TY - JOUR
T1 - A Social Model for Health Promotion for an Aging Population
T2 - Initial Evidence on the Experience Corps Model
AU - Fried, Linda P.
AU - Carlson, Michelle C.
AU - Freedman, Marc
AU - Frick, Kevin D.
AU - Glass, Thomas A
AU - Hill, Joel
AU - McGill, Sylvia
AU - Rebok, George W.
AU - Seeman, Teresa
AU - Tielsch, James M
AU - Wasik, Barbara A.
AU - Zeger, Scott
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported, in part, by funding from the following sources: the Retirement Research Foundation, the Erickson Foundation, the state of Maryland, the state of Maryland Department of Education, the Baltimore City Public Schools, the Baltimore City Commission on Aging and Retirement Education, the Johns Hopkins Prevention Center, and the Corporation for National Service. We would like to thank AARP for crucial support with recruitment and Mr. Raymond Burchfield for his excellent manuscript preparation.
PY - 2004/3
Y1 - 2004/3
N2 - This report evaluates whether a program for older volunteers, designed for both generativity and health promotion, leads to short-term improvements in multiple behavioral risk factors and positive effects on intermediary risk factors for disability and other morbidities. The Experience Corps® places older volunteers in public elementary schools in roles designed to meet schools' needs and increase the social, physical, and cognitive activity of the volunteers. This article reports on a pilot randomized trial in Baltimore, Maryland. The 128 volunteers were 60-86 years old, 95% were African American. At follow-up of 4-8 months, physical activity, strength, people one could turn to for help, and cognitive activity increased significantly, and walking speed decreased significantly less, in participants compared to controls. In this pilot trial, physical, cognitive, and social activity increased, suggesting the potential for the Experience Corps to improve health for an aging population and simultaneously improve educational outcomes for children.
AB - This report evaluates whether a program for older volunteers, designed for both generativity and health promotion, leads to short-term improvements in multiple behavioral risk factors and positive effects on intermediary risk factors for disability and other morbidities. The Experience Corps® places older volunteers in public elementary schools in roles designed to meet schools' needs and increase the social, physical, and cognitive activity of the volunteers. This article reports on a pilot randomized trial in Baltimore, Maryland. The 128 volunteers were 60-86 years old, 95% were African American. At follow-up of 4-8 months, physical activity, strength, people one could turn to for help, and cognitive activity increased significantly, and walking speed decreased significantly less, in participants compared to controls. In this pilot trial, physical, cognitive, and social activity increased, suggesting the potential for the Experience Corps to improve health for an aging population and simultaneously improve educational outcomes for children.
KW - Compression of morbidity
KW - Generativity
KW - Healthy aging
KW - Older volunteer
KW - Social engagement
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=2442597999&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=2442597999&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1093/jurban/jth094
DO - 10.1093/jurban/jth094
M3 - Article
C2 - 15047786
AN - SCOPUS:2442597999
SN - 1099-3460
VL - 81
SP - 64
EP - 78
JO - Journal of Urban Health
JF - Journal of Urban Health
IS - 1
ER -