Why are the elderly so often perceived as burdensome and unproductive members of our society? Altruism in Later Life explores and refutes this view with cogent empirical data. Authors Elizabeth Midlarsky and Eva Kahana introduce the results of a series of investigations on assistance offered by--rather than to--the elderly in the context of historical philosophical and theoretical trends in gerontology and altruism research. Following a brief but inclusive historical survey of aging treatments they present their own theoretical model of successful aging: Based on a carefully applied methodological review of research focusing on altruism and the elderly the results reveal the relative frequency nature correlates and ramifications of the contributions they make. Dispelling many of the misapprehensions held about the elderly this work will prove to be a vital timely resource for professionals and students in fields including gerontology psychology social work sociology counseling and the health sciences. Language: English