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Biomedical subjects

K F Ferraro

Publications and source records attributed to K F Ferraro.

31 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1990

Cohort analysis of retirement preparation, 1974-1981.

Extending Easterlin's (1987) thesis regarding cohort size and personal welfare, this study was designed to examine cohort differences and changes in preparation for retirement. The data on which the study is based came from two cross-sectional surveys commissioned by the National Council on the Aging and conducted in 1974 and 1981. Major research questions included: (a) Which cohorts are most active in taking steps to prepare for retirement? and (b) Did Americans increase their retirement preparation activities during the time period studied? Results indicate that retirement preparation is influenced by cohort effects, especially among the more recent cohorts, and that earlier cohorts generally prepare more. Most respondents, especially the earlier cohorts, experienced a decrease in retirement preparation between 1974 and 1981 (i.e., a period effect). Analysis of the separate indicators of a retirement preparation index show that most activities, for instance, savings, decreased during this time while others either increased (will preparation) or remained stable (home ownership). The findings suggest that retirement preparation is influenced by economic climate and provide partial support for this application of Easterlin's thesis. Retirement preparation is also strongly related to education and race.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Group benefit orientation toward older adults at work? A comparison of cohort analytic methods.

The group benefit orientation for explaining generational beliefs on policy issues is considered in light of debate regarding emerging conflict between younger and older people in America. Using data from two national surveys conducted seven years apart, beliefs about older adults' labor force participation are analyzed by conventional cohort analysis and an alternative method of replacing age in similar models with a theoretically meaningful variable. Neither method offers support for the group benefit orientation. Both methods indicate that more recent cohorts show the highest levels of support for older workers' privileges and opportunities, reflecting social change in the direction of increasing tolerance of and support for the rights of older people. A period effect of increasing support for older workers was also observed on two of the indicators. The findings have implications for both the substantive issues raised and the analysis of cohort data.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1989

Reexamining the double jeopardy to health thesis.

The purposes of this article are twofold: (a) to clarify the evaluation of the double jeopardy thesis and (b) to evaluate two apparently contradictory sets of results on the double jeopardy to health derived from the same data (National Council on the Aging, 1975). The results offer no support for the double jeopardy thesis based on a subjective assessment of health problems. Both logistic regression analysis and multiple discriminant analysis were used to estimate the relationships among the variables considered.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

The ADEA amendment and public support for older workers.

The purpose of this research is to examine Americans' beliefs about older adults at work before and after the amendment of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) in 1978. Two models are considered for understanding the relationship between age strata and public support for older workers: the group benefit model and the civil liberty model. The analysis gives general support to the civil liberty model: (1) age differences are related to the beliefs so that more recent cohorts are more likely than earlier ones to favor the work privileges and opportunities for older people and (2) Americans in general grew more favorable toward and concerned about older workers during the period surrounding the passage of the ADEA Amendment in 1978. Women were more likely than were men to support the privileges of older people to work regardless of age or competition for jobs by younger people.

Aged↗
PubMed1989

Domains of medical practice: physicians' assessment of the role of physician extenders.

The relationship between physicians and physician extender occupations is considered in light of the stratification of medical care workers. Professional dominance between various medical occupations and professional competition among physicians are considered. Data from a national sample of physicians taken in 1981 are used to determine 1) under what conditions physicians are likely to consider the employment of physician extenders helpful for improving quality of care and 2) which characteristics and available resources are associated with the belief that the employment of physician extenders will improve medical care. Of four different service populations considered, physicians are most likely to think that the use of physician extenders to care for the urban poor will aid care and are least likely to think that their employment will improve care for obstetrics and pediatrics cases. The results indicate that physicians' beliefs regarding the employment of physician extenders are dependent on the clientele as well as on the relative position of the two occupational groups in the hierarchy of medical care occupations.

Attitude↗
PubMed1988

Medical need and use of services among older men and women.

This article presents a model of the process by which men and women evaluate their health and utilize the medical care system. It is argued that an analysis of the effects of sex roles on medical care must look at the entire process and not just focus on the outcome variables of physician visits and hospitalization. Gender interactions are emphasized, but race interactions also are examined. Findings show that men and women differ in the number of illnesses they report, the likelihood of having a life-threatening illness, the degree of disability, and their perception of their health. Indicators of medical need were found to be the strongest measures in predicting the recency of seeing a physician; however, the physician visit had the strongest effect in determining hospitalization. No direct effects of gender or race on physician visits were found, and only one interaction was significant; however, the results were very different when the measure of medical care use was hospitalization. Both additive and interactive effects by gender and race were found when predicting hospitalization.

Aged↗
PubMed1987

Double jeopardy to health for black older adults?

Previous health research on the double jeopardy of being Black and old is largely based upon subjective assessments of health. This article discusses the measurement of health with the understanding that health indicators vary in their degree of objectivity/subjectivity and examines the double jeopardy thesis with data from a national sample of older adults. The results indicate that older Blacks tend to have poorer health, as judged by perceived health and disability, than older Whites. However, there is no evidence that the health differential between elderly Whites and elderly Blacks varies with age; the results do not support the double jeopardy hypothesis. The analysis also illustrates ways to assess the difference of effects in a multivariate model applied to more than one group.

Black or African American↗
PubMed1983

The health consequences of relocation among the aged in the community.

A review of the literature of health consequences of relocation among the aged indicates that there may be substantial differences due to (a) the type of housing environment the individual enters and (b) the degree of voluntarism associated with the move. Recognizing the need for research on this subject among the aged moving within the community at large, this study utilizes longitudinal data from a national sample of older people to examine how moving affects health. Using several measures of health status, the findings indicate that moving adversely affects the health and daily functioning of older people in the community. In addition, the deleterious effects of moving on personal health exist whether the move is voluntary or involuntary. Based on the review of the literature and the findings of this study, it is suggested that the benign effects of older people's moving into senior housing facilities is due to the prevalence of physical and social supports in such settings.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Environmental satisfaction, sociability, and well-being among urban elderly.

A review of the literature indicates that until recently little attention has been paid to the effects of the environment on well-being among the aged. This study analyzes data relevant to both the individual and his or her environment from a large (N = 2265) national sample of low- and middle-income elderly. A recursive causal model is presented; the results indicate that perceived health and housing satisfaction contribute the most to well-being among the elderly. In addition, for men and women home ownership was not found to affect well-being positively. For men who owned their own homes lower scores on well-being were reported. The findings also indicate that while the quantity of neighbor interaction benefits the well-being of men, women benefit more from the positive sentiments of sociability in the neighborhood. This study emphasizes the importance of environmental satisfaction and neighborhood sociability as key determinants of well-being in later life.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The effect of widowhood on the health status of older persons.

Interest in the relationship between stress and the onset of illness has stimulated research on the impact of various life events on health status. This article is an analysis of the health consequences of widowhood--the life event considered to require the most readjustment. Considering both objective and subjective measures of health, a structural equation model is developed and tested with panel data of a sample of elders. The findings indicate that widowhood results in an immediate decrease in perceived health but that the long-term consequences are minimal. Also, certain categories of elders shown to be health optimistic are able to maintain their optimism after widowhood. The results are interpreted as reflecting relativity in medical perceptions and favor a transitional model for explaining the normalization of disability.

Age Factors↗