design permits statistical decomposition of short-term variation and learning effects that overlay normative aging and provide stronger bases for detecting accelerated change due to pathological processes. We provide an overview of design features and analysis of measurement burst data in Project MIND. The objective of intensive measurement designs is to obtain greater resolution of processes of interest that permit reliable and sensitive assessments of functioning and change in functioning and of key determinants underlying short-term variation and long-term aging and health-related change.</p>","PeriodicalId":45525,"journal":{"name":"GeroPsych-The Journal of Gerontopsychology and Geriatric Psychiatry","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2012-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1024/1662-9647/a000054","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"32213359","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}