Health and health pscyhology in later life: Research at the German Centre of Gerontology

With increasing life expectancy in industrialised countries, more and more individuals can expect to reach high age. However, aging is often associated with increasing morbidity and decreasing quality of life (QoL). A central question therefore is, which resources determine whether these additional years are healthy years with high QoL. Data from a representative, population-wide survey (German Ageing Survey) suggest that age-related decreases in QoL are mediated by multimorbidity. Older individuals with little morbidity enjoy good QoL. To further explore these complex relations, we present a research agenda for resources fostering health and QoL despite multimorbidity. This article is an overview of research at the German Centre of Gerontology in the domain of aging and health. The German Centre of Gerontology is a multidisciplinary research institute which examines age-related phenomena from psychological and sociological perspectives. Research questions related to Health Psychology are examined in the context of representative surveys and theory-based studies.