With the number of residents 65 and older expected to represent more than 26 percent of its population by 2025, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Florida has more older adults than any other state. It also leads the way in aging research, with much of that work focusing on improving quality of life among older residents. New research from USF’s Sarasota-Manatee campus focuses on innovative methods for treating swallowing disorders among aging populations, studying how language barriers and gaps in insurance coverage impede hearing aid use among Hispanic and Latino patients, identifying the things that matter most to us as we age, examining the often overlooked prevalence of ageism in theater, as well as insight into how picking the right pet and managing conflict can assuage feelings of anxiety and depression and lead to healthier lifestyles for people of any age.
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Research: USF Sarasota-Manatee Campus
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Articles in this Section
Becoming Age-Friendly
What matters most as we age? It’s a simple question, but one likely to elicit deeply personal and ever-changing responses as we grow older.
Acting Your Age
Valerie Barnes Lipscomb’s groundbreaking research into ageism in modern drama and theatre is rooted in the premise that age is performative—that we really do “act our age”—and that nowhere is that more clearly evident than on the stage.
Barriers to Hearing
Before her academic career, when Michelle Arnold was an audiologist at the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital in Tampa, she had a hunch many older Americans went without hearing aids because they believed, often mistakenly, they did not qualify for the devices under their health insurance or simply didn’t know how to access the coverage.
Repeat Success
When speech-language pathologist Sarah Szynkiewicz and a group of colleagues launched a study aimed at helping aging adults perform exercises to improve their ability to swallow through increased tongue strength, one aspect of their research clearly stood out.
Choosing Wisely
As an avid animal enthusiast with two dogs, Anthony Coy had personally experienced the benefits of pet ownership – feeling comforted during difficult times and sharing in life’s positive moments.
The Psychology of Conflict
USF Sarasota-Manatee campus’s partnership with Sarasota-based FCCI Insurance Group reflects the university’s ability to respond to local employers’ workforce needs in the area of risk management and insurance (RMI), which the State University System’s Board of Governors has designated as a “program of strategic emphasis.”
