Hardiness, Successful Aging, and HIV: Implications for Social Work.

<p>With dramatic developments in the treatment of HIV/AIDS, life expectancy is increasing, resulting in more middle-aged and older adults living with this disease. Little is known about the problems, and especially the strengths, of those living and aging with HIV. Hardiness is used in the gerontological literature to describe and explain how people age successfully, despite traumatic life events and chronic diseases. Similarly, the concept of hardiness may be used to guide clinicians, researchers, and clients on how to age successfully with HIV. This article provides a review of hardiness in aging and HIV, and emphasizes its importance in facilitating successful aging with this disease. Conceptual and methodological concerns in studying hardiness and successful aging are addressed. Potential interventions and clinical implications for social work are posited for augmenting qualities of hardiness in people aging with HIV.</p>