Ethel Shanas

Family Help Patterns and Social Class in Three Countries

The present paper is a report of the help patterns among older people and their adult children in three countries-Denmark, Britain, and the United States. The data come from interviews conducted in mid-1962 with nationwide probability samples of approximately 2,500 persons aged 65 and over in each of the three countries. Family help patterns in old age in Denmark, Britain, and the United States differ by the social class position of the older person. The class position of old people effects primarily the size of their immediate families, their family structure, and their living arrangements. While the social class of the old person effects the magnitude and direction of parent-child help, persons in every social class report that they help their children and that their children help them.

Economic Differentials in the Probability of Insanity

Data for the city of Chicago were analyzed in an attempt to discover the possible relationship between econoic status and the prevalence of insanity. A higher incidence of insanity was found among the poorer populations than among the richer. Approximately the same differentials were found for each sex and nativity or racial group.

A Critique of Dodd's Dimensions of Society

The volume, Dimensions of Society, by Stuart C. Dodd is critically examined to determine whether Dodds claims that he has constructed a quantitative science of sociology are justified. Upon investigation his scheme appears to be arbitrary and sterile. There would seem to be no justification for the belief that the S-theory makes any major contribution to sociology.

What's New in Old Age?.

Old people are found in all societies. The age at which a person is considered old varies from country to country and may indeed vary within individual countries. For example, 55 is considered the official beginning of old age in India, just as, for most purposes, age 65 is the official beginning of old age in the United States. Yet, despite official agreement on when old age begins, as codified in federal statutes and in private pension plans, who is considered old, and when old age begins depends on who is making an age judgment. The American young talk about &dquo;not trusting anyone over 30,&dquo; thus relegating to the outer reaches of &dquo;too old&dquo; about half the American population. At the other end of the life span, at the age of 70, most Americans continue to describe themselves as