Berlin Aging Studies (BASE and BASE-II)

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Encyclopedia of Geropsychology

Synonyms

Longitudinal studies of old age and aging

Definition

The Berlin Aging Studies (BASE and BASE-II) are two consecutive studies of old age and aging with an interdisciplinary focus. The disciplines involved include psychology, psychiatry, geriatrics and internal medicine, genetics, sociology, and economics. The initial BASE data collection involved 14 sessions and took place in 1990–1993 with 516 men and women aged 70 to over 100 years. BASE-II currently involves five sessions with 1,600 older adults aged 60–80 years as well as 600 younger adults aged 20–35 years, who were assessed for the first time in 2011–2014.

The initial Berlin Aging Study (BASE) was launched in 1989. In 1990–1993, 516 women and men aged 70 to 100+ years and living in the former West Berlin completed an intensive protocol of 14 sessions that exhaustively assessed their physical and mental health, life histories, living conditions, and psychological status. Subsequently, seven longitudinal follow-up...

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Correspondence to Julia A. M. Delius .

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Delius, J.A.M., Düzel, S., Gerstorf, D., Lindenberger, U. (2017). Berlin Aging Studies (BASE and BASE-II). In: Pachana, N.A. (eds) Encyclopedia of Geropsychology. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-082-7_44

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