Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Age, Aging, and Mental Health

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Handbook of the Sociology of Mental Health

Part of the book series: Handbooks of Sociology and Social Research ((HSSR))

Abstract

Generalizations regarding the epidemiology of aging and mental health are contingent on how one defines mental health. This chapter considers the relationship between age and both mental disorder and positive elements of mental health, positing that many older adults live with a low-grade concern or anxiety about the future coupled with fairly high levels of happiness. Using a life course perspective, mental health inequalities are summarized along several axes of stratification. Stress process, crisis, and cumulative inequality theories are profiled for advancing research on aging and mental health. The chapter concludes by identifying some of the frontiers for breakthrough discoveries regarding aging and mental health.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 299.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 379.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 379.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Abbreviations

AD:

Alzheimer’s disease

CES-D:

Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale

DSM:

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders

DSM-IV:

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fourth Edition

NCS-R:

National Comorbidity Survey Replication

SES:

Socioeconomic status

GSS:

General Social Survey

References

  • Ajrouch, K. J., Reisine, S., Lim, S., Sohn, W., & Ismail, A. (2010). Perceived everyday discrimination and psychological distress: Does social support matter? Ethnicity & Health, 15, 417–434.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. (4th ed., text rev.) Washington, DC: Author.

    Google Scholar 

  • Amore, M., Scarlatti, F., Quarta, A. L., & Tagariello, P. (2009). Partial androgen deficiency, depression and testosterone treatment in aging men. Aging Clinical and Experimental Research, 21, 1–8.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Anda, R. F., Whitfield, C. L., Felitti, V. J., Chapman, D., Edwards, V. J., Dube, S. R., et al. (2002). Adverse childhood experiences, alcoholic parents, and later risk of alcoholism and depression. Psychiatric Services, 53, 1001–1009.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aneshensel, C. S. (2005). Research in mental health: Social etiology versus social consequences. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 46, 221–228.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aneshensel, C. S. (2009). Toward explaining mental health disparities. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 50, 377–394.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Avison, W. R. (2010). Incorporating children’s lives into a life course perspective on stress and mental health. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 51, 361–375.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Avison, W. R., & Turner, R. J. (1988). Stressful life events and depressive symptoms: Disaggregating the effects of acute stressors and chronic strains. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 29, 253–264.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baird, B. M., Lucas, R. E., & Donnellan, M. B. (2010). Life satisfaction across the lifespan: Findings from two nationally representative panel studies. Social Indicators Research, 99, 183–203.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blazer, D. G. (2003). Depression in late life: Review and commentary. Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences, 58A, 249–265.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blazer, D. G., & Hybels, C. F. (2005). Origins of depression in later life. Psychological Medicine, 35, 1241–1252.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boyce, W. T., & Ellis, B. J. (2005). Biological sensitivity to context: I. An evolutionary-developmental theory of the origins and functions of stress reactivity. Development and Psychopathology, 17, 271–301.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Breslau, J., Aguilar-Gaxiola, S., Kendler, K. S., Su, M., Williams, D., & Kessler, R. C. (2006). Specifying race-ethnic differences in risk for psychiatric disorder in a USA national sample. Psychological Medicine, 36, 57–68.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, A. S. (2011). The environment and susceptibility to schizophrenia. Progress in Neurobiology, 93, 23–58.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Charles, S. T., Reynolds, C. A., & Gatz, M. (2001). Age-related differences and change in positive and negative affect over 23 years. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 80, 136–151.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Choi, H., & Marks, N. F. (2008). Marital conflict, depressive symptoms, and functional impairment. Journal of Marriage and Family, 70, 377–390.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E., Sandvik, E., & Larsen, R. J. (1985). Age and sex differences for emotional intensity. Developmental Psychology, 21, 542–546.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E., & Suh, M. E. (1998). Subjective well-being and age: An international analysis. In K. W. Schaie & M. P. Lawton (Eds.), Annual review of gerontology and geriatrics: Focus on emotion and adult development (pp. 304–324). New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dohrenwend, B. P., Levav, I., Shrout, P. E., Schwartz, S., Naveh, G., Link, B. G., et al. (1992). Socioeconomic status and psychiatric disorders: The causation-selection issue. Science, 255, 946–952.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dube, S. R., Anda, R. F., Felitti, V. J., Chapman, D. P., Williamson, D. F., & Giles, W. H. (2001). Childhood abuse, household dysfunction, and the risk of attempted suicide throughout the life span: Findings from the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study. Journal of the American Medical Association, 286, 3089–3096.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Elder, G. H., Jr. (1998). The life course as developmental theory. Child Development, 69, 1–12.

