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Introduction In this study, executive function of school-aged children with visual impairments (that is, those who are blind or have low vision) is examined in the context of behavioral problems and communicative competence. Methods Teachers assessed the executive function of a sample of 226 visually impaired students from mainstream schools and schools for students who are visually impaired, using a German version of the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF-D) and a questionnaire measuring communicative competence and behavioral problems (German version of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire; SDQ-D). Results The results showed highly significant differences in all domains of executive function: the visually impaired students consistently scored more poorly compared to a normative sample of sighted children, even when visually impaired students with additional disabilities were not taken into account. A regression analysis revealed the significance of executive function for behavioral problems among students with visual impairments. Discussion The findings demonstrate that a wide range of executive function domains that are significant for socioemotional development are not sufficiently developed in many visually impaired students. This lack of development seems to be particularly true for students who attend special schools. Implications for practitioners In educational concepts for visually impaired students, a specific and early focus on competencies such as attention shifting and emotional understanding seems to be necessary, especially in the context of inclusion. Moreover, reinforcing communicative competence might also enhance the development of executive function and help to reduce behavioral problems.

Gerontologie ist ein stark interdisziplinär orientiertes Wissenschaftsfeld - Altern kann wohl nur in einer synergiereichen Verknüpfung unterschiedlicher Disziplinen verstanden werden. Dieses erstmals 2004 erschienene Werk stellt in seiner völlig neu bearbeiteten zweiten Auflage den interdisziplinären Charakter der Gerontologie ganz in den Mittelpunkt. Psychologische, soziologische, biologische, geriatrische, gerontopsychiatrische sowie weitere disziplinäre Aspekte werden eingebunden in die Darstellung grundlegender theoretischer, empirischer und methodischer Fragen der Gerontologie. Ferner werden die gesellschaftliche Bedeutung der Gerontologie sowie ihre Geschichte von der Antike bis zur Gegenwart herausgearbeitet, bevor es im letzten Kapitel "Quo vadis Gerontologie?" heißt. Das Buch bietet insgesamt ein kompaktes Ordnungsschema für die heute existierende Flut an Konzepten, Theorien, Befunden und Interventionsmöglichkeiten der Gerontologie an.

This article reports on a study that investigated the role of cognitive resources in the everyday functioning of 121 older adults who were visually impaired and 150 sighted older adults, with a mean age of 82 years. Cognitive performance and everyday functioning were most strongly related in the group who were visually impaired. The authors conclude that cognitive training enhances independent living skills.

This comparison of the behavioral and emotional adaptation of elderly visually impaired and sighted people found that age-related visual impairment was associated with other forms of substantial loss that increased over a six-year period. The results underscore the need for the earliest possible intervention and rehabilitation to prevent psychosocial harm to elderly people who experience severe vision loss after a lifetime of seeing.

Abstract. This study investigated the relationships between tenacious goal pursuit (TGP) and flexible goal adjustment (FGA), two fundamental modes of self-regulation suggested by Brandtstädter and colleagues, and positive and negative affect (PA, NA). This was done in general terms and by considering the developmental constraint of perceived age-related visual decline. Data stem from 751 community-dwelling elders (55-98 years, 372 women, 379 men). Results support the hypothesis of differential associations of TGP and FGA, respectively, with affect: TGP was positively related to PA, and FGA was negatively related to NA. Moreover, differential moderator effects of TGP and FGA, respectively, on the relationship between subjective vision and affect emerged. FGA independently moderated the inverse relationship between subjective vision and NA. The moderator effect of TGP, however, was dependent on FGA: TGP did not alter the relationship between subjective vision and PA until FGA was high, too. It is concluded that both TGP and FGA are necessary for an adaptive self-regulation.

Gerontologie ist ein stark interdisziplinär orientiertes Wissenschaftsfeld. Entsprechend stellt die völlig neu bearbeitete Auflage dieses klassischen Lehrbuchs (BA 7/04, Vorauflage lag nicht vor) diesen Aspekt noch stärker in den Mittelpunkt. Kapitel wurden umgestellt und teilweise tiefer gegliedert, die Daten, z.B. zur demografischen Entwicklung, durchgängig aktualisiert, ebenso das Literaturverzeichnis. Der Text ist "knapp und verständlich geschrieben, strukturiert und didaktisch aufgebaut [...] Kontrollfragen, Stichwortregister und ein Literaturverzeichnis unterstreichen den Lehrbuchcharakter" (J. Plieninger). Zielgruppe sind vor allem Studierende der Gerontologie, nützlich ist der Titel aber auch für die unterschiedlichsten Akteure in gerontologischen Praxisfeldern, etwa im Pflege- oder Gesundheitsbereich. Die 1. Auflage sollte ausgetauscht werden. Das Buch bleibt "... für Bibliotheken mit entsprechender Klientel (Lehrende und Studierende an Hochschulen)" weiterhin breit empfohlen. (2)

Impaired vision often results in restrictions across diverse key indicators of successful aging. However, little is known about how impaired vision affects the long-term trajectories of these outcomes, whether effects are moderated by age, and whether psychosocial resources beyond well-being such as subjective age views are also affected by vision loss. We analyzed how self-reported vision problems as a time-varying predictor are related to long-term changes in health and cognitive ability (functional health, number of chronic diseases, self-rated health, information processing speed), well-being (life satisfaction, positive and negative affect, depressive symptoms, loneliness), and subjective age views (subjective age; aging-related cognitions: social loss, physical decline, continuous growth). Our sample was derived from the German Ageing Survey, comprising 6,378 individuals (40–89 years) who provided up to four observations over a 9-year period. Controlling for gender, age, education, and functional as well as self-rated health, we observed that both on a between- and a within-person level, indicators of successful aging were consistently less favorable among individuals with more vision problems. Associations between vision problems and functional health became stronger with advancing age. In contrast, with increasing age, vision problems were less closely associated with change in several indicators of psychosocial functioning. Our findings suggest that self-reported visual impairment is associated with restrictions across a broad range of developmental domains. Some detrimental effects of vision problems are augmented in later life, whereas several effects on well-being and subjective age views were attenuated with advancing age, which might indicate processes of late-life adaptation to vision loss.