Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Surveys

Surveys

Often, psychologists develop surveys as a means of gathering data. Surveys are lists of questions to be answered by research participants, and can be delivered as paper-and-pencil questionnaires, administered electronically, or conducted verbally. Generally, the survey itself can be completed in a short time, and the ease of administering a survey makes it easy to collect data from a large number of people.

Theory of Romantic Attachment in Adulthood

Theory of Romantic Attachment in Adulthood

Attachment is a long-standing connection or bond with others. While Attachment Theory was conceived in developmental psychology to describe infant-caregiver bonding, it's been extended into adulthood to include romantic relationships.

Longitudinal Research

Longitudinal Research

Sometimes we want to see how people change over time, as in studies of human development and lifespan. When we test the same group of individuals repeatedly over an extended period of time, we are conducting longitudinal research. Longitudinal research is a research design in which data-gathering is administered repeatedly over an extended period of time. For example, we may survey a group of individuals about their dietary habits at age 20, retest them a decade later at age 30, and then again...

Group Design

Group Design

The most basic experimental design involves two groups: the experimental group and the control group. The two groups are designed to be the same except for one difference— experimental manipulation. The experimental group gets the experimental manipulation—that is, the treatment or variable being tested—and the control group does not. Since experimental manipulation is the only difference between the experimental and control groups, we can be sure that any differences between...

Drug Dosing: Geriatric Patients

Drug Dosing: Geriatric Patients

Elderly individuals encompass a diverse population with varying degrees of age-related physiological changes. Defining the elderly presents challenges, as the geriatric population is often arbitrarily categorized as individuals older than 65. However, many individuals in this group lead active and healthy lives, with an increasing number surpassing 85 years and falling into the older elderly category. Physiological changes associated with aging impact performance capacity and homeostatic...

Pharmacodynamics in Geriatric Patients: Effects of Age

Pharmacodynamics in Geriatric Patients: Effects of Age

Age-related pharmacokinetic changes are extensively documented, but understanding age-related pharmacodynamic alterations is relatively limited. This knowledge gap can be partly attributed to the complexity of developing appropriate measures of drug responses compared to bioanalytical methods for determining drug concentrations.Most information regarding age-related differences in human pharmacodynamics originates from cross-sectional studies. However, these studies assume that observed mean...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Reasons That Older Adults are Unable to Identify a Healthcare Agent.

Journal of the American Geriatrics Society·2026

Same author

Understanding the Role of Communication in Deprescribing Behavior Change.

Journal of the American Geriatrics Society·2026

Same author

A Retrospective National Cohort Study of Trends in Mechanical Ventilation Among Veterans Living With Dementia, 2010-2019.

Journal of the American Geriatrics Society·2026

Same author

Federal inspection timing, not compliance, associated with nursing home post-disaster outcomes.

Health affairs scholar·2026

Same author

Development and Feasibility of PATH: Preparation for Appropriate Transitions From Home.

Journal of the American Geriatrics Society·2025

Same author

Bridging the Hearing Divide: Policy Solutions for Aging Americans.

American journal of public health·2025

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Dec 9, 2025

Validation of a Psychosocial Intervention on Body Image in Older People: An Experimental Design

Validation of a Psychosocial Intervention on Body Image in Older People: An Experimental Design

Published on: May 31, 2021

Older Adults without Desired Surrogates in a Nationally Representative Sample.

Andrew B Cohen^1,2, Darcé M Costello¹, John R OʼLeary¹

¹Department of Medicine, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA.

Journal of the American Geriatrics Society

|September 8, 2020

Summary

Nearly 8% of older adults lack a healthcare decision-making surrogate. Most have family but no chosen representative, highlighting a need for explicit surrogate discussions and identification strategies.

Keywords:

incapacitated patients surrogate decision-making unbefriended

More Related Videos

Abbiategrasso Brain Bank Protocol for Collecting, Processing and Characterizing Aging Brains

Abbiategrasso Brain Bank Protocol for Collecting, Processing and Characterizing Aging Brains

Published on: June 3, 2020

Multi-Modal Home Sleep Monitoring in Older Adults

Multi-Modal Home Sleep Monitoring in Older Adults

Published on: January 26, 2019

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Dec 9, 2025

Validation of a Psychosocial Intervention on Body Image in Older People: An Experimental Design

Validation of a Psychosocial Intervention on Body Image in Older People: An Experimental Design

Published on: May 31, 2021

Abbiategrasso Brain Bank Protocol for Collecting, Processing and Characterizing Aging Brains

Abbiategrasso Brain Bank Protocol for Collecting, Processing and Characterizing Aging Brains

Published on: June 3, 2020

Multi-Modal Home Sleep Monitoring in Older Adults

Multi-Modal Home Sleep Monitoring in Older Adults

Published on: January 26, 2019

Area of Science:

Gerontology
Public Health
Medical Ethics

Background:

A significant gap exists in understanding older adults with intact capacity but no designated surrogate for future impaired decision-making.
Existing research often overlooks individuals who, despite having family, have not formally chosen a healthcare proxy.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the prevalence of older adults lacking a desired surrogate for medical decision-making.
To identify demographic, medical, and social factors associated with the absence of a chosen surrogate among community-dwelling older adults.

Main Methods:

Utilized a cross-sectional study design analyzing data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP) conducted in 2005-2006.
Included 2,767 community-dwelling older adults aged 57-85 without cognitive impairment.
Employed logistic regression to examine characteristics linked to not having a desired surrogate, particularly among those with nuclear family.

Main Results:

Approximately 7.5% of older adults in the study reported not having a desired surrogate.
The majority (nearly 90%) of individuals without a surrogate had nuclear family members.
Those without a desired surrogate exhibited lower social connectedness indicators, though most maintained regular social contact and had confidants.

Conclusions:

A notable percentage of older adults lack a designated surrogate, with many having family who are not their chosen decision-makers.
Social connectedness, while lower in this group, did not indicate complete isolation.
Healthcare providers should proactively inquire about surrogate preferences and develop strategies to identify surrogates for those without family or who prefer not to designate family.