    Google Scholar 

  • Elder, G. H., Jr., & Giele, J. Z. (Eds.). (2009). The craft of life course research. New York: Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Elder, G. H., Jr., Johnson, M. K., & Crosnoe, R. (2003). The emergence and development of life course theory. In J. T. Mortimer & M. J. Shanahan (Eds.), Handbook of the life course (pp. 3–19). New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Elder, G. H., Jr., & Liker, J. K. (1982). Hard times in women’s lives: Historical influences across forty years. The American Journal of Sociology, 88, 241–269.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ennis, N. E., Hobfoll, S. E., & Schröder, K. E. E. (2000). Money doesn’t talk, it swears: How economic stress and resistance resources impact inner-city women’s depressive mood. American Journal of Community Psychology, 28, 149–173.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Felitti, V. J., Anda, R. F., Nordenberg, D., Williamson, D. F., Spitz, A. M., Edwards, V., et al. (1998). Relationship of childhood abuse and household dysfunction to many of the leading causes of deaths in adults: the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 14, 245–258.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ferraro, K. F., & Farmer, M. M. (1996). Double jeopardy to health hypothesis for African Americans: Analysis and critique. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 37, 27–43.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ferraro, K. F., & Nuriddin, T. A. (2006). Psychological distress and mortality: Are women more vulnerable? Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 47, 227–241.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ferraro, K. F., & Shippee, T. P. (2009). Aging and cumulative inequality: How does inequality get under the skin? The Gerontologist, 49, 333–343.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ferraro, K. F., Shippee, T. P., & Schafer, M. H. (2009). Cumulative inequality theory for research on aging and the life course. In V. L. Bengtson, D. Gans, N. M. Putney, & M. Silverstein (Eds.), Handbook of theories of aging (2nd ed., pp. 413–433). New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Freeman, E. W. (2010). Associations of depression with the transition to menopause. Menopause, 17, 823–827.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • George, L. K. (2010). Still happy after all these years: Research frontiers on subjective well-being in later life. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 65B, 331–339.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gerstorf, D., Ram, N., Röcke, C., Lindenberger, U., & Smith, J. (2008). Decline in life satisfaction in old age: Longitudinal evidence for links to distance-to-death. Psychology and Aging, 23, 154–168.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Glei, D. A., Goldman, N., Chuang, Y.-L., & Weinstein, M. (2007). Do chronic stressors lead to physiological dysregulation? Testing the theory of allostatic load. Psychosomatic Medicine, 69, 769–776.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Green, M. J., & Benzeval, M. (2011). Ageing, social class and common mental disorders: Longitudinal evidence from three cohorts in the west of Scotland. Psychological Medicine, 41, 565–574.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grigsby-Toussaint, D. S., Lipton, R., Chavez, N., Handler, A., Johnson, T. P., & Kubo, J. (2010). Neighborhood socioeconomic change and diabetes risk: Findings from the Chicago childhood diabetes registry. Diabetes Care, 33, 1065–1068.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hill, T. D., Kaplan, L. M., French, M. T., & Johnson, R. J. (2010). Victimization in early life and mental health in adulthood: An examination of the mediating and moderating influences of psychosocial resources. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 51, 48–63.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hillis, S. D., Anda, R. F., Felitti, V. J., & Marchbanks, P. A. (2001). Adverse childhood experiences and sexual risk behaviors in women: A retrospective cohort study. Family Planning Perspectives, 33, 206–211.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Horwitz, A. V. (2002). Outcomes in the sociology of mental health and illness: Where have we been and where are we going? Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 43, 143–151.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ibrahim, F., Cohen, C. I., & Ramirez, P. M. (2010). Successful aging in older adults with schizophrenia: Prevalence and associated factors. The American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 18, 879–886.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Irving, S. M., & Ferraro, K. F. (2006). Reports of abusive experiences during childhood and adult health ratings: Personal control as a pathway? Journal of Aging and Health, 18, 458–485.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jackson, P. B., Williams, D. R., Stein, D. J., Herman, A., Williams, S. L., & Redmond, D. L. (2010). Race and psychological distress: The South African stress and health study. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 51, 458–477.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kelley-Moore, J. A., & Ferraro, K. F. (2005). A 3-D model of health decline: Disease, disability, and depression among black and white older adults. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 46, 376–391.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kessler, R. C., Birnbaum, H., Bromet, E., Hwang, I., Sampson, N., & Shahly, V. (2010). Age differences in major depression: Results from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication (NCS-R). Psychological Medicine, 40, 225–237.