Robert Neil Butler (January 21, 1927 – July 4, 2010) was an American

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

, gerontologist,

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry. Psychiatrists are physicians who evaluate patients to determine whether their symptoms are the result of a physical illness, a combination of physical and mental ailments or strictly ...

, and author, who was the first director of the

National Institute on Aging The National Institute on Aging (NIA) is a division of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), located in Bethesda, Maryland. The NIA itself is headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. The NIA leads a broad scientific effort to understand ...

. Butler is known for his work on the social needs and the rights of the elderly and for his research on healthy aging and the dementias.

Background

Having grown up with his grandparents in

Vineland, New Jersey Vineland is a City (New Jersey), city and the most populous municipality in Cumberland County, New Jersey, Cumberland County, within the U.S. state of New Jersey. Bridgeton, New Jersey, Bridgeton and Vineland are the two principal cities of the ...

, Butler was shocked by the dismissive and contemptuous attitude toward the elderly and their diseases by many of his teachers at

medical school A medical school is a tertiary educational institution, professional school, or forms a part of such an institution, that teaches medicine, and awards a professional degree for physicians. Such medical degrees include the Bachelor of Medicine, ...

, an attitude he later characterized as "

ageism Ageism, also called agism in American English, is a type of discrimination based on one's age, generally used to refer to age-based discrimination against Old age, elderly people. The term was coined in 1969 by Robert Neil Butler to describe this ...

". He graduated from

Columbia College of Columbia University Columbia College is the oldest Undergraduate education#United States system, undergraduate college of Columbia University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the ...

, where he was editor of the ''

Columbia Daily Spectator The ''Columbia Daily Spectator'' (known colloquially as ''Spec'') is the student newspaper of Columbia University. Founded in 1877, it is the second-oldest continuously operating college news daily in the nation after '' The Harvard Crimson'', a ...

'' and a member of the Philolexian Society.

Career

Butler was a principal investigator of one of the first

interdisciplinary Interdisciplinarity or interdisciplinary studies involves the combination of multiple academic disciplines into one activity (e.g., a research project). It draws knowledge from several fields such as sociology, anthropology, psychology, economi ...

, comprehensive,

longitudinal studies A longitudinal study (or longitudinal survey, or panel study) is a research design that involves repeated observations of the same variables (e.g., people) over long periods of time (i.e., uses longitudinal data). It is often a type of observation ...

of healthy community-residing older persons, conducted at the

National Institute of Mental Health The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) is one of 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIH, in turn, is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and is the primar ...

(1955–1966), which resulted in the landmark book ''Human Aging''. His research helped establish the fact that

senility Dementia is a syndrome associated with many neurodegenerative diseases, characterized by a general decline in cognitive abilities that affects a person's ability to perform everyday activities. This typically involves problems with memory, ...

was not inevitable with

aging Ageing (or aging in American English) is the process of becoming Old age, older until death. The term refers mainly to humans, many other animals, and fungi; whereas for example, bacteria, perennial plants and some simple animals are potentiall ...

, but is a consequence of

disease A disease is a particular abnormal condition that adversely affects the structure or function (biology), function of all or part of an organism and is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical condi ...

. In 1969, he coined the term

to describe discrimination against seniors; the term was patterned on

sexism Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on one's sex or gender. Sexism can affect anyone, but primarily affects women and girls. It has been linked to gender roles and stereotypes, and may include the belief that one sex or gender is int ...

and

racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race or ethnicity over another. It may also me ...

. Butler defined "ageism" as a combination of three connected elements. Among them were prejudicial attitudes towards older people, old age, and the aging process; discriminatory practices against older people; and institutional practices and policies that perpetuate

stereotype In social psychology, a stereotype is a generalization, generalized belief about a particular category of people. It is an expectation that people might have about every person of a particular group. The type of expectation can vary; it can ...

s about elderly people. In 1975, he became the founding Director of the

(NIA) of the

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in 1887 and is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Service ...

, where he remained until 1982. At the National Institute on Aging he established

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

as a national research priority. In 1982, he founded the Department of Geriatrics and Adult Development at the Mount Sinai Medical Center, the first department of

geriatrics Geriatrics, or geriatric medicine, is a medical specialty focused on addressing the unique health needs of older adults. The term ''geriatrics'' originates from the Greek γέρων ''geron'' meaning "old man", and ιατρός ''iatros'' mean ...

in a United States

. In addition, Butler helped found the Alzheimer's Disease Association, the American Association of Geriatric Psychiatry, the American Federation for Aging Research and the Alliance for Aging Research. Butler was the founder, chief executive officer, and president of the International Longevity Center-USA, a non-profit international organization created to educate people on how to live longer and better. The International Longevity Center-USA is now housed at th
Robert N. Butler Columbia Aging Center
a university-wide center of Columbia University based at the Mailman School of Public Health

Publications

Butler is best known for his 1975 book '' Why Survive? Being Old In America'', which won the

Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction The Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are awarded annually for the "Letters, Drama, and Music" category. The award is given to a nonfiction book written by an American author and published du ...

in 1976. A 2003 paperback edition is currently available ().

Recent books

* ''Aging and Mental Health: Positive Psychosocial and Biomedical Approaches'' (with Myrna I. Lewis and Trey Sunderland, 1998) () * ''Life in an Older America'' (2001) () * ''The New Love and Sex After 60'' (with Myrna I. Lewis, 2002) () * ''The Longevity Prescription: The 8 Proven Keys to a Long, Healthy Life'', 2010 (; ). Butler authored 300

scientific Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...

and

medical Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

articles.

Awards

Butler was the recipient of the 10th Annual

Heinz Award The Heinz Awards are individual achievement honors given annually by the Heinz Foundations, Heinz Family Foundation. The Heinz Awards each year recognize outstanding individuals for their innovative contributions in three areas: the Arts, the Eco ...

in the Human Condition category. The award recognized his work in advancing the rights and needs of the nation's aging citizenry and enhancing the quality of life for elderly Americans. He received honorary degrees from the

University of Gothenburg The University of Gothenburg () is a List of universities in Sweden, university in Sweden's second largest city, Gothenburg. Founded in 1891, the university is the third-oldest of the current List of universities in Sweden#Public universities, S ...

in Sweden and the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

as well as other awards such as the Lienhard Medal of the Institute of Medicine and a Hall of Fame Award from the American Society of Aging.

Film appearance

Butler is featured in the 2009 documentary film, ''

I Remember Better When I Paint ''I Remember Better When I Paint'' is a feature length international documentary film about the positive impact of art and other creative therapies in people with Alzheimer's disease and how these approaches can change the way the disease is view ...

'', which examines the positive impact of art on people with

and how these approaches can change the way the disease is viewed by society.

References

External links

Interview with Dr. Robert Butler on Baby Boomers and Creative Aging International Longevity Center-USA "A Last Conversation With Dr. Robert Butler, by JOSHUA TAPPER

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

, July 7, 2010
Obituary, "Doctor who Worked to Change Perceptions of Ageing and the Aged"

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

, July 18, 2010
Robert N. Butler Columbia Aging Center
{{DEFAULTSORT:Butler, Robert Neil 1927 births 2010 deaths Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai faculty American gerontologists American medical academics People from Vineland, New Jersey Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction winners Columbia College (New York) alumni Deaths from leukemia in New York (state) 20th-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers American psychiatrists Members of the National Academy of Medicine National Institutes of Health people Burials at Rock Creek Cemetery Writers from Cumberland County, New Jersey