Couple Relationships in the Middle and Later Years: Their Nature, Complexity, and Role in Health and Illness (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781433822094)

Jamila Bookwala, PhD, is a professor and head of the Department of Psychology and chair of Aging Studies at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania. She teaches courses in lifespan development, aging studies, and research design and analysis. Dr. Bookwala's primary research interests center on close relationships, stress, and well-being over the adult lifespan. A special focus of her research is on the health-protective role of close relationships. She has examined health outcomes related to a variety of relationships (spousal relationships, kin relationships, and friendships) in the context of a range of life stressors (poor physical function, visual impairment, family caregiving, and spousal loss). Her other research interests include gender differences in adult health and well-being, ageism and attitudes toward aging, and the effects of stigma over the adult lifespan. She has expertise in survey research and secondary data analysis using large national data sets. Her research has been funded by the National Institute on Aging and by private and public funding organizations. She has presented her research findings at national and international conferences and published her research in leading peer-reviewed journals including, most recently, Developmental Psychology, Health Psychology, Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences, and The Gerontologist. Dr. Bookwala currently serves on the editorial board of The Gerontologist and has served on the editorial boards of Psychology and Aging and Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences. She has reviewed grant applications for the National Institutes of Health and other private and public organizations. Dr. Bookwala received her bachelor of arts degree from St. Xavier's College, University of Mumbai, India, and a master of arts degree in psychology from the Graduate Center, City University of New York. She completed her doctoral education at the University of Pittsburgh and held a National Research Service Award postdoctoral fellowship in the Geriatric Psychiatry Division at the University of Pennsylvania from the National Institute of Mental Health. Dr. Bookwala is a fellow of APA; chair of the Women and Aging subcommittee of APA Division 35 (Society for the Psychology of Women); and member of the Gerontological Society of America. She is past chair of the committee for the Denmark Award for Contributions to Women and Aging and of the conference program for APA Division 20 (Adult Development and Aging).