Differential contribution of genetic and environmental influences to specific components of memory suggest that, in this group of elderly male twin pairs, some components may be more amenable to intervention than others.

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Methodological issues in geropsychological assessment research are discussed and exemplified with recent investigations. Increased use of short-term longitudinal designs, more diverse and representative sampling, and routine inclusion of measures of health are among the recommendations made for future studies. Caution is urged in the application of new tests or screening batteries until sufficient independent validation studies are completed. Research contrasting neuropsychological performance of older persons from different racial and ethnic groups is briefly reviewed, and applications of geropsychological assessment to practical arenas such as competency determination are critiqued.Older adults are becoming more numerous, more diverse, and more politically powerful in the United States and other industrialized countries, and the resulting pressure on the health care system has prompted an expansion in geriatric research and service delivery. Among psychologists, interest in aging is attested to by the creation of a separate section on geropsychology within the Division of Clinical Psychology in the American Psychological Association, by the introduction of new journals pertaining to cognitive and behavioral aspects of aging, and by the sharp increase in published research on aging and disorders of old age. One compilation of biological and behavioral studies on dementia of the Alzheimer'