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kessler, R. C., Foster, C., Webster, P. S., & House, J. S. (1992). The relationship between age and depressive symptoms in two national surveys. Psychology and Aging, 7, 119–126.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kessler, R. C., & Zhao, S. (1999). Overview of descriptive epidemiology of mental disorders. In C. S. Aneshensel & J. C. Phelan (Eds.), Handbook of the sociology of mental health (pp. 127–150). New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Keyes, C. L. M. (2002). The mental health continuum: From languishing to flourishing in life. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 43, 207–222.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kim, J., & Durden, E. (2007). Socioeconomic status and age trajectories of health. Social Science & Medicine, 65, 2489–2502.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Krause, N., Shaw, B. A., & Cairney, J. (2004). A descriptive epidemiology of lifetime trauma and the physical health status of older adults. Psychology and Aging, 19, 637–648.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kubzansky, L. D., Subramanian, S. V., Kawachi, I., Fay, M. E., Soobader, M.-J., & Berkman, L. F. (2005). Neighborhood contextual influences on depressive symptoms in the elderly. American Journal of Epidemiology, 162, 253–260.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kuh, D., Ben-Shlomo, Y., Lynch, J., Hallqvist, J., & Power, C. (2003). Life course epidemiology. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 57, 778–783.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li, Y., & Ferraro, K. F. (2005). Volunteering and depression in later life: Social benefit or selection processes? Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 46, 68–84.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Luo, Y., & Waite, L. J. (2005). The impact of childhood and adult SES on physical, mental, and cognitive well-being in later life. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 60, S93–S101.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Luthar, S. S., Cicchetti, D., & Becker, B. (2000). The construct of resilience: A critical evaluation and guidelines for future work. Child Development, 71, 543–562.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lynch, J., & Smith, G. D. (2005). A life course approach to chronic disease epidemiology. Annual Review of Public Health, 26, 1–35.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marijnissen, R. M., Bus, B. A. A., Holewijn, S., Franke, B., Purandare, N., de Graaf, J., et al. (2011). Depressive symptom clusters are differentially associated with general and visceral obesity. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 59, 67–72.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McGue, M. (2010). The end of behavioral genetics? Behavior Genetics, 40, 284–296.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McLaughlin, K. A., Green, J. G., Gruber, M. J., Sampson, N. A., Zaslavsky, A. M., & Kessler, R. C. (2010). Childhood adversities and adult psychiatric disorders in the National Comorbidity Survey Replication II: Associations with persistence of DSM-IV disorders. Archives of General Psychiatry, 67, 124–132.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McLeod, J. D., & Fettes, D. L. (2007). Trajectories of failure: The educational careers of children with mental health problems. The American Journal of Sociology, 113, 653–701.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Merton, R. K. (1968). Social theory and social structure. New York: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Miech, R. A., & Shanahan, M. J. (2000). Socioeconomic status and depression over the life course. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 41, 162–176.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mirowsky, J., & Ross, C. E. (1990). Control or defense? Depression and the sense of control over good and bad outcomes. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 31, 71–86.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mirowsky, J., & Ross, C. E. (1992). Age and depression. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 33, 187–205.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mirowsky, J., & Ross, C. E. (1999). Well-being across the life course. In A. V. Horwitz & T. L. Scheid (Eds.), A handbook for the study of mental health: Social contexts, theories, and systems (pp. 328–347). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Möller, J., Björkenstam, E., Ljung, R., & Yngwe, M. A. (2011). Widowhood and the risk of psychiatric care, psychotropic medication and all-cause mortality: A cohort study of 658,022 elderly people in Sweden. Aging & Mental Health, 15, 259–266.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mroczek, D. K., & Kolarz, C. M. (1998). The effect of age on positive and negative affect: A developmental perspective on happiness. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 75, 1333–1349.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mroczek, D. K., & Spiro, A., III. (2005). Change in life satisfaction during adulthood: Findings from the Veterans Affairs Normative Aging Study. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 88, 189–202.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • National Center for Health Statistics. (2011). Health, United States, 2010. Hyattsville, MD: Government Printing Office.

