527033 research-article2014
JAGXXX10.1177/0733464814527033Journal of Applied GerontologyGaugler
Editorial
Engaging and Partnering With Diverse Older Adults
Journal of Applied Gerontology 2014, Vol. 33(3) 255–257 © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0733464814527033 jag.sagepub.com
A simple review of demographics in the United States demonstrates the increasing cultural, racial, and ethnic diversification of those 65 years of age and older. Currently one fifth of older adults are of diverse ethnic or racial background, with 8% African American, 7% Hispanic/Latino, 3% Asian, and 1% American Indian/Alaskan Native, Native Hawaiian, or Pacific Islander (U.S. Census Bureau, 2011). This suggests extensive diversity already, but the urgency to partner with and better understand aging in diverse communities becomes more pressing when considering that 42% of the older adult U.S. population will be non-Caucasian by 2050 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2012). For example, given the prevalence of chronic health conditions among diverse older persons, gerontologists must effectively engage with these communities to ensure their appropriate access to and the design of services (Administration on Aging/Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2013). The Journal of Applied Gerontology has grappled with a number of issues critical to understanding aging in diverse contexts, and this issue continues this tradition. Lavin and Park (2014) conduct an excellent systematic review on ethnic and racial variations in pain prevalence and treatment among older adults. In reviewing research up to 2011, Lavin and Park identified 27 studies that examined the intersection of pain and race/ethnicity in older persons, with 17 noting a statistically significant relationship between race/ethnicity and multiple pain variables . This review holds a number of important clinical and scientific implications for geriatric care providers, as minority older adults had a higher prevalence of pain when compared with White older adults and appeared less likely to receive key treatments (e.g., pharmacological intervention, surgery), perhaps because of restricted access to these modalities as well as a preference for complementary and alternative treatments (Lavin & Park, 2014). Sun and Hodge (2014) use secondary data from the multi-site Resources for Enhancing Alzheimer’s Caregiver Health II intervention study to examine the moderational effects of spirituality and religion in Latino family caregivers. The findings are illuminating because they suggest not only the importance of
Downloaded from jag.sagepub.com at SUNY BINGHAMTON on March 8, 2015
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religion in Latino culture, but also how this source of spiritual support requires acknowledgment when designing and delivering services to Latino families. As providers and researchers, we often rely too heavily on traditional structures and institutions when attempting to design and evaluate family caregiver interventions. The intriguing findings of Sun and Hodge (2014) emphasize that a broader perspective is required to better identify how caregiving operates in Latino families and to enhance the support they receive if they choose to use it. Wong, Yeung, Ho, Tse, and Lam (2014) identify several predictors of Internet searches of health information among 98 Chinese older adults. Of particular interest was the use of the Technology Acceptance Model in framing their study and examining predictors of perceived utility and attitudes toward Internet use among Chinese older adults. Relevant to the other articles in this issue, Wong and colleagues offer a useful discussion of how traditional Chinese values and beliefs may influence health information searches on the Internet. The two remaining articles of this issue are particularly important contributions to the literature. Jervis, Fickenscher, and Beals, in collaboration with the Shielding American Indian Elders Project Team (2014), tested the psychometric properties of the Hwalek-Sengstock Elder Abuse Screening Test (HS-EAST) and the newly developed Native Elder Life Scale (NELS) to measure elder mistreatment among American Indians. Given the ramifications of elder mistreatment in American Indian communities, the contribution of a new measure in this area is extremely timely. Jervis and her colleagues also demonstrate how collaboration with community partners can result in culturally appropriate measurement. Carlson and colleagues (2014) examined a key issue in the performance of clinical trials: predictors of participant retention in African American and Hispanic older adults in a healthy lifestyle intervention. Among the intriguing predictors of retention included high active coping and average activity in the African American sample and high social network strength among Hispanics. While prior work has examined recruitment strategies of minority older adults in behavioral or public health interventions, Carlson et al. add to this body of knowledge by examining potential processes that facilitate ongoing retention of African American and Hispanic older participants in these protocols. Research including ethnically and racially diverse older adults remains underdeveloped in the discipline of gerontology. The articles in this issue, with their wide-ranging focus on pain, spirituality and religion, health information, measurement of elder mistreatment, and participant retention, represent substantial efforts to address this gap. The Journal of Applied Gerontology has and will continue to welcome efforts to partner and collaborate with
