Aging in the United States: Challenges to Social Policy and Policy Practice

Abstract

For decades gerontologists in the United States, Europe, Japan, and elsewhere in economically advantaged capitalist and socialist countries, as well as gerontologists who were working with nongovernmental organizations, such as Help Age International and governmental organizations serving India, China, and other developing countries, have advocated for attention to the increasing numbers of older persons. These advocacy efforts have focused on both the needs of older adults as well as issues related to their societal roles. At the turn of the century, the dramatic increase in the number of older adults in countries around the world, the increasing percentage of national populations represented by those 65 and older, increased longevity, concerns about the dependency ratio, and, to a lesser extent, growing diversity within this older population—both worldwide and within national jurisdictions—have generated attention. Policy practice targeting governmental, private-foundation, and organizational/agency policies can be a major contributor to the development of opportunities for expansion of social work interventions in a wide variety of new settings or in settings in which social work is poorly represented. In addition to the development of more diverse settings, opportunities for implementation of new models of practice and practice approaches that are not often supported in existing settings must be supported in both new and existing social work settings. The development of settings that promote efficacy-building and partnership approaches to intervention can greatly enhance the partnerships with older adults critical to social action and policy change. Keywords: aging; policy practice; advocacy