ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews research concerning communication and aging, focusing on three central areas. First, the authors look at cognitive developments in normal aging, such as changes in memory and name retrieval, and their implications for communication. This section also addresses research on attitudes toward older adults and the consequences of those attitudes for communication. Second, the authors examine issues relating to language, including research concerning linguistic modifications made by the young when talking to elderly people and changing features of the linguistic production of older adults. Third, the authors discuss relationships—late-life marriages, grandparent-grandchild relationships, and patient-physician relationships, among others—and the central role of communication in facilitating such relationships. Throughout, the authors address limitations in current knowledge and propose avenues for future research. The chapter concludes with a summary that synthesizes the diverse themes presented and offers a coherent life-span framework for future research into communication and aging.
