AGING WITH LIFELONG DISABILITY: SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT ACROSS THE LIFESPAN. (11th November 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Coyle, C E; Munly, K
• Is Part Of: Innovation in aging. Volume 2(2018)Supplement 1
• Page Start: 803
• Page End: 803
• Publication Date: 2018-11-11
• Subjects: Aging -- Periodicals; Gerontology -- Periodicals; 612.67
• DOI: 10.1093/geroni/igy023.2983
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2399-5300

Abstract

Abstract: The positive connection between social engagement and quality of life has been well documented. Social engagement includes opportunities to interact with social network members (e.g., family, friends, neighbors) but also ways in which adults with disabilities can participate in their communities. Like all adults, persons with lifelong disabilities are embedded in networks of support that comprise family members, friends, service providers, and institutions that facilitate social engagement, like schools. As they age, these networks change and require that adults aging with disability continuously seek opportunities for maintaining social engagement throughout the lifespan. This session will highlight the variety of social engagement opportunities for adults aging with lifelong disability to include family networks, community interactions, and formal networks of social support for persons with lifelong disabilities and provide a glimpse into the ways in which social engagement promotes quality of life for these adults. The first presentation will outline the effects of a social support intervention on facilitating future planning for adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities. The second presentation describes the role of parents in the social lives of their adult children aging with disability and the third presentation reports on a critical review of the evidence related to the social impact of aging with a learning disability. The fourth and fifth presentations identify the factors that influence the quality of community social interactions for adults aging with autism.