Bereavement among African American and White older adults

Journal of Aging and Health

Volumn 19, Issue 2, 2007, Pages 313-333

  Williams, Beverly Rosa ^a,b   Sawyer Baker, Patricia ^a   Allman, Richard M ^a   Roseman, Jeffrey M ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM   (United States)

^b BIRMINGHAM VA MEDICAL CENTER   (United States)

Author keywords

African American and White older adults; Friendship loss; Geriatric bereavement events; Nonspousal family loss; Spousal loss

Indexed keywords

AFRICAN AMERICAN; AGED; ARTICLE; BEREAVEMENT; COHORT ANALYSIS; CONTROLLED STUDY; DEMOGRAPHY; EDUCATION; FAMILY; FEMALE; FRIENDSHIP; HUMAN; INCOME; LOGISTIC REGRESSION ANALYSIS; LONGITUDINAL STUDY; MALE; MARRIAGE; PREDICTION; PROSPECTIVE STUDY; RACE DIFFERENCE; RANDOM SAMPLE; SPOUSE;

ADAPTATION, PSYCHOLOGICAL; AFRICAN AMERICANS; AGE FACTORS; AGED; ALABAMA; BEREAVEMENT; EUROPEAN CONTINENTAL ANCESTRY GROUP; FEMALE; HUMANS; MALE; MARITAL STATUS; MIDDLE AGED; SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS; WIDOWHOOD;

EID: 34047255892     PISSN: 08982643     EISSN: 15526887     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1177/0898264307299301     Document Type: Article

References (60)

1. Ajrouch, F.J., Antonucci, T.C., & Janevic, M.R. (2001). Social networks among Blacks and Whites: The interaction between race and age. Journals of Gerontology B Psychological Science and Social Science, 56, S112-118.
2. Alabama Rural Health Association. (1998). Health status of rural Alabamians. Montgomery, AL: Author.
3. Allan, G., & Adams, R. (1989). Aging in the structure of friendship. In R. G. Adams & R. Blieszner (Eds.), Older adult friendship: Structure and process (pp. 45-64). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
4. Arbuckle, N., & de Vries, B. (1995). The long term effects of late life spousal and parental bereavement on personal functioning. The Gerontologist, 35, 637-647.
5. Bass, D., Noelker, L., Townsend, A., & Deimling, G. (1990). Losing an aged relative: Perceptual differences between spouses and adult children. Omega, 21, 21-40.
6. Bedford, V. (1998). Sibling relationship troubles and well-being in middle and old age. Family Relations, 47, 369-378.
7. Bury, M., & Holme, A. (1990). Quality of life and social support in the very old. Journal of Aging Studies, 4, 345-357.
8. Cacace, M., & Williamson, E. (1996). Grieving the death of an adult child. Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 22, 16-22.
9. Carstensen, L.L. (1992). Social and emotional patterns in adulthood: Support for socioemotional selectivity theory. Psychology and Aging, 7, 331-338.
10. Carstensen, L.L. (1993). Motivation for social contact across the lifespan: A theory of socio-emotional selectivity. In J. E. Jacobs (Ed.), Nebraska symposium on motivation: Developmental perspectives on motivation (pp. 209-254). Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.
11. Chogahara, M., Cousins, S., & Wankel, L. (1998). Social influences on physical activity in older adults: A review. Journal of Aging and Physical Activity, 6, 1-17.
12. Coward, R.T., Lee, G.R., Netzer, J.K., Cutler, S.J., & Danigelis, N.L. (1996). Racial differences in the household composition of elders by age, gender, and area of residence. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 42, 205-227.
13. de Vries, B., & Johnson, C.L. (2002). The death of a friend in later life. Advances in Life Course Research: New Frontiers in Socialization, 7, 299-324.
14. de Vries, B., Lehman, A., & Arbuckle, N. (1995, November). Reactions to the death of a close friend in later life. Paper presented at 48th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Gerontological Society of America, Los Angeles.
15. Dilworth-Anderson, P., Brummett, B.H., Goodwin, P., Williams, S.W., Williams, R.B., & Siegler, I.C. (2005). Effect of race on cultural justifications for caregiving. Journals of Gerontology B, Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 60, S257-S262.
16. Dilworth-Anderson, P., Williams, I.C., & Williams, S.W. (2001). Urban elderly African Americans. In L. K. Olseon (Ed.), Age through ethnic lenses. Caring for the elderly in a multicultural society (pp. 95-102). Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
17. Felton, B., & Berry, C. (1992). Do the sources of urban elderly's support determine psychological consequences? Psychology and Aging, 7, 89-97.
18. Field, D. (1999). Continuity and change in friendships in advanced old age: Findings from the Berkeley older generations study. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 48, 325-346.
19. Fingerman, K., & Bermann, E. (2000). Applications of family systems theory to the study of adulthood. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 51, 5-29.
20. Fitzpatrick, T. (1998). Bereavement events among elderly men: The effects of stress and health. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 17, 204-228.
21. Hagestad, G. (1982). Parent and child: Generations in the family. In T. M. Field, A. Huston, H. Quay, L. Troll, & G. E. Finley (Eds.), Review of human development (pp. 485-499). New York: John Wiley.
22. Hays, J., Gold, D., & Pieper, C. (1997). Sibling bereavement in later life. Omega, 35, 25-42.
23. Holmes, T.H., & Rahe, R.H. (1967). The social readjustment rating scale. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 11, 213-218.
24. Hooyman, N., & Kiyak, H. (2005). Social gerontology: A multidisciplinary perspective (7 th ed.). Boston: Pearson.
25. Hummer, R.A., Benjamins, M.R., & Rogers, R.G. (2004). Racial and ethnic disparities in health and mortality among the U.S. elderly population. In N. B. Anderson, R. A. Bulatao, & B. Cohen (Eds.), Critical perspectives on racial and ethnic differences in health in late life (pp. 53-94). Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
26. Ingersoll-Dayton, B., Morgan, D., & Antonucci, T.C. (1997). The effects of positive and negative social exchanges on aging adults. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 52, S190-S199.
27. Johnson, C.L. (1999). Fictive kin among oldest old African Americans in the San Francisco Bay Area. Journals of Gerontology B Psychological Science and Social Science, 54, S368-S375.
28. Johnson, C.L., & Barer, B.M. (1990). Families and networks among inner-city Blacks. Gerontologist, 30, 726-733.
29. Johnson, C.L., & Troll, L. (1992). Family functioning in late, late life. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 47, S66-S72.
30. Johnson, C.L., & Troll, L. (1994). Constraints and facilitators to friendships in late life. The Gerontologist, 34, 79-87.
31. Lang, F., & Carstensen, L. (1994). Close emotional relationships in late life: Further support for proactive aging in the social domain. Psychology and Aging, 9, 315-324.
32. Levitt, M. (2000). Social relations across the life span: In search of unified models. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 51, 71-84.
33. Levitt, M., Weber, R., & Guacci, N. (1993). Convoys of social support: An intergenerational analysis. Psychology and Aging, 8, 323-326.
34. Lopata, H. (1993). The support systems of American urban widows. In S. S. Strobe, W. Strobe, & R. O. Hansson (Eds.), Handbook of bereavement: Theory, research, and intervention (pp. 381-296). New York: Cambridge University Press.
35. Mac Rae, H. (1992). Fictive kin as a component of the social networks of older people. Research on Aging, 14, 226-247.
36. McCann, J.J., Hebert, L.E., Beckett, L.A., Morris, M.C., Scherr, P.A., & Evans, D.A. (2000). Comparison of informal caregiving by Black and White older adults in a community population. Journal of the American Geriatric Society, 48, 1612-1617.
37. Moss, M., Lesher, L., & Moss, S. (1986-1987). Impact of the death of an adult child on elderly parents: Some observations. Omega, 17, 209-218.
38. Moss, M., Moss, S., & Hansson, R. (2001). Bereavement and old age. In M. S. Strobe, R. O. Hansson, W. Strobe, & H. Schut (Eds.), Handbook of bereavement in research (pp. 241-260). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
39. Moss, S., & Moss, M. (1989). The impact of the death of an elderly sibling. American Behavioral Scientist, 33, 94-106.
40. Nkongho, N.O., & Archbold, P.G. (1995). Reasons for caregiving in African American families. Journal of Cultural Diversity, 2, 116-123.
41. Okun, M.A., & Keith, V.M. (1998). Effects of positive and negative social exchanges with various sources on depressive symptoms in younger and older adults. Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 53, 4-20.
42. Osterweis, M., Solomon, F., & Green, M. (1984). Bereavement: Reactions, consequences and care. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
43. Owen, J., Goode, K., & Haley, W. (2001). End of life care and reactions to death in African-American and White family caregivers of relatives with Alzheimer's disease. Omega, 43, 349-361.
44. Parker, S., & de Vries, B. (1993). Patterns of friendship for women and men in same and cross-sex friendships. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 10, 617-626.
45. Pinquart, M. (2003). Loneliness in married, widowed, divorced, and never-married older adults. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 20, 31-54.
46. Putman, R.D. (2000). Bowling alone. The collapse and revival of American community. New York: Simon & Schuster.
47. Roberto, K., & Kimboko, P. (1989). Friendships in later life: Definitions and maintenance patterns. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 28, 9-19.
48. Roberto, K., & Scott, J. (1986). Friendships of older men and women: Exchange patterns and satisfaction. Psychology and Aging, 1, 103-109.
49. Roberto, K., & Stanis, P. (1994). Reactions of older women to the death of their close friends. Omega, 29, 17-27.
50. Shanas, E. (1979). The family as a social support system of old age. The Gerontologist, 19, 169-174.
51. Sherman, A., de Vries, B., & Lansford, J. (2000). Friendship in childhood and adulthood: Lessons across the lifespan. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 51, 31-51.
52. Siegel, J., & Kuykendall, D. (1990). Loss, widowhood, and psychological distress among the elderly. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 58, 519-524.
53. Steverink, N., Westerhof, G.J., Bode, C., & Dittmann-Kohli, F. (2001). The personal experience of aging, individual resources and subjective well-being. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 56B, S364-S373.
54. Sussman, M. (1976). The family life of old people. In R. Rinstock & E. Shanas (Eds.), Handbook of aging and the social sciences (pp. 218-243). New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold.
55. Taylor, R.J., & Chatters, L.M. (1991). Extended family networks of older Black adults. Journal of Gerontology, 46, S210-S217.
56. Tower, R., & Kasl, S. (1996). Gender, marital closeness, and depressive symptoms in elderly couples. Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, 51B, P115-P130.
57. U.S. Census Bureau. (2001). Poverty 2001. Poverty thresholds 2001. Retrieved June 2004, from www.census.gov/hhes/poverty/threshld/thresh01.html
58. Walen, H., & Lachman, M.E. (2000). Social support and strain from partner, family and friends: Costs and benefits for men and women. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 17, 5-30.
59. Williams, B. (2001). Coping with cancer: Strategies for dealing with terminal illness. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Alabama at Birmingham.
60. Williams, B., Baker, P., & Allman, R. (2005). Nonspousal family loss among community-dwelling older adults. Omega, 51, 125-142.