    Google Scholar 

  • National Comorbidity Survey Replication. (n.d.). NCS-R lifetime prevalence estimates. Retrieved from http://www.hcp.med.harvard.edu/ncs/index.php

  • O’Rand, A. M. (2003). Cumulative advantage theory in life course research. In S. Crystal & D. Shea (Eds.), Annual review of gerontology and geriatrics: Focus on economic outcomes in later life (Vol. 22, pp. 14–30). New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Orme, J. G., Reis, J., & Herz, E. J. (1986). Factorial and discriminant validity of the center for epidemiological studies depression (CES-D) scale. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 42, 28–33.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Payton, A. R. (2009). Mental health, mental illness, and psychological distress: Same continuum or distinct phenomenon? Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 50, 213–227.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pearlin, L. I. (1989). The sociological study of stress. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 30, 241–256.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pearlin, L. I. (2010). The life course and the stress process: Some conceptual comparisons. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 65B, 207–215.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pearlin, L. I., Aneshensel, C. S., & LeBlanc, A. J. (1997). The forms and mechanisms of stress proliferation: The case of AIDS caregivers. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 38, 223–236.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pearlin, L. I., Nguyen, K., Schieman, S., & Milkie, M. (2007). The life course origins of mastery among older people. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 48, 164–179.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pearlin, L. I., Schieman, S., Fazio, E. M., & Meersman, S. C. (2005). Stress, health, and the life course: Some conceptual perspectives. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 46, 205–219.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pearlin, L. I., & Skaff, M. M. (1996). Stress and the life course: A paradigmatic alliance. The Gerontologist, 36, 239–247.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pinquart, M., & Sörensen, S. (2000). Influences of socioeconomic status, social network, and competence on subjective well-being in later life: A meta-analysis. Psychology and Aging, 15, 187–224.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Plassman, B. L., Langa, K. M., Fisher, G. G., Heeringa, S. G., Weir, D. R., Ofstedal, M. B., et al. (2007). Prevalence of dementia in the United States: The Aging, Demographics, and Memory Study. Neuroepidemiology, 29, 125–132.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Radloff, L. S. (1977). The CES-D scale: A self-report depression scale for research in the general population. Applied Psychological Measurement, 1, 385–401.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reynolds, J. R., & Turner, R. J. (2008). Major life events: Their personal meaning, resolution, and mental health significance. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 49, 223–237.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Richardson, V. E. (2010). Length of caregiving and well-being among older widowers: Implications for the dual process model of bereavement. Omega, 61, 333–356.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ross, C. E. (1994). Overweight and depression. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 35, 63–79.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ross, C. E., & Mirowsky, J. (2008). Age and the balance of emotions. Social Science & Medicine, 66, 2391–2400.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rossi, A. S. (2004). The menopausal transition and aging processes. In O. G. Brim, C. D. Ryff, & R. C. Kessler (Eds.), How healthy are we? A national study of well-being at midlife (pp. 153–201). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rotter, J. B. (1966). Generalized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcement. Psychological Monographs, 80, 1–28.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ryff, C. D. (1989). Happiness is everything, or is it? Explorations on the meaning of psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57, 1069–1081.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schafer, M. H., & Ferraro, K. F. (2011). The stigma of obesity: Does perceived weight discrimination affect identity and physical health? Social Psychology Quarterly, 74, 76–97.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schafer, M. H., Ferraro, K. F., & Mustillo, S. A. (2011). Children of misfortune: Early adversity and cumulative inequality in perceived life trajectories. The American Journal of Sociology, 116, 1053–1091.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schafer, M. H., Shippee, T. P., & Ferraro, K. F. (2009). When does disadvantage not accumulate? Towards a sociological conceptualization of resilience. Swiss Journal of Sociology, 35, 231–251.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schiefelbein, V. L., & Susman, E. J. (2006). Cortisol levels and longitudinal cortisol change as predictors of anxiety in adolescents. Journal of Early Adolescence, 26, 397–413.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schieman, S. (1999). Age and anger. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 40, 273–289.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schieman, S. (2010). The sociological study of anger: Basic social patterns and contexts. In M. Potegal, G. Stemmler, & C. Spielberger (Eds.), International handbook of anger: Constituent and concomitant biological, psychological, and social processes (pp. 329–347). New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schieman, S., McMullen, T., & Swan, M. (2007). Relative body weight and psychological distress in late life: Observations of gender and race comparisons. Journal of Aging and Health, 19, 286–312.