| CODE | GER5041 | |||||||||
| TITLE | Gerontology: Multi-disciplinary and Inter-disciplinary Approaches | |||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course | |||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 7 | |||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 5 | |||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Gerontology and Dementia Studies | |||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | This study-unit will address how Gerontology and Geriatrics are increasingly moving from multi-disciplinary to inter-disciplinary disciplines. In the past, Gerontology and Geriatric programmes were most often housed in particular schools or departments and typically offered specialisations in the different areas of ageing rather than academic awards in Gerontology and Geriatrics. An inter-disciplinary approach to Gerontology and Geriatrics considers the main areas of gerontological inquiry and then focuses on the core questions within each of the various areas of interest, especially on the following areas: health promotion, physical aspects, pharmacological, psychological aspects, social aspects of ageing, and public policy. Study-unit Aims: The goals of this study-unit is to demonstrate to students how different areas of academic inquiry - social gerontology, psychogeriatrics, medical geriatrics, and public policy - make important contributions to the ageing discipline. Lecturers, from different gerontological disciplines, will address how biomedical disciplines seek answers to questions regarding the physical aspects of ageing, and how specific disciplines, such as biology, address micro-level topics regarding cellular and systemic change. On the other hand, psychologists, social workers, and sociologists all join in their quest to understand better the medicalisation of later life. Students will be consequently made aware of how both social and medical sciences address a range of macro- and micro-level topics that inform us of the physical and social aspects of ageing. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - understand care-giving trends from an inter-disciplinary perspective; - become aware of mental health outcomes in later life; - realise how health and social care systems are strained by competing demands and shaped by institutional arrangements; - comprehend the costs of providing informal and institutional care, and how care provision is related to other intergenerational provisions; - understanding cross-cultural and -historical experiences in ageing. 2. Skills: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - argue that ageing is not a cause of all age-related phenomena, as they hold a healthy skepticism for what is generally attributed to be 'age' effects; - show how ageing involves biological, psychological, and social changes in individuals at varying rates; - demonstrate that the imprint of genetics on ageing is substantial as this not only influences longevity but also behavioural processes across the life course; - include an awareness of how age is positively associated with heterogeneity on the basis of social class, gender, ethnicity, and sexuality; - demonstrate the propensity towards ageism in all societies irrespective of industrial development, and that ageism may also exist among professionals working in the field of ageing; - confirm how residential care can be complimented by domiciliary care. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Main texts: Gosney, M., Harper, A. and Conroy, S. (2012). Oxford desk reference geriatric medicine. 1st Edition. Oxford University Press. Hooyman, N.R. and Kiyak, H. (2008). Social gerontology: A multidisciplinary perspective. Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon. Pathy, M.S.J (ed.), Sinclair, A.J. and Morley, J.E. (2006). Pathy’s principles and practice of geriatric medicine. 4th Edition. Wiley. Tepper, L.M. and Cassidy, T.M. (eds.) (2004). Multidisciplinary perspectives on ageing. New York: Springer. Supplementary readings: Carr, D. and Komp, K. (2011). Gerontology in the era of the third age: Implications and next steps. New York: Springer. Dannefer, D. and Phillipson, C. (eds.) (2010). The SAGE handbook of social gerontology. London: Sage. Phillipson, C. (2013). Ageing. Cambridge: Polity Press. |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | |||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Mary Grace Cassar Maria Aurora Fenech (Co-ord.) Ingrid Magro |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2025/6. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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