The Psychology of Ageing: An Introduction
Ian Stuart-Hamilton,
Jessica Kingsley Publishers
ISBN:101843104261,
£19.99
STAR RATING: 4/5
It is refreshing to see a book interested in the minds of older people as this client group are often overlooked, writes Noelle Blackman. This research-based approach has been written very much with the undergraduate psychology student in mind.
As such it is packed full of research and is a very good resource if this is what is needed.
However, Stuart-Hamilton takes a narrow definition of psychology which doesn't allow much consideration of the context in which people grow older and the interplay between environment and the mind, which would have added a human interest.
There is also little consideration given to the variety of older people that make up our society. For example, there is no mention of older people with learning difficulties who are a growing part of our ageing population today.
While this book is an introduction, nonetheless there is a great danger that it would turn prospective psychologists away from an interest in gerontology rather than towards it. This is a shame, as with luck we will all grow old and would I suspect hope that people will take a creative interest in how our minds still work.
Noelle Blackman is assistant director, Respond