Research
Featured Research
The DAISI Study - (DAIly Stress Interview Study)
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By now it is a well-known fact that all societies are facing a dramatic increase in the number of people over the age of 65. In fact, in the United States, adults age 85 and older are the fastest growing segment of the population. Moreover, in the U.S. this “graying of society” has a particular meaning in light of the coming of age of the Baby Boomers. Demographers define the Baby Boomers as the birth cohorts from 1946 to 1962. Adults born between 1946 and 1962 represent the largest birth cohorts to enter middle age and young old age in Western society, and they currently represent about one third of the total population of the U.S. The aging of the Baby Boomers also means that by the year 2030 about every 5th person in the U.S. will be a person age 65 or older.
Although this “demographic revolution” poses a great number of challenges for our society, such as greater demand for health care services or changes in the age structure of the workforce, there are also a number of positive aspects that are often not acknowledged in public discussions. However, it is important to keep these aspects in mind when looking at the research activities that are conducted by the faculty members affiliated with the Center on Aging. Three aspects, in particular, need to be pointed out.
First, for the past 3 decades active life expectancy has steadily increased. That means that people not only have more years to live, but they also live these additional years in reasonably good health. Thus, for the overwhelming majority of older adults, impairment and frailty become problems only relatively late in life and for a rather short amount of time.
Second, new generations of older adults also benefit from research showing that the aging process is considerably influenced by our own behavior, personal characteristics and habits. Researchers talk about the influence of lifestyle factors on the aging process and point at evidence showing that certain age-related processes of physical and psychological decline can be stopped and potentially reversed. Although this does not mean that researchers have found the fountain of youth, it signals that many negative stereotypes about aging are ripe for correction and revision.
Third, given the recent research on the plasticity of the human aging process and given the advances in medical technology, there is also increasing consensus that it is reasonable to talk about the optimization of healthy aging. Optimization of healthy aging, however, requires the commitment of the individual and requires that people make a commitment to healthy lifestyles earlier in life. Thus, growing older productively and gracefully does not start at age 60 or 65, but starts in childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood and continues from there on.
Given the complexity of the human aging process and the diversity in which individuals grow older, it is easy to understand that aging-related research is best conducted in multidisciplinary research teams. A multidisciplinary approach acknowledges that there is no single scientific/academic discipline that can address all aspects of the aging process in a satisfying way. Therefore, it is one of the main tasks of the Center on Aging to facilitate the formation and successful collaboration of multidisciplinary research teams. Currently, the expertise that is available at Colorado State University lends itself to the formation of multidisciplinary teams related to the following Research Cores:
- Core A: Optimizing Healthy Aging
Researchers affiliated with this research core have expertise in the following areas:
- Biological causes of age-related diseases, including diseases of the brain.
- Effects of physical activity on physical and psychosocial functioning.
- Prevention of frailty and disability.
- Psychological factors of health and aging (e.g., stress and coping, personality).
- Cognitive aging, cognitive training, and lifelong learning.
- Occupational therapy methods for optimizing functioning in individuals with age-related disabilities.
- Effects of nutrition on aging processes.
- Core B: Social Relationships in Later Life
Researchers contributing to this research core have expertise in the following areas:
- Social support and social networks in later life.
- Intergenerational relations in aging families, including grandparent-grandparent relations.
- Family caregiving to older adults with chronic impairment, including caregiving to older adults with dementia.
- Core C: Mental Health in Later Life
Researchers contributing to this research core have expertise in the following areas:
- Establishing mental health services for older adults and their families.
- Mental health interventions for older adults in living in the community and in long-term care settings.
- Training caregivers for individuals with dementia.
Click here to view the names, departmental affiliations, and specific areas of expertise of the Center on Aging faculty affiliates. Feel free to contact faculty affiliates if you have specific questions related to their research program.
