Mario D. Garrett Ph.D.
Professor of Gerontology
For the first time since 1900s and the establishment of psychiatry, psychoanalysis, and psychology, all three disciplines are brought together to elucidate dementia’s underlying causes. Causes that have evaded understanding from the beginning of civilization. More than a third of older people with dementia do not have enough of the biological markers to explain their dementia. As a result, we need to look for alternative explanations. As we get older our representation of the world becomes more accurate and more dominant. We tend to rely on our past experiences rather than learn new material. Since memory’s role is to facilitate learning, relying on past experiences diminishes learning and eventually memory weakens. The secondary role of memory, to bring past experiences into consciousness then starts to suffer. Memory loss in dementia disconnects the conscious from the unconscious. Dementia becomes an issue of consciousness rather than a problem of thinking. This perspective provides a different interpretation of our thinking processes and establishes a more humane view of the deficits that we witness in dementia. We learn to see the person living with dementia not as a product of loss but as a product of miscommunication. By examining what memory is for, we develop a humanistic approach that includes a more socially-dependent disease. By changing the perspective, a new interpretation evolves that sees the contribution of perceptual biases in dementia. It is impossible to understand aging without first addressing dementia. Trying to answer the question of whether aging is pathological—a disease—or whether dementia is the disease of aging is at the crux of gerontology. In this book I will argue that it is perceptual change that results in pathology. That reliance on our past experiences relegates memory as peripheral and eventually memory weakens to the extent that we lose contact with our accumulated subconscious experiences that memory usually accesses for us into consciousness. This is the pathological start of dementia.
UNIVERSITY TEACHING EXPERIENCE:
San Diego State University
GERO101: Introduction to Gerontology
GERO350:Social Policy and Aging
GERO360: Diversity and Aging
GERO370:Images of Aging
SW391: Research Methods
GERO402: Aging Networks
GERO501: Psychology of Aging
GERO530: Research Practical
GERO520: Evaluation
GERO601: Theory in Gerontology
GERO602:Research Methods
SW610: Computer Application
GERO630: Research Methods Application
SW690: Research Methodology
University of British Columbia , Canada
PSYCH422: Psychology of Adulthood
Bogazichi University- Turkey
PSYCH 401: Psychology of Ageing
University of New Mexico
GEN402 (American) Indian Aging
Extracurricular Activities
Foreigner Correspondence Club Japan: "The Politics of Alzheimer's Disease and the Impact on Japan"
Every year I curate and host an annual COMING OF AGE film festival on aging in San Diego at the Museum of Photographic Arts (MOPA) situated in Balboa Park. The audience enjoy free films together with an introduction and a Q&A afterwards. Since 2011, COMING OF AGE has been made possible by generous support from local agencies. To review this community program please go to www.comingofageinfilms.com
EDUCATION
PhD Year graduated: 1988
University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK
Degree: PhD in psychology. Thesis: Loneliness, The Experience, Interpretation and Communication.
BSc Year graduated: 1980
University of East London, Stratford Campus, Water Lane. London. E15 4LZ
Bachelor of Science in Psychology/ Physiology. First Class Honors/summa cum laude.
AWARDS
University of East London
Recipient of the Dean’s Prize for best academic achievement (1981-1982)
Winner of the first Science Technology 1982 National Science Essay University Competition (U.K.)
San Diego State University
Outstanding Faculty, Department of Gerontology, College of Health and Human Services, SDSU (2005- 2006).
Outstanding Faculty, Department of Gerontology, College of Health and Human Services , SDSU (2006 -2007).
Outstanding Faculty, Department of Gerontology, College of Health and Human Services , SDSU (2007 -2008).
Outstanding Faculty, School of Social Work, College of Health and Human Services, SDSU (2010 -2011).
Outstanding Faculty, School of Social Work, College of Health and Human Services, SDSU (2015-2016).
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE AND HONORS
• 1986-1987 Research Officer, School of Management, University of Bath, U.K.
