This text shows how our own attitudes and values may serve to perpetuate the view that ageing is all "doom and gloom". The book uses the research literature of gerontology to involve the reader in considering his or her own future and that of others. It examines the potential that ageing and later life have to be a rewarding experience - something to look forward to, rather than something to be denied and rejected. This book is intended for professionals in health and security services who work with older people and is relevant to many student courses with ageing as a focus, whether in psychology, sociology, nursing, gerontology, social work or the medical professions.

Author Biography

The Author Robert Slater first took an interest in ageing in 1968 when undertaking his M.Phil. research project on ways in which older people adjust to life in residential Homes. Subsequently, he became a founding member of the British Society of Gerontology and conducted further research on life in residential homes, as well as on tinnitus (more common in older people) and on the handicapping aspects of the physical environment in Wales (experienced by many older people with physical disabilities). He has twice been an Open University course team member, first in 1978-9 helping to produce the course An Ageing Population and second in 1991-93, helping to produce the course An Ageing Society. He is co-editor of the book Ageing and Later Life, published in 1993.