Elderly Neighbors Research Articles

Rationalized Motifs in Urban Legends

ALTHOUGH Katharine Briggs worked mainly on the folklore of past generations, she noted that 'Modern Legends, like The Stolen Corpse, are beginning to qualify as folktales, and she included a few at the end of her monumental Dictionary ofBritish Folk-Tales. Here I would like to examine an example of this genre which I believe to be a clever transformation of an old, rural, supernatural motif into modern, urban, rationalized form. It is a story told to me in Worthing, Sussex, in January 1974 by a friend, Miss L.J., then aged about 62; she had heard it from an elderly neighbour, Mr. R.P., who in turn had been told it by his brother L.P., who lived in London. The events were alleged to have happened in London to a woman personally known to L.P. Since my friend Miss L.J. began talking of the affair in a normal social conversation, it was not possible for me to record her words at the time, but I wrote them down as soon as we had parted:-

From Isolation to Involvement … A Texas Community College Welcomes Its Elderly Neighbors

Counseling and ValuesVolume 24, Issue 4 p. 247-255 From Isolation to Involvement … A Texas Community College Welcomes Its Elderly Neighbors RHODA SPRUCE NEWMAN, RHODA SPRUCE NEWMAN Counselor Rhoda Spruce Newman is a counselor at Del Mar College in Corpus Christi, Texas.Search for more papers by this author RHODA SPRUCE NEWMAN, RHODA SPRUCE NEWMAN Counselor Rhoda Spruce Newman is a counselor at Del Mar College in Corpus Christi, Texas.Search for more papers by this author First published: July 1980 https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-007X.1980.tb00880.xCitations: 1 AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume24, Issue4July 1980Pages 247-255 RelatedInformation

Young Children's Perceptions of Old People

Thirty‐five preschool‐age children were asked to order drawings of young, middle, and old‐ aged people from oldest to youngest. Subjects were asked to assign adjective descriptions to the pictures representing each age. Significant associations were found between the type of response given by subjects and the age of the male and female figure drawings (p < .001). The number of positive adjectives assigned to old figures was correlated with the time subjects spent with people over the age of sixty‐five. There was a significant association between the number of positive adjective assignments and the amount of time spent with an elderly babysitter (p < .001) and an elderly neighbor (p < .02). Results are discussed in relation to changes in family life, and suggestions are made for improving young children's impressions of elderly individuals.

Falls among the elderly—Human and environmental factors

A study was made of 150 persons age 60 or older in Chittenden County, Vermont who were treated in an emergency department for injuries from falls, and compared them with 150 elderly neighbors not known to have such injuries. About 19 out of every 1000 elderly persons in the county are treated for falls annually but at least a third of persons in this age range have falls each year, usually not requiring treatment. A third of the treated falls were precipitated by an acute health problem, usually an exacerbation of a more chronic condition, and an additional 8% involved impairment attributable to alcohol, commonly by a person with a history of frequent, heavy drinking. Problems with canes, walkers or wheelchairs appeared to contribute to several falls among impaired persons. Persons with falls because of acute impairment had chronic limitations of mobility, vision or sensorium significantly more often than did persons with other falls or with no falls. Over half of the falls not attributable to acute impairment were caused by slippery or uneven ground. The data do not support the hypothesis that falls of the elderly commonly occur because of fractures of hips or vertebrae, but they do suggest that brittleness of bone, small muscle mass or both are substantial contributors to fractures in the elderly once the fall has been initiated. The nature of the surface struck is less important, but not entirely irrelevent, in determining the severity of injury to persons in this age range. Once injury occurred appropriate first aid was rarely provided and the injured commonly delayed for six hours or longer before seeking care and used methods of transportation to the hospital that were not conducive to limiting exacerbation of the injury. Forty-four per cent of the injured were hospitalized and, of these, 22% died within a year after injury, usually within 3 months. However, the fall injury was only rarely listed on the death certificate as an associated cause of death or significant other condition although it probably should have been listed in most cases.