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schieman, S., & Plickert, G. (2007). Functional limitations and changes in levels of depression among older adults: A multiple-hierarchy stratification perspective. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 62, S36–42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schieman, S., Van Gundy, K., & Taylor, J. (2001). Status, role, and resource explanations for age patterns in psychological distress. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 42, 80–96.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schieman, S., Van Gundy, K., & Taylor, J. (2002). The relationship between age and depressive symptoms: A test of competing explanatory and suppression influences. Journal of Aging and Health, 14, 260–285.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Seplaki, C. L., Goldman, N., Weinstein, M., & Lin, Y.-H. (2004). How are biomarkers related to physical and mental well-being? Journal of Gerontology: Biological Sciences, 59A, 201–217.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shanahan, M. J., & Hofer, S. M. (2005). Social context in gene-environment interactions: Retrospect and prospect. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 60B, S65–S76.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shanahan, M. J., & Hofer, S. M. (2011). Molecular genetics, aging, and well-being: Sensitive period, accumulation, and pathway models. In R. H. Binstock & L. K. George (Eds.), Handbook of aging and the social sciences (pp. 135–147). New York: Elsevier.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Shanahan, M. J., Vaisey, S., Erickson, L. D., & Smolen, A. (2008). Environmental contingencies and genetic propensities: Social capital, educational continuation, and a dopamine receptor gene DRD2. The American Journal of Sociology, 114, S260–S286.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Silver, E., Mulvey, E. P., & Swanson, J. W. (2002). Neighborhood structural characteristics and mental disorder: Faris and Dunham revisited. Social Science & Medicine, 55, 1457–1470.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simon, R. W., & Lively, K. (2010). Sex, anger, and depression. Social Forces, 88, 1543–1568.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Skaff, M. M., & Pearlin, L. I. (1992). Caregiving: Role engulfment and the loss of self. The Gerontologist, 32, 656–664.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sorkin, D. H., Pham, E., & Ngo-Metzger, Q. (2009). Racial and ethnic differences in the mental health needs and access to care of older adults in California. Journal of the American Geriatric Society, 57, 2311–2317.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stroebe, M., & Schut, H. (2010). The dual process model of coping with bereavement: A decade on. Omega, 61, 273–289.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stroebe, M., Schut, H., & Stroebe, W. (2007). Health outcomes of bereavement. The Lancet, 370, 1960–1973.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Takeuchi, D. T., Zane, N., Hong, S., Chae, D. H., Gong, F., Gee, G. C., et al. (2007). Immigration-related factors and mental disorders among Asian Americans. American Journal of Public Health, 97, 84–90.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, S. E. (2010). Mechanisms linking early life stress to adult health outcomes. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 107, 8507–8512.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thoits, P. A. (1991). On merging identity theory and stress research. Social Psychology Quarterly, 54, 101–112.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thoits, P. A. (2006). Personal agency in the stress process. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 47, 309–323.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thoits, P. A. (2010). Stress and health: Major findings and policy implications. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 51, S41–S53.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turner, R. J., & Avison, W. R. (1992). Innovations in the measurement of life stress: Crisis theory and the significance of event resolution. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 33, 36–50.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turner, R. J., & Lloyd, D. A. (1995). Lifetime traumas and mental health: The significance of cumulative adversity. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 36, 360–376.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turner, R. J., Wheaton, B., & Lloyd, D. A. (1995). The epidemiology of social stress. American Sociological Review, 60, 104–125.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wheaton, B., & Clarke, P. (2003). Space meets time: Integrating temporal and contextual influences on mental health in early adulthood. American Sociological Review, 68, 680–706.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, R. S. (2008). Neurological factors in cognitive aging. In S. M. Hofer & D. F. Alwin (Eds.), Handbook of cognitive aging: Interdisciplinary perspectives (pp. 298–307). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Winterich, J. A., & Umberson, D. (1999). How women experience menopause: The importance of social context. Journal of Women & Aging, 11, 57–73.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Witt, D. D., Lowe, G. D., Peek, C. W., & Curry, E. W. (1980). The changing association between age and happiness: Emerging trend or methodological artifact? Social Forces, 58, 1302–1307.

