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Symposium

Behavioral and Social Sciences

Presidential Symposium: Embracing Opportunities and Confronting Challenges in Global Aging Research

Thursday, November 14, 2024
4:30 PM – 6:15 PM PST
Location: Room 4C-2
CE: 1.5

    Chair(s)

  • Jennifer Ailshire, PhD, FGSA

    Professor
    Gerontology
    University of Southern California
    Los Angeles, California, United States

    • Individual Symposium Abstract First Author(s)

  • Jinkook Lee, PhD (she/her/hers)

    Professor
    Economics & Center for Economic and Social Research
    University of Southern California
    Los Angeles, California, United States

    Slides
  • MF

    Mateo Farina, PhD

    Assistant Professor
    Human Development and Family Sciences
    University of Texas at Austin
    Austin, Texas, United States

  • NQ

    Nekehia Quashie, PhD

    Assistant Professor
    Department of Health Studies
    University of Rhode Island
    University of Rhode Island, Rhode Island, United States

This BSS Presidential Symposium highlights the promise and potential of global studies of older adults to bring new insights to our understanding of the aging process in an ever changing and increasingly diverse world. The Symposium brings together scholars from Gerontology, Sociology, and Economics to highlight the multidisciplinary perspectives on aging in a global context. Jinkook Lee will provide an overview of what we can learn from cross-national comparisons of aging populations and how we can use evolving data resources to address the challenges of aging populations around the world. Three empirical presentations follow from Yaun Zhang, Mateo Farina, and Nekehia Quashie, with different perspectives on how to use global aging surveys to advance our understanding of the social determinants of cognitive health across diverse country contexts. These presentations, which focus on education, early life conditions, and family relationships span countries from Latin America, Asia, Europe, and the United Kingdom as well as the United States. The session also highlights the value of using harmonized studies of aging across different countries to demonstrate how inequality differs across contexts and identify the drivers of disparities in cognitive health and dementia risk. By integrating diverse disciplinary perspectives and utilizing harmonized studies, this Symposium will demonstrate how researchers can use cross-national comparative research to examine questions that can inform efforts to enhance the well-being of older adults worldwide and address the multifaceted challenges posed by global aging.

Learning Objectives:

  • Recognize the challenges in studying aging from a cross-national perspective.
  • Identify social differences in and determinants of health across countries.
  • Identify challenges for aging individuals in a rapidly shifting social, economic, and physical landscape.

Presentations:

  • 4:30 PM – 6:15 PM PST
    The Future of Aging Research: Opportunities and Challenges From Global Aging Surveys

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Jinkook Lee, PhD (she/her/hers) – University of Southern California

  • 4:30 PM – 6:15 PM PST
    Educational Attainment and Later-Life Cognitive Function in High- and Middle-Income Countries
  • 4:30 PM – 6:15 PM PST
    Socioeconomic Determinants of Racial Inequalities in Cognitive Functioning Among Adults 50+ in the US and Brazil

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Mateo Farina, PhD – University of Texas at Austin

  • 4:30 PM – 6:15 PM PST
    Number of Living Siblings and Cognitive Decline Among Older Mexican Adults

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Nekehia T. Quashie, PhD – University of Rhode Island