Anne Jamieson – författare

The growing number of very old people and their present and future demands upon existing health and social service resources is of major concern among practitioners and policy makers throughout Europe. This book makes an important contribution to the debate about the future of care for this population group from a cross-national perspective.Policies in most countries stress the need for older people to remain in their own homes for as long as possible. Home services, in particular home help, are one of the most important ingredients in the service mix aimed to achieve this goal.

The changing demographic profiles of modern societies have led to a growing interest in understanding ageing and later life among those working within the social sciences and humanities. This edited volume addresses the methodological challenges entailed in studying the process of ageing and life course changes, as well as the experience of being old. The book focuses on the theory and practice of doing research, using a wide range of examples and case studies. The contributors, who are prominent researchers in the field, review the range of practices in the use of different methodologies and give in-depth examples, based on their own research experience. The book covers a variety of disciplines and methodologies, both quantitative and qualitative, and a diversity of sources, including fiction, photographs, as well as the traditional social science sources. Researching Ageing and Later Life will be essential reading for those wishing for an insight into the realities of doing research in this area.

How are individuals and society ageing towards the end of the twentieth century?How can different disciplines help us to understand the ageing process?What are the key developments in postmodern thought and critical studies in relation to ageing and later life? In answer to these questions, the editors of this volume have brought together some of the leading figures in the field. Gathered together for the first time in a single volume, the authors discuss the latest theoretical developments in the international field of ageing. Drawing on research from the USA and UK, the book is strongly multi-disciplinary in content with chapters from both social sciences and humanities. The book provides a critical approach to our understanding of the experience of ageing and later life. It has been written for advanced students of gerontology and those with an interest in ageing and later life, but it is also relevant to policy makers and practitioners in the field.

Key features:

First time work from the USA and UK has been available in one volume Wide coverage of the latest trends and theoretical approaches in gerontologyIssues addressed from a range of disciplines - unusual combination of humanities and social science in one volume Written by leading experts in the field.