    Google Scholar 

  • Woodward, C., & Joseph, S. (2003). Positive change processes and post-traumatic growth in people who have experienced childhood abuse: Understanding vehicles of change. Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice, 76, 267–283.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yang, Y. (2007). Is old age depressing? Growth trajectories and cohort variations in late-life depression. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 48, 16–32.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yang, Y. (2008). Social inequalities in happiness in the United States, 1972 to 2004: An age-period-cohort analysis. American Sociological Review, 73, 204–236.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yang, Y., & Lee, L. C. (2009). Sex and race disparities in health: Cohort variations in life course patterns. Social Forces, 87, 2093–2124.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

Work on this chapter was supported in part by grants from the National Institute on Aging (R01 AG033541 and T32AG025671) and the Purdue University Center on Aging and the Life Course.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology and Center on Aging and the Life Course, Purdue University, 700 West State Street, West Lafayette, IN, 47907-2059, USA

    Kenneth F. Ferraro & Lindsay R. Wilkinson

Authors
  1. Kenneth F. Ferraro
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Lindsay R. Wilkinson
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kenneth F. Ferraro .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Community Health Sciences Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Carol S. Aneshensel

  2. Department of Sociomedical Sciences Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Jo C. Phelan

  3. Department of Sociology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada

    Alex Bierman

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2013 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Ferraro, K.F., Wilkinson, L.R. (2013). Age, Aging, and Mental Health. In: Aneshensel, C.S., Phelan, J.C., Bierman, A. (eds) Handbook of the Sociology of Mental Health. Handbooks of Sociology and Social Research. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4276-5_10

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation