Next time your 80-something dad decides to buy a new TV, escort him into a big electronics shop and watch the way he makes his decision. If he's not a big-time electronics buff, there's a good chance that rather than trying to remember statistics from Consumer Reports and making a painstaking evaluation of his options in high-definition, theater audio and compatible cabling, he'll wander up and down the aisles until he focuses on something that looks like what he wants and says, "Sony. They're usually good. Let's get that." A rich future belongs to the marketers who can gain the brand ... Read More
Married Couples Don’t Grow More Alike Over Time
August 12, 2010 • By • Leave a Comment
In spite of the cliché that opposites attract, considerable research suggests couples — at least those who make long-term commitments — tend to have similar personalities. But are they attracted to one another because of their shared attitudes and beliefs, or do they grow to resemble one another over time? Research just published in the journal Personality and Individual Differences points to the former conclusion. It suggests spousal similarity is more a matter of initial choice than gradual convergence — with the apparent exception of one personality trait. A team led by ... Read More
Sussing Out Patterns in American History
July 23, 2010 • By • Leave a Comment
American history has witnessed several major upheavals, and it seems in the midst of another contentious period. Tea Partiers claim irreconcilable differences with liberals and cry for smaller government while their opponents say that social programs must be preserved, creating a political echo of the widening cultural rift. The U.S. military languishes in overseas conflicts many see as less than vital to the nation's interests. Hamstrung by economic crises, indecisive on environmental concerns and with unprecedented numbers moving into retirement age, American society's challenges start to ... Read More
States Applaud ‘Encore Careers’
September 2, 2008 • By • Leave a Comment
Forget what F. Scott Fitzgerald said about there being no second acts in American lives. Today, millions of older Americans are into their third acts. Social scientists used to separate adult life into work years and retirement years, but now, with a fifth of the U.S. work force expected to be 55 or older within four years, there’s a brand-new term for the work part. According to John Gomperts, chief executive officer of Experience Corps, the national program that engages people over 55 in meeting their communities’ greatest challenges, “Increasingly, people who have finished their ... Read More
The Glummest Generation
July 18, 2008 • By • Leave a Comment
They challenged assumptions, altered societal attitudes and, in many ways, still control the national agenda. (Otherwise, our political candidates wouldn't still be fighting the Vietnam War.) But according to a just-published paper by the Pew Social and Demographic Trends Project, the baby boomers have the blues. A new analysis of survey data collected earlier this year concludes that boomers — that is, the 76 million Americans born between 1946 and 1964 — "give their overall quality of life a lower rating than adults in other generations." They also tend to be more pessimistic about ... Read More
Pax Americana Geriatrica
July 14, 2008 • By • Leave a Comment
Last year, Sergei Morozov, the governor of the Ulyanovsk region of central Russia, offered prizes to couples who agreed to take advantage of a "family contact day" and wound up producing babies nine months later, on June 12, Russia's national day. It was the third year running that Ulyanovsk had declared a "sex day" and offered prizes for babies born, according to the BBC. The 2007 grand prize (for conceptions in 2006, of course) was a sport utility vehicle. The Ulyanovsk initiative is just a part of Russia's efforts to fight a looming demographic crisis that hovers over much of the world. ... Read More
The Over-50 Crowd Relearns the Facts of Life
April 2, 2008 • By • 1 Comment
Read part one: Aging With HIV For years, single seniors would find the idea of meeting new people following a divorce, or loss of a partner, daunting at best. But with today's online dating services, success in finding the perfect partner is ostensibly only a click away — all you need is a computer and a little courage. But Jane Fowler, retired journalist and now HIV/AIDS prevention educator, waves a red flag of caution for older singles. As founder and director of the national HIV Wisdom for Older Women, Fowler says that older single people — "the fastest-growing segment of the ... Read More
