The Gerontology Program faculty conduct research and publish research articles as regular on-going activities. Students benefit from these research activities by having opportunities to learn about the research process through active participation. Students have assisted with literature reviews, grant writing, data collection and analyses, and have co-authored research publications with the faculty. Some of the primary area of recent research focus have been spousal bereavement in later life, family caregiving, health promotion and self-care, intergenerational family relationships, day respite services for caregivers, family decision-making about nursing home placements, human resources in the field of gerontology, memory and cognitive functioning, video respite for caregivers and educational interventions for caregivers.
Faculty have received research grants from the National
Institute on Aging, Administration on Aging, National Center
for Nursing Research, Bureau of Health Professions, National
Alzheimers Association, Andrus Foundation, the Ben B. &
Iris M. Margolis Foundation, Life Care Foundation, the University
of Utah Research Committee, and the College of Nursing. These
research activities have involved collaboration with researchers
throughout the United States and other countries.
Faculty research publications have appeared in nearly every
major national and international gerontological journal. In
addition, the faculty are active in numerous professional associations
which include Gerontological Society of America, American Society
on Aging, Association of Gerontology in Higher Education, International
Association on Gerontology, Utah Gerontological Society, Association
for Death Education and Counseling, Utah Gerontological Society
and many others.
Several faculty have collaborative educational and research involvement with the Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center administered by the Salt Lake Veterans Administration Medical Center.
Recent publications and activities
Lund, D, Wright, S., Caserta, M. & Utz, R. (2006) 3rd Edition. Respite Services: Enhancing the Quality of Daily Life for Caregivers and Care Receivers. University of Utah Gerontology Interdisciplinary Program. (A cooperative publication with Center on Aging and the Utah Coalition for Caregiver Support). Available in PDF format. Respite Services: Enhancing the Quality of Daily Life for Caregivers and Care Receivers
Freeman, L. Caserta, M. Lund, D., Rossa, S. Dowdy, A., & Partenheimer, A. (2006). Music thanatology: prescriptive harp music as palliative care for the dying patient. American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. 23(2). 100-104.
Lund, D.A., Wright, Scott, Caserta, M. (2005). Respite Services: Enhancing the Quality of Daily Life for Caregivers and Persons with Dementia. Geriatrics & Aging. April. (8) 60-65,
Wright, S. (2005). FANBY-ism in an Aging Society. Proceedings of the Aging Americans: impacts on Ecology and Environmental Quality Workshop. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Office of Research and Development. National Health and Environmental Effects Research laboratory. Narragansett, R.I.
Telonidis, J., Lund, D. Caserta, M., Guralnik, J,, Pennington, J. (2005). The Effects of Widowhood on Disabled Older Women 9The Women's Health and Aging Study). Omega. 50(3) 217-235.
Lund, D. A., & Caserta M. S. (2004). Older men coping with widowhood. Geriatrics & Aging. 7(6). 29-33
Lund, D, Caserta, M. de Vries, B., and Wright, S. (2004). Restoration after Bereavement. Generations Review, 14(4) 9-15.
Franks, M., Lund, D. A., Poulton, D., & Caserta, M. (2004). Understanding hoarding behavior among older adults: A case study approach. Journal of Gerontological Social Work.
Caserta, M., Lund, D. & Obray, Sarah Jane (2004). Promoting Self-Care and Daily Living Skills Among Older Widows and Widowers: Evidence from the Pathfinders Demonstration Project. Omega, 49(3). 217-236.
Richardson, S. J., Lund, D. A., Caserta, M. A., Dudley, W. N., & Obray, S. J. (2003). Sleep patterns in older bereaved spouses. Omega: Journal of Death & Dying, 47, 363-385.
Caserta, M. S. (2003). Widowers. In R. Kastenbaum (Ed.), Macmillan encyclopedia of death and dying (vols. 1 & 2, pp. 933-938). New York: Macmillan Reference USA.
Wright, S. D., Caserta, M. S., & Lund, D. A. (2003). Older adult's attitudes, concerns, and support for environmental issues in the New West. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 57(2), 153-181.
Caserta, M. S., &; Lund, D. A. (2002). Video RespiteTM in an Alzheimer's care center: Group versus solitary viewing. Activities, Adaptation & Aging, 27(1), 13-28.
Caserta, M. S., Lund, D. A., &; Rice, S. J. (2001). Participants' attendance at a health promotion program for older widows and widowers. American Journal of Health Education, 32(4), 229-236.
Lund, D. (2000) Men Coping with Grief. Baywood Publishing Co. New York. NY.
Caserta, M. S., (2000) Gerontological Health Section of the American Public Health Association named Pathfinders as an Honorable Mention winner of the Archstone Foundation Award for Excellence in Program Innovation.
Wright, S. Lund, D. (2000). Gray and Green?: Stewardship and Sustainability in an Aging Society. Journal of Aging Studies, 14, 229-249.
Caserta, M., Lund, D., and Rice, S.J. (1999). Pathfinders: A Self-care and Health Education Program for Older Widows and Widowers. The Gerontologist, 39, 615-620.
Wright, S. (1999). The FANBY Dynamic: The Potential and Future of Retirement "Hot Spots" in the West. Sustainable Communities Review, Vol. 3, No. 1.
Wright, S. (1998). Utah Sourcebook on Aging. Empire Publishing. Salt Lake City, UT.
Lund, D.A. (1996) Bereavement and loss. In J.E. Birren (ed.) Encyclopedia of Gerontology. San Diego: Academic Press.
Caserta, M., Lund, D., Wright, S. (1996) Exploring the caregiver burden inventory (CBI) Further evidence for a multidimensional view of burden. Int'l Journal of Aging and Human Development, 43, 21-34.
Wullschleger, K., Lund, D., Caserta, M., & Wright, S. Anxiety about aging: A neglected dimension of caregivers' experiences. Journal of Gerontological Social Work.
To request reprints and a list of Gerontology Interdisciplianry Program publications,
please contact:
gerontology@nurs.utah.edu
