Encyclopedia of Aging (4 Volume Set)

From Library Journal

This four-volume set makes the latest professional research on gerontology accessible to general readers, especially high school and college students. Under the direction of Ekerdt (sociology and gerontology, Univ. of Kansas), some of the world's leading gerontologists and aging researchers have contributed 400-plus concise and readable entries that offer excellent introductions to important concepts. The entries, which cover an array of topics selected from the humanities and the life, biological, and social sciences, feature such key issues as nursing homes, animal models of aging, the visual arts, mental health, community services, disorders of later life, sensory changes, housing, benefit programs, research techniques, genetics, careers in aging, and retirement. Although the text focuses primarily on the United States, aging in other nations and cultures is examined as well. Many of the entries are supplemented with diagrams, photographs, and drawings, and all are accompanied by short, current bibliographies of primary resource materials. A contents outline explains the encyclopedia's approach to aging, while the list of articles offers an overview of the entire set. In addition, numerous cross references help readers navigate aging's interdisciplinary knowledge base. Other books in this area include the single-volume Encyclopedia of Elder Care, a somewhat technical volume focusing primarily on healthcare and caregiver issues; The Encyclopedia of Aging, 3d ed., edited by George L. Maddox, which is similar to Ekerdt's volume in its scope and coverage but lacks the overall vision that is so well explained in Ekerdt's preface; and the slightly dated two-volume Encyclopedia of Gerontology: Age, Aging, and the Aged, edited by James E. Birren, which emphasizes health and biological issues and is occasionally vague or overly scientific in its subject descriptors. Ekerdt's work is a good choice for large public and academic libraries.
Karen McNally Bensing, Benjamin Rose Lib., Cleveland
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Description

"As our population ages, interest and scholarship in issues surrounding our later years have intensified. From the general to specific, the 400-plus well-referenced entries cover an impressive range of medical, psychological, sociological, public-policy,and biological subjects. There are good cross-references, along with bibliographies at the end of each article and a handy list of of articles grouped by topic areas. Whether you are looking for information on genetics, social theories of aging, mental health, or pensions and Social Security, this four-volume encyclopedia presents information to the general reader while serving as a good starting point for either the high-school or college researcher."--"The Best of the Best Reference Sources," American Libraries, May 2003.

From Booklist

The great increase in the scholarly study of aging is attributable to both demographic increases and the growth in clinical and social services to the aging population. Correspondingly, we see an increase in the number of reference works published in an area that is of high interest popularly, academically, and professionally. In more than 400 entries, this encyclopedia aims "to present advanced ideas about aging at an accessible level." The editor in chief, Ekerdt, a professor of sociology and gerontology at the University of Kansas, and six other editors worked with the many contributors (also more than 400), both scholars and practitioners from the U.S and abroad.
Topics represent the range of information in gerontology, covering biological, medical, psychological, and sociological topics as well as social and public policy issues. Articles range from very specific, for example, Congregate housing or Fluid balance, to more general essays, such as Bereavement or Visual arts and aging. About one-third to one-half of the articles focus on biological, medical, or psychologica