Unequal Lives and Aging: What Do We Know and What Do We Need to Know

Wednesday, April 12, 2017 4:15 PM - 5:45 PM

The Columbia Aging Center presents its Spring 2017 Distinguished Lecture by Carol D. Ryff (University of Wisconsin-Madision): "Unequal Lives and Aging: What Do We Know and What Do We Need to Know"

RSVP Required: ColumbiaAgingCenter@cumc.columbia.edu

Dr. Ryff will review growing evidence on the health and longevity consequences of inequalities in educational attainment and income. She will highlight the work of MIDUS investigators in explicating the mechanisms (behavioral and biological) that link inequality to adverse health outcomes. MIDUS researchers have also advanced understanding of protective psychological and social factors that offer buffers against these pernicious processes. She will illustrate with a focus on ?purposeful life engagement,? which is emerging as a key asset to healthy aging. Future directions will focus on two neglected topics (one negative, one positive) in the science of inequality: greed among privileged elites as an insufficiently studied fundamental cause, and the role of the arts and humanities in promoting better lives and more beneficent societies.