• 1987-1988 Research Fellow, Department of Economics, Surrey University/ London School of Economics, London, UK
• 1988-1989 Project Leader, International Centre for Child Studies, Bristol University, UK.
• 1989-1993 Program Manager/ Deputy Director, United Nations - International Institute on Aging, Malta.
• 1993-1994 Director, International Sexagenarian Research, Malta.
• 1994-1995 Project Director, Center on Aging, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM.
• 1995-2004 Founder and Director of Data Analysis Service, Albuquerque, NM.
• 1996-1997 Senior Researcher Scientist III, Center on Aging, University of North Texas, TX.
• 1996-present Director, Data Analysis Service, Albuquerque, NM
• 2004-present Professor of Gerontology, School of Social Work, San Diego State University
• 2004-2012 Chair Department of Gerontology and Director of the University Center on Aging, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA.
• 2012-2014 Associate of Health Benefits ABC. A consulting services in health care policy, public health, aging services and health benefits.
Blogs translated into other languages:
Russian
Vietnamese
Mandarin
Korean
German
Portuguese
Hindi
Japanese
HOME WORK
PO Box 331, San Diego State University, School of Social Work,
La Mesa, CA. 91944 5500 Campanile Drive, San Diego, CA 92182-1872
PHONE 619-992 5317 PHONE 619-594 2818
ACADEMIC PEER-REVIEWED PAPERS (MORE RECENT FIRST)
These papers are being made available here to facilitate the timely dissemination of scholarly work; copyright and all related rights are retained by the copyright holders.
Garrett MD & Valle RJ (2014).A Methodological Critique of The National Institute of Aging and Alzheimer’s Association Guidelines for Alzheimer’s disease, Dementia and Mild Cognitive Impairment. Dementia: The International Journal of Social Research and Practice.DOI: 10.1177/1471301214525166
Garrett MD (2008). Is Our Population Sustainable. Journal of Sustainability 1 (4).
Griffith SP, Garrett MD, Ramsey P. (2001). Accuracy of Using PCC Data for
Measuring Childhood Obesity. The IHS Provider, 26:37-9.
Garrett MD & Scerri M. (1994). Community Services for the Elderly in Malta; In J. Kosberg (ed) International Handbook of Community Services for the Elderly. Greenwood Publications. New York.
Kinnie N, & Garrett M (1993). Managerial Strategies for Flexible Employment: An analysis using cross-sectional data. Management Research News, Vol. 12 Iss: 3, pp.14 – 15. DOI:10.1108/eb028018
Blanchflower DG, Oswald AJ, Garrett MD & Deeks AJ. (1987). Entrepreneurship and Self-Employment in Britain. UK Department of Employment Working Paper. London, U.K.
Garrett MD. (1982) Electroconvulsive Therapy and its non-Efficacy. Journal of Science and Technology, UK. Nov.
SELECTED NON-REFEERED PUBLICATIONS (chronological order)
Blanchflower DG, Oswald AJ, Garrett MD & Deeks AJ. (1987). Entrepreneurship and Self-Employment in Britain. UK Department of Employment Working Paper. London, U.K.
Garrett MD & Allerton M. (1989). Methodology and Initial Statistics of the YOUTHSCAN Longitudinal Survey - Part I. International Centre for Child Studies. Bristol, U.K.
Kinnie N & Garrett MD. (1989). Management Strategies for Flexible Employment: An analysis using cross-sectional data. Management Research News, Vol 12(3).
Cuscheri A, Delia L, Garrett MD & Troisi J (1993). Evaluation of Existing Services for the Elderly and their Implications in Planning for Future Services in the light of Economic Realities and Demographic Trends. White Paper, Government of Malta, Parliamentary Secretary for the Care of the Elderly.
Garrett MD. (1991). Life Expectancy: A Global Analysis and Critique. BOLD, Vol.1 No.2. UN-INIA, Malta.
