| Abstract: | The elderly may be considered a group at risk with regard to mental health and the mental health system. Aging women experience a double jeopardy arising from social, economic, and psychological conditions surrounding age and gender—in particular, poverty, widowhood, and the dynamics of family caregiving. This double jeopardy translates into a vulnerability within the mental health system that is seen in issues of service utilization, therapist–client interactions, and diagnosis, most notably in diagnoses of Alzheimer's disease, alcohol and drug misuse, and depression. The failure of the mental health system to consider elderly individuals as psychological survivors further suggests an implicit assumption that mental decline is a normative part of the aging process. Recommendations for change include addressing gender and age interactions in mental health policy and in psychological research, training, and practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) |
