Description
While many employers view their younger employees as their strongest assets, their more seasoned workers are often their most valuable. Written by experts in the field, Working Longer gives recruiters, managers, and trainers the tools they need to develop a senior-friendly workplace and to empower, coach, and keep their most experienced people. Dr. Sterns received his Ph.D. in Life-Span Developmental Psychology from West Virginia University in 1971. His major areas of interest include industrial gerontology, life-span development, training and career development. He is Director of the Institute for Life- Span Development and Gerontology. Courses typically taught include psychology of adulthood and aging, industrial/gerontological psychology, and undergraduate psychology courses. His publications have appeared in many gerontology journals including Experimental Aging Research, The Counseling Psychologist, Journal of Gerontology, Generations, Journal of Applied Gerontology. He has served on the editorial board of Psychology and Aging, The Gerontologist, and Journal of Women and Aging and serves on the editorial boards of Experimental Aging Research and Research on Aging. He is a Fellow of the American Psychology Association, Gerontological Society of America and the American Psychological Society. Current research includes training of adult and older adult workers, personality factors, and retirement adjustment and satisfaction, as well as personality factors in housing choices in retirement. Other research includes alcohol treatment and aging, and life planning issues for older adults with mental retardation. Contents Forewordxi Prefacexv Acknowledgments xxiii Advance Organizer for This Book xxv Part I Introduction1 Chapter 1 Older Adult Workers in Today’s Work World3 Defining Adult and Older Adult Workers 6 Self-Management 9 Organizational Issues 13 Working Longer 15 Changes in the Work Environment16 Challenges to Be Faced18 Work in the Same Organization or Move?21 Careers in Later Life23 Support from Employers29 Decision Making and Work Opportunities32 Midlife Changes 33 Summary35 Chapter 2 Adapting the Workplace to Accommodate Physiological Age-Related Changes in Older Adults 36 Aging: A Global View 40 Biological Aging 40 Psychological Aging 50 Social Aging 52 Older Adults Continuing to Work 53 Designing the Workplace for Older Americans 54 Stereotypes About Aging56 The Americans With Disabilities Act57 Minorities in the Workplace63 Work Issues66 Active Older Workers66 Adapting the Workplace for Older Adults67 Summary 68 Chapter 3 How to Train Older Adults: Aging Influences on Cognitive Tasks 69 Translating What We Know into Adult and Older Worker Training72 Summary 80 Part II Design83 Chapter 4 Instructional Design for Training Older Workers85 ADDIE Model85 Individual Differences98 Training99 The Value of Training Older Workers101 How Older Adults Learn Best104 Guidelines for Training Older Adults105 Transferring Training Results105 Training Modalities106 Older Adults as Learners107 Diversity Training109 Summary110 Chapter 5 Improving Learning Performance112 Workplace Learning Competence and Its Importance112 Workplace Learning Competence and Workplace Learning Climate 113 Learner Characteristics of Older Versus Younger Adults116 Implications of Learning Principles for Training Older Adults117 Summary126 Chapter 6 Career Development for Adults and Older Workers127 Self-Management: Career and Retirement127 Obstacles to Self-Management144 Models of Career Development146 Looking to the Future151 Recommendations155 Future Directions157 Summary158 Part III Managing Organizational Knowledge167 Chapter 7 What Employers Can Do to Plan for an Aging Workforce169 The Evolving Workplace169 Getting Ahead of the Trends172 Action Steps for Preparing for the Workforce of the Future197 Summary 200 Appendix: Resources List201 Notes214 About the Authors234 Index239
