ABSTRACT
This chapter aims to examine some of the linkages between social change and aging and the implications of these linkages for interdisciplinary research in gerontology and geriatrics. It argues that the nexus between aging and social change is ripe for interdisciplinary research. The chapter describes examples of research topics that lend themselves to interdisciplinary investigations of aging and social change with a particular focus on the potential for bringing together researchers from the biomedical sciences, the social and behavioral sciences, and the humanities. It examines the issues associated with aging and rapid advances in biomedical technology. The chapter suggests that the concept of "structural lag", points to sources of structural inertia that impede aging from inducing social change. It also argues that the topic of aging and social change has been disciplinary and, at best, multidisciplinary. People are living in an era of unprecedented social and technological change.