Garrett MD. (1992). Changing Patterns of Responsibility: East and Southeast Asia as an accelerated microcosm. In United Nations Population Division. Proceedings of the Expert Group Meeting on Population and Demographic Structure, UNFPA, New York.
Garrett MD. (1993). Emerging Needs in Developing Countries: Two scenarios. BOLD. Vol.4 No.1. UN-INIA, Malta.
Garrett MD. (1993). Emerging Trends and Needs: A scenario for change. New Series of Papers in Gerontology, University of Liverpool, UK.
Cuscheri A, Delia L, Garrett MD & Troisi J (1993). Evaluation of Existing Services for the Elderly and their Implications in Planning for Future Services in the light of Economic Realities and Demographic Trends. White Paper, Government of Malta, Parliamentary Secretary for the Care of the Elderly.
Garrett MD. (1994). Ageing in East and Southeast Asia: Is family support a viable policy? BOLD. Vol 4, No. 3. UN-INIA, Malta.
Garrett MD. (1994). Indigenous Elderly People: First Global Estimates. BOLD. Vol 4, No. 4. UN-INIA, Malta.
Baldridge D, Baros S , Campos B, Garrett MD, Henriksen L & Inglis M. (1996). Mapping Indian Elders...An initiative of the National Indian Council on Aging. National Indian Council on Aging, July 1996.
Garrett MD. (1997). New Mexico American Indian Elders: A Demographic and Services Profile. New Mexico Office for Indian Affairs/Indian Area Agency on Aging, February 1997.
Garrett MD (2000). The Mapping of Gerontological Data. BOLD. Vol 10, No. 2. UN-INIA, Malta.
Garrett MD & Menke KA. (2002). Indian No More: Inconsistent Classification of American Indians and Alaska Natives in Medicare. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol 2, No. 2.
Garrett MD, Menke KA, Baldridge D & Inglis M. (2002). American Indians and Alaska Natives in the 2000 U.S. Census Part 1. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol 3, No. 3.
Garrett MD. (2003). USRDS Users Guide. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 6, No. 1.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 1: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island & Vermont. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No.1.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 2; New York. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 2.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 3: New Jersey, Puerto Rico & Virgin Islands. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 3.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 4: Delaware & Pennsylvania. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 4.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 5: Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland & District of Columbia. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 5.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 6: Georgia, North Carolina & South Carolina. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 6.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 7: Florida. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 7.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 8: Alabama, Mississippi & Tennessee. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 8.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 9/10: Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky & Ohio. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 9.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 11: Minnesota, Michigan, North Dakota, South Dakota & Wisconsin. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 10.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 12: Iowa, Kansas, Missouri & Nebraska. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 11.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 13: Arkansas, Louisiana & Oklahoma. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 12.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 14: Texas. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 13.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 15: Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah & Wyoming. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 14.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 16: Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon & Washington. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 15.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 17: American Samoa, Guam, Mariana Islands, Hawaii & Northern California. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 16.
Garrett MD & Baldridge D. (2003). Summary of Results from the USRDS Network 18: Southern California. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 5, No. 17.
Garrett MD. (2003). Asthma Among American Indians. NICOA’s Monograph Series, Vol. 6, No. 1. Sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Garrett MD (2008). Editorial: Is Our Population Sustainable? San Diego Union Tribune. August 15.
Garrett MD. (2009). The Sustainability of Dying? Journal of Sustainability. Issue 2(2), February: online:
http://journalofsustainability.com/lifetype/index.php?op=ViewArticle&articleId=45&blogId=1
Garrett MD (2015) Genetic Longevity. Encyclopedia of health & aging. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781412956208
Garrett MD (2015) Lifespan. Encyclopedia of health & aging. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781412956208
Garrett MD (2015) Life Expectancy. Encyclopedia of health & aging. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781412956208
Garrett MD (2015) Dementia and Depression Among American Indians and Alaska Native Elders. Atlas of Science.
