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Handbook of Sociology of Aging pp 619–626Cite as

Gerontology with a “J”: Personal Reflections on Theory-Building in the Sociology of Aging

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Abstract

My introduction to the field of gerontology was not auspicious. I was sitting in the office of Bernice Neugarten at the University of Chicago, scared silly. I was a senior in college applying to graduate schools and Dr. Neugarten (I still can’t bring myself to call her “Bernice”) was interrogating me. Why should I, a philosophy major from a very small and undistinguished college, feel myself qualified to join the Human Development and Aging program at the great University of Chicago? “Well,” I began, “I think I would be interested in Geh-ren-tology, pronouncing the ‘G’ as in ‘guest.’” “NO!,” she shouted. “It is pronounced Jeh-ren-tology!” This was the first time I had heard anyone say the word. The study of aging was very new in 1963.

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References

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Acknowledgments

I am grateful to Norella Putney, Victor Marshall, and Hannah Bengtson for their comments on earlier drafts of this chapter.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Vern L. Bengtson

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  1. Vern L. Bengtson
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Correspondence to Vern L. Bengtson .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Human Development and Family Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, 97331-2302, Oregon, USA

    Richard A. Settersten

  2. Dept. Sociology, University of Texas, Austin, University Station 1, Austin, 78712, Texas, USA

    Jacqueline L. Angel

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Bengtson, V.L. (2011). Gerontology with a “J”: Personal Reflections on Theory-Building in the Sociology of Aging. In: Settersten, R., Angel, J. (eds) Handbook of Sociology of Aging. Handbooks of Sociology and Social Research. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-7374-0_38

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