Women and Aging: A Life Course Approach

Every day 10,000 Baby Boomers will enter old age between now and 2030. The older population in the U.S. will grow from 13% of the population today to nearly one person in five in 2030. Women make up more than half of this population. And among the oldest age groups (85+) women outnumber men two to one. Some people refer to old age as a woman’s world. This study explores that world. Women and Aging looks at the influence of social structures, social policies, and individual choices on women in later life. women face in the workplace in middle age. Each chapter explores a single topic: ageism, population aging, health and well-being, health promotion, finances and retirement, relationships, and caregiving. Each chapter describes the condition of older women today and the experiences throughout the life course that led to this outcome. The life course approach used here links the older woman to earlier stages in her life. It also exposes the social forces that lead to the condition of women in old age today.

Dr. Mark Novak received his Bachelor's degree in Sociology from Rutgers University in New Jersey and his Ph.D. degree in Sociology from York University in Toronto. He specializes in the study of adult development, adult education, and aging. Dr. Novak has written academic articles on aging for academicl journals in the U.S. and abroad. He has written several books including a general interest study entitled, "Successful Aging" a Canadian gerontology text titled "Aging and Society" (7th edition) and a U.S. gerontology text titled "Issues in Aging" (3rd edition). Dr. Novak currently serves as Dean of the Extended University Division at California State University, Bakersfield.