BOOKS
Garrett MD (2020) Social Dementia. Kindle. USA.
Garrett MD (2019) Coming of Age in Films, Cambridge Scholar Publishing, UK.
Garrett MD (2018) Dementia: A Being Out of One's Mind. Kindle. USA.
Garrett MD (2017) Immortality: With a Lifetime Guarantee. Kindle. USA.
Garrett MD (2015) Politics of Anguish: How Alzheimer's disease became the malady of the 21st century. Kindle. USA
Baldridge D, Garrett MD, & Menke K. (2003). Monograph Series. National Indian Council on Aging, September.
Wozniak D, Yuen L, Garrett MD & Shuman TS. (Editors) (1999). International Symposium on Herbal Medicine: A Holistic Approach. International Institute for Human Resources Development, San Diego State University.
Wozniak D, Shuman TS, Roet A, Garrett MD (Editors) (1996). Human Settlements Habitat: Proceedings and Recommendations of the International Symposium on Human Settlements. San Diego State University.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Chair, Commission on Aging, La Mesa City Council (Mayoral Nominee 2006- 2012)
Chair, Council on Minority Aging (2005-2007)
Board Member, Alzheimer’s Association San Diego and Imperial county Chapters, Medical and Scientific Board (2009- 2018)
Board Member, The Glenner Memory Care Centers, Medical and Scientific Board (2012- present)
Secretary, Board of Directors, CSA San Diego County (2007- 2018)
Consultant, Tierrasanta Village, a Naturally Occurring Retirement Community initiative.
Sample Social Network Sites (San Diego Union Tribune Articles not included, 120 PsychologyToday articles have been deleted after they censored my articles.)
Some sample Times of Malta editorials:
Master of Science in Gerontology: Thesis Committee Chairperson
2004
Building a dementia care network : a community-based service delivery system for Latino families in San Diego County. Roberto E. Velasquez
HIV/AIDS epidemiologic trends of the over age 50 population in San Diego County. Norman Douglas Jackson
Predictors of unsubsidized employment for older workers in a senior community service employment program. Cynthia Lee Hansen
What are the real-life issues regarding conservatorships in California today? Jacqueline Santangelo-Herman
2005
Comparison of activity of daily living (ADL) impairments between urban and rural elderly nursing home residents in San Diego and Imperial County. Debbie A. Petrocco
Cultural competency in geriatric case management : promoting the use of primary care. Sonia L. Castro Negron
Existing and potential health promotion services in San Diego : a survey of religious institutions. Lisa Randall
The exploratory analysis of mental health services in San Diego County's long term care continuum. Gisella Stonier
Perceptions of elder abuse and help-seeking patterns among different ethnic and age groups. Scott William Code
The usage of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) for treatment of hypertension among Chinese and Taiwanese elderly in Southern California. Shih-Fan Lin
With friends like these who needs enemies : a study of financial abuse of older adults by caregivers and family members. Kandi Kayne Lee
2006
How San Diego religious leaders support their congregant members at end of life. Stacy L. Sampson
A survey of caregiving characteristics. Iris Diaz Canapi
2007
The effects of structured educational programming of RCFE residing elderly with cognitive impairments : an evaluation of program participation, quality of life and behavior management. Lindsey Beth Cornwell
2008
An evaluation of the local needs assessment process and its ability to represent minority elders in San Diego County. Annette S. Quinata
Maximizing Medicaid's continuum of care : an analysis of assisted living facilities and nursing home residents . Christina LeBlanc Selder
2009
Elder abuse and oral healthcare providers : an intervention to increase knowledge and self-perceived likelihood to report. Julie Ann Sugita
Job satisfaction and the Shared Care Model as compared with the Traditional Model of hospice care. Carolyn Mae Stevenson
2011
An exposition of irregularities in Residential Care Facilities For The Elderly (RCFE) in San Diego and Imperial Counties.Christine M. Murphy
2013
Luck, control and the Holocaust. Katrine Teplitsky