A Beginner’s Guide to Gerontology 

Have you heard the term gerontology before? It may be familiar to those in academia, but perhaps not to everyone else.

Essentially, gerontology is the study of seniors and aging. The field covers many topics, including physical changes over time, how different cultures approach aging, and shifts in the mind with age.

This is all incredibly relevant to caregiving, as the more we understand about seniors and how they differ from other age groups, the better they can be supported. Learning about gerontology is particularly interesting for professional caregivers. Doing so gives you a better sense of the experiences your patients are going through and what to expect.

However, even family caregivers can benefit from studying gerontology. You may even find the field fascinating and want to pursue it further.

So then, let’s dig into gerontology and talk about what you can expect.

What Is Gerontology?

Gerontology is the study of aging processes and the problems associated with aging from a broad perspective. It focuses on humans’ physical, mental, and social changes as they age. 

Gerontology also investigates societal changes resulting from an aging population and uses this information to create new policies and programs. Its primary focus is on ways to improve the quality of life of adults as they age, through extensive research, education, knowledge, and application of interdisciplinary knowledge to design policies and programs. 

As with most fields, there are many specialties and angles of research. This allows researchers to focus on the areas that fascinate them.

Where Can You Study Gerontology?

You can study Gerontology as a four-year bachelor’s program at many universities. If you have pursued another field for your bachelor’s, you can still opt for a master’s or doctorate in Gerontology from any accredited university. 

If you’ve started working already, it may be difficult to commit to a full-time doctorate study in a physical capacity at a university. In such a situation, you can choose online Gerontology doctorate programs that you can pursue from anywhere while managing your work-life responsibilities. 

It’s also simply worth enquiring with local universities. They may have other options for pursuing the degree, like studying it part-time instead of full-time.

What Do You Study in Gerontology?

The core subjects in Gerontology are biology, sociology, psychology, and therapy. They form the basis for understanding processes and changes that occur in cells, tissues, and organ systems of adults with time.

You also develop an understanding of biological, sociological, and psychological changes that occur with growing age. People from multiple fields, including doctors, nurses, and scientists, specialize in the field of Gerontology to apply their gained knowledge to improve the lives of the elderly population.  

The inclusion of many different fields and areas of expertise isn’t that surprising. After all, aging affects every part of the body and has countless social effects as well.

What Skills Do You Learn as a Gerontologist?

Gerontology is a theory-based field, so it focuses on teaching students about different processes, rather than providing practical hands-on knowledge. Even so, you will learn some skills along the way.

Compassion

Gerontology highlights many of the challenges of aging, including some that aren’t widely known. This education is certain to make you more compassionate, especially when you interact with seniors in your day-to-day life.

For example, many dementia behaviors can be incredibly frustrating and feel manipulative. Yet, as you learn more about how dementia impacts the brain, the behavior starts to make more sense. People with dementia may still seem frustrating, but you’re likely to also feel more compassionate for them at the same time.

This compassion is especially powerful if you’re in a practical healthcare field or plan to enter into one. Such a field gives you the chance to practically apply your knowledge and compassion.

Critical Thinking and Problem Solving Skills

Education tends to promote critical thinking and problem solving. This is especially true for gerontology, as you’re trying to understand how multiple fields intersect with the challenges of aging. In the process, you’re learning a lot about a variety of interesting fields.

Part of your education will likely relate to information sources. You’ll learn about where to find high-quality information and how to determine which information is trustworthy.

Being critical about information is powerful these days, as exaggerated and biased information is common, especially on social media. Knowing how to filter through this information and find the details you need can help you make wise decisions.

Such critical thinking and problem solving skills are relevant to caregiving and to many career paths. For example, some people may end up using a gerontology background in the field of policy development, such as working with NCOA (National Council on Aging) to create policies to keep older adults safe while voting. Or you can work on developing policies to provide preventative vaccines to older adults free of cost.

Communication Skills

Learning to be a gerontologist is likely to improve your verbal and written communication skills. You’ll get better at expressing yourself, which makes it easier to interact with other professionals, seniors, and anyone else in your life.

No matter what career you go into, you’ll benefit from these improved communication skills. The same is true if you are dealing with family dramas or need to have difficult conversations with a senior.

Final Thoughts

Gerontology is an interesting field, giving you the chance to learn much more about aging and the experiences of seniors. It’s also relevant in countless different situations.

Perhaps you use the degree as part of a career related to aging policy or interventions to improve life for seniors. Or, perhaps the knowledge helps you in a hands-on role, like as a professional caregiver or nurse.

Even family caregivers may benefit from learning more about the field. Working on a degree can also give caregivers an added sense of purpose, making their lives broader than their caregiving role alone.