Disciplinary perspectives on later-life migration in the core journals of social gerontology.

PURPOSE

The authors examine the bibliographic structure of recent research on later-life migration, highlighting the contributions of particular journals and disciplines.

DESIGN AND METHODS

The authors identify the primary journals publishing research in this area, including a set of four core journals within the field of social gerontology. They evaluate the disciplinary affiliations of authors publishing in the core journals and the extent to which those journals cite relevant research published elsewhere.

RESULTS

Geographical and economic perspectives on later-life migration are underrepresented within the core journals of social gerontology. In particular, major articles published outside the core journals are seldom cited within those journals.

IMPLICATIONS

Although the core journals of social gerontology account for over a third of the recent literature on later-life migration, they present only a partial (chiefly sociological) perspective on the subject.