Downloaded from jag.sagepub.com at SUNY BINGHAMTON on March 8, 2015
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Gaugler
diverse older adults, their families, and their communities to obtain a fuller picture of how we all grow as we age. Joseph E. Gaugler, PhD Editor, Journal of Applied Gerontology Center on Aging, School of Nursing, University of Minnesota References Administration on Aging/Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2013). Older Americans behavioral health. Issue Brief 11: Reaching diverse older adult populations and engaging them in prevention services and early interventions. Retrieved from http://www.aoa.gov/AoARoot/AoA_Programs/HPW/ Behavioral/docs2/Issue%20Brief%2011%20Reaching%20and%20Engaging. PDF Carlson, M., Jackson, J., Mandel, D., Blanchard, J., Holguin, J., Lai, M., . . .Clark, F. (2014). Predictors of retention among African American and Hispanic older adult research participants in the Well Elderly 2 randomized controlled trial. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 33(3), 357-382. Jervis, L. L., Fickenscher, A., Beals, J., & the Shielding American Indian Elders Project Team. (2014). Assessment of elder mistreatment in two American Indian samples: Psychometric characteristics of the HS-EAST and the Native Elder Life–Financial Exploitation and –Neglect measures. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 33(3), 336-356. Lavin, R., & Park, J. (2014). A characterization of pain in racially and ethnically diverse older adults: A review of the literature. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 33(3), 258-290. Sun, F., & Hodge, D. R. (2014). Latino Alzheimer’s disease caregivers and depression: Using the stress coping model to examine the effects of spirituality and religion. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 33(3), 291-315. U.S. Census Bureau. (2011). Statistical abstract of the United States: 2011, Table 11. Resident population projections by race, Hispanic-origin status, and age: 2010 and 2015. Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/prod/2011pubs/11statab/pop .pdf U.S. Census Bureau. (2012). Facts for features: Older Americans month, May 2012. Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/facts_for_ features_special_editions/cb12-ff07.html Wong, C. K. M., Yeung, D. Y., Ho, H. C. Y., Tse, K., & Lam, C. (2014). Chinese older adults’ Internet use for health information. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 33(3), 316-335.
Downloaded from jag.sagepub.com at SUNY BINGHAMTON on March 8, 2015
JAGXXX10.1177/0733464814527033Journal of Applied GerontologyGaugler
Editorial
Engaging and Partnering With Diverse Older Adults
Journal of Applied Gerontology 2014, Vol. 33(3) 255–257 © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0733464814527033 jag.sagepub.com
A simple review of demographics in the United States demonstrates the increasing cultural, racial, and ethnic diversification of those 65 years of age and older. Currently one fifth of older adults are of diverse ethnic or racial background, with 8% African American, 7% Hispanic/Latino, 3% Asian, and 1% American Indian/Alaskan Native, Native Hawaiian, or Pacific Islander (U.S. Census Bureau, 2011). This suggests extensive diversity already, but the urgency to partner with and better understand aging in diverse communities becomes more pressing when considering that 42% of the older adult U.S. population will be non-Caucasian by 2050 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2012). For example, given the prevalence of chronic health conditions among diverse older persons, gerontologists must effectively engage with these communities to ensure their appropriate access to and the design of services (Administration on Aging/Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2013). The Journal of Applied Gerontology has grappled with a number of issues critical to understanding aging in diverse contexts, and this issue continues this tradition. Lavin and Park (2014) conduct an excellent systematic review on ethnic and racial variations in pain prevalence and treatment among older adults. In reviewing research up to 2011, Lavin and Park identified 27 studies that examined the intersection of pain and race/ethnicity in older persons, with 17 noting a statistically significant relationship between race/ethnicity and multiple pain variables . This review holds a number of important clinical and scientific implications for geriatric care providers, as minority older adults had a higher prevalence of pain when compared with White older adults and appeared less likely to receive key treatments (e.g., pharmacological intervention, surgery), perhaps because of restricted access to these modalities as well as a preference for complementary and alternative treatments (Lavin & Park, 2014). Sun and Hodge (2014) use secondary data from the multi-site Resources for Enhancing Alzheimer’s Caregiver Health II intervention study to examine the moderational effects of spirituality and religion in Latino family caregivers. The findings are illuminating because they suggest not only the importance of
Downloaded from jag.sagepub.com at SUNY BINGHAMTON on March 8, 2015
256
Journal of Applied Gerontology 33(3)
