Aging and the Life Course: An Introduction to Social Gerontology

by Jill Quadagno

Aging and the Life Course is a comprehensive interdisciplinary text in social gerontology. It provides students with a firm grounding in methodological and theoretical issues associated with aging and examines changes in social roles, relationships and the biological and psychological process that occur as people grow older. It also considers all major life transitions including retirement, widowhood, grandparenting, and changes in living arrangements. In addition, this text considers the economic and political issues that influence the context in which people grow old. Although the primary focus is on the U.S., considerable material on aging worldwide is included. Unique features include four featured boxes, a life course perspective and an emphasis on inequality by race, ethnicity and gender.

Genres: Aging, Nonfiction, Sociology

493 pages, Hardcover

Published January 13, 2010

Reviews

[Julie]

The chosen e-textbook for my Social Gerontology class. Well written and researched and enjoyable to read. I appreciate the "In Their Own Words" sections in each chapter, which highlight an appropriate personal story fitting the chapter topic. Another great feature is the "Aging Around the World" section in each chapter that provides a comparison on how other countries around the world are facing the same issues of an aging population.

[Patricia Lott]

While it isn't my dream book I was able to create an exciting course for the upcoming class. I actually like this text a lot....oh and I'm using the eight edition but couldn't get it to load up.

[Nancy Mitchell]

Great for a text book, not dry at all and interesting and easy to read. Great information on the process of aging.

[Madi]

Read for SOC 569: Sociology of Aging

[Wren]

This was my textbook for interprofessional perspectives on aging (Fall 2011 course), but it's a very good introduction to gerontology with a sociology bent. Chapters include the following:

1. The Field of Social Gerontology
2. Life Course Transitions
3. Theories of Aging
4. Demography of Aging
5. Old Age and the Welfare State
6. Biologoical Perspectives on Aging
7. Psychological Perspectives on Aging
8. Family Relationships and Social Support Systems
9. Living Arrangments
10. Work and Retirement
11. Health and Health Care
12. Caring for the Frail Elderly
13. Dying, Death, and Bereavement
14. The Economics of Aging
15. Poverty and Inequality
16. The Politics of Aging.

[Lex R]

Read for an aging and the life course class I took to finish out my undergrad. For a boom that is recent enough to talk about the COVID-19 pandemic, I find it abhorrent that the author (a 79 year old White woman) frequently refers to Black Americans as “blacks.” Embarrassing and shameful really, but I’ve come to expect this from McGraw-Hill texts.

[LadybugPJ]

Sociology of Aging was a good class and I felt this to be a compelling and interesting textbook for the class. I hesitated taking a class about old age and dying, but this book really did keep it interesting.

[Sam]

Another enthralling college textbook.

[Maira]

my eyes are so tired...

[enja reads]

I don't expect much from course textbooks, but the explanations seemed very elementary at times, and many issues that should have been elaborated upon were glossed over or even ignored.

[Nicole]

Textbook