Dorothy McCawley

Socioeconomic Status and Functional Ability Among Older Adults Dorothy McCawley

Abstract: This research examines the health-SES link, specifically as regards the process of disability in older adults as regards difficulty with physical actions. The AHEAD longitudinal survey includes information n physical actions as well as finances and health behaviors. The data offers the opportunity to analyze the specific functional trajectories of the respondents through the first two waves of data collection. Net worth proved a better indicator of health function over time than was annual household income. Health behaviors, such as exercising, not smoking, controlling weight, and temperate drinking did moderate the relationship between net worth and functional abilities. This group is mostly free of functional limitations, and between 18-40% of older adults with functional limitations do recover from the first wave to the second. Dissertation Discovery Company and University of Florida are dedicated to making scholarly works more discoverable and accessible throughout the world. This dissertation, "Socioeconomic Status and Functional Ability Among Older Adults" by Dorothy Jean McCawley, was obtained from University of Florida and is being sold with permission from the author. A digital copy of this work may also be found in the university's institutional repository, IR@UF. The content of this dissertation has not been altered in any way. We have altered the formatting in order to facilitate the ease of printing and reading of the dissertation.