religion in Latino culture, but also how this source of spiritual support requires acknowledgment when designing and delivering services to Latino families. As providers and researchers, we often rely too heavily on traditional structures and institutions when attempting to design and evaluate family caregiver interventions. The intriguing findings of Sun and Hodge (2014) emphasize that a broader perspective is required to better identify how caregiving operates in Latino families and to enhance the support they receive if they choose to use it. Wong, Yeung, Ho, Tse, and Lam (2014) identify several predictors of Internet searches of health information among 98 Chinese older adults. Of particular interest was the use of the Technology Acceptance Model in framing their study and examining predictors of perceived utility and attitudes toward Internet use among Chinese older adults. Relevant to the other articles in this issue, Wong and colleagues offer a useful discussion of how traditional Chinese values and beliefs may influence health information searches on the Internet. The two remaining articles of this issue are particularly important contributions to the literature. Jervis, Fickenscher, and Beals, in collaboration with the Shielding American Indian Elders Project Team (2014), tested the psychometric properties of the Hwalek-Sengstock Elder Abuse Screening Test (HS-EAST) and the newly developed Native Elder Life Scale (NELS) to measure elder mistreatment among American Indians. Given the ramifications of elder mistreatment in American Indian communities, the contribution of a new measure in this area is extremely timely. Jervis and her colleagues also demonstrate how collaboration with community partners can result in culturally appropriate measurement. Carlson and colleagues (2014) examined a key issue in the performance of clinical trials: predictors of participant retention in African American and Hispanic older adults in a healthy lifestyle intervention. Among the intriguing predictors of retention included high active coping and average activity in the African American sample and high social network strength among Hispanics. While prior work has examined recruitment strategies of minority older adults in behavioral or public health interventions, Carlson et al. add to this body of knowledge by examining potential processes that facilitate ongoing retention of African American and Hispanic older participants in these protocols. Research including ethnically and racially diverse older adults remains underdeveloped in the discipline of gerontology. The articles in this issue, with their wide-ranging focus on pain, spirituality and religion, health information, measurement of elder mistreatment, and participant retention, represent substantial efforts to address this gap. The Journal of Applied Gerontology has and will continue to welcome efforts to partner and collaborate with
Downloaded from jag.sagepub.com at SUNY BINGHAMTON on March 8, 2015
257
Gaugler
diverse older adults, their families, and their communities to obtain a fuller picture of how we all grow as we age. Joseph E. Gaugler, PhD Editor, Journal of Applied Gerontology Center on Aging, School of Nursing, University of Minnesota References Administration on Aging/Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2013). Older Americans behavioral health. Issue Brief 11: Reaching diverse older adult populations and engaging them in prevention services and early interventions. Retrieved from http://www.aoa.gov/AoARoot/AoA_Programs/HPW/ Behavioral/docs2/Issue%20Brief%2011%20Reaching%20and%20Engaging. PDF Carlson, M., Jackson, J., Mandel, D., Blanchard, J., Holguin, J., Lai, M., . . .Clark, F. (2014). Predictors of retention among African American and Hispanic older adult research participants in the Well Elderly 2 randomized controlled trial. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 33(3), 357-382. Jervis, L. L., Fickenscher, A., Beals, J., & the Shielding American Indian Elders Project Team. (2014). Assessment of elder mistreatment in two American Indian samples: Psychometric characteristics of the HS-EAST and the Native Elder Life–Financial Exploitation and –Neglect measures. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 33(3), 336-356. Lavin, R., & Park, J. (2014). A characterization of pain in racially and ethnically diverse older adults: A review of the literature. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 33(3), 258-290. Sun, F., & Hodge, D. R. (2014). Latino Alzheimer’s disease caregivers and depression: Using the stress coping model to examine the effects of spirituality and religion. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 33(3), 291-315. U.S. Census Bureau. (2011). Statistical abstract of the United States: 2011, Table 11. Resident population projections by race, Hispanic-origin status, and age: 2010 and 2015. Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/prod/2011pubs/11statab/pop .pdf U.S. Census Bureau. (2012). Facts for features: Older Americans month, May 2012. Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/facts_for_ features_special_editions/cb12-ff07.html Wong, C. K. M., Yeung, D. Y., Ho, H. C. Y., Tse, K., & Lam, C. (2014). Chinese older adults’ Internet use for health information. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 33(3), 316-335.
Downloaded from jag.sagepub.com at SUNY BINGHAMTON on March 8, 2015
