Matt Kaplan Ph.D.

Responsibilities

• Provide statewide leadership for program initiatives related to adult intergenerational program development and aging, in conjunction with extension agents and other public groups.
• Develop and support nonformal education programs that strengthen intergenerational relationships and competencies in children, youth/4-H'ers, and families across the life span. 
• Promote initiatives that yield healthy aging outcomes, improved family care of aging and disabled persons, positive family dynamics, and improved intergenerational relationships in civic settings.
  

Research and/or Extension Areas

The focus of my research and extension/outreach activities is on intergenerational strategies for supporting children, youth, older adults, families, and communities. My intergenerational work fits into four broad thematic areas:

1. Intergenerational strategies designed for specific settings and target groups (includes early childhood care/education centers, adult care facilities, and retirement communities).
2. Intergenerational strategies to promote community planning and civic engagement (includes focus on natural as well as the built environment).
3. Strategies for improving intergenerational communication within families (includes work with families that own and operate small farms, families with grandparents and other relatives raising children, and families experiencing conflict around issues related to food selection and eating practices).
4. Principles and processes for developing effective intergenerational programs, practices, and policies (emphasis on common themes that apply across settings and national and cultural contexts).

In each of these areas, results from research projects inform the Extension agenda. New approaches for bringing the generations together are developed, piloted, and, if found to be effective, disseminated to Extension educators and other professionals.

Courses Taught

Recent Publications

Thang, L.L. and Kaplan, M. (In press). Intergenerational pathways for building relational spaces and places. In G.D. Rowles, and M. Bernard (Eds.). Environmental gerontology: Making meaningful places in old age. NYC: Spring Publishing Company.

Jarrott, S., Kaplan, M., and Steinig, S. 2011. Shared sites: Avenues for sharing space, place and life experience across generations. Journal of Intergenerational Relationships: Programs, Policy and Research, 9(3), 343-348.

Kaplan, M., James, L., Alloway, F., and Kiernan, N.E. 2011. Youth empowerment in family conversations and decision-making about food. In J.M. Cramer, C.P. Greene, and L.M. Walters (Eds.). Food as communication/ Communication as food (pp. 337-358). New York: Peter Lang Publishing Group.

Larkin, E., Kaplan, M., and Rushton, S. 2010. Designing brain healthy environments for intergenerational programs. Journal of Intergenerational Relationships: Programs, Policy and Research, 8 (2), 161-176.

Larkin, E. and Kaplan, M. 2010. Intergenerational relationships at the center: Finding shared meaning from programs in the U.S. and Japan. Young Children, May, 88-94.

Kaplan, M., Alloway, F., and Middlemiss, C. 2009. A feasibility study of FRIDGE – An intergenerational nutrition education program. Journal of the National Extension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences, 4, 55-61.

Kaplan, M., Nussbaum, J., Becker, J., Fowler, C., and Pitts, M. 2009. Communication barriers to family farm succession planning . Journal of Extension, 47 (5). October.

Kaplan, M., Larkin, E., and Hatton-Yeo, A. 2009. Leadership in intergenerational practice: In search of the elusive “P” factor — Passion. Journal of Leadership Education, 7 (3), Winter, 59-72.

Pitts, M., Fowler, C., Kaplan, M., Nussbaum, J., and Becker, J. 2009. Let’s do it the way we’ve always done it.” Dialectical tensions underpinning family farm succession planning. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 37 (1), February, 59-79.

Yajima, S., Kaplan, M., Kuraoka, M., and Kusano, A. 2009. Japan’s first national intergenerational conference: The story behind the planning. Journal of Intergenerational Relationships: Programs, Policy and Research, 7 (1), 4-16.

Pinazo, S. and Kaplan, M. (2007). How do intergenerational programs benefit their participants? In M. Sanchez Martínez (ed.), Intergenerational programs: Towards a society for all ages (pp. 70-101). Obra Social Fundacion La Caixa. Barcelona, Spain. [In English and Spanish]

Becker, J., Kaplan, M., and Nussbaum, J. (2007). Family farm succession planning: Balancing professional responsibility with client needs for help with family relationship issues. San Joaquin Agricultural Law Review, 16(1), 1-36.

Kaplan, M., Haider, J., Cohen, U., & Turner, D. (2007). Environmental design perspectives on intergenerational programs and practices: An emergent conceptual framework. Journal of Intergenerational Relationships: Programs, Policy, and Research, 5 (2), 81-110.

Kaplan, M. (2007). Evaluating intergenerational programs that aim to improve the community. In M. Sánchez Martínez (Ed.). The evaluation of intergenerational programs (pp. 102-118). [In English and Spanish]. Madrid, Spain: Instituto de Mayores y Servicios Sociales (IMSERSO).

Kaplan, M., Kiernan, N.E., & James, L. (2006). Intergenerational family conversations and decision-making about eating healthfully. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 38 (5). Sept., 298-306.

Liu, S-T, & Kaplan, M. (2006). An intergenerational approach for enriching children’s environmental attitudes and knowledge. Applied Environmental Education and Communication, 5 (1), 9-20.

Kaplan, M. and Lawrence-Jacobson, A. (2006). Intergenerational programs and practices. In Sherrod, L., Flanagan, C.A., & Kassimir, R. (Eds.). Youth activism: An international encyclopedia (pp. 357-361). Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Company.

Kaplan, M., Liu, S-T., & Steinig, S. (2005). Intergenerational approaches for environmental education and action. Sustainable Communities Review , 8 (1), 54-74.

Books

Sánchez Martínez, M., Kaplan, M., and Sáez Carreras, J. (2010). Programas intergeneracionales: Guia introductoria [Intergenerational programs: An introductory guide]. Instituto de Mayores y Servicios Sociales (IMSERSO). Madrid, Spain. [In Spanish]

Kaplan, M. and Hanhardt, L. (2003). Intergenerational activities sourcebook , Penn State Cooperative Extension. University Park, PA.
 
Kaplan, M., Henkin, N., and Kusano, A.  (Eds.) (2002). Linking lifetimes: A global view of intergenerational exchange. Lanham, MD: University Press of America.
 
Winston, L. with Kaplan M., Perlstein, S. and Tietze, R. (2001). Grandpartners: Intergenerational Learning and Civic Renewal, K-6. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Kaplan, M., Kusano, A., Tsuji, I., and Hisamichi, S. (1998). Intergenerational programs: Support for children, youth, and elders in Japan . Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.

Kaplan, M. (1994). Side by side: Exploring your neighborhood through intergenerational activities -- A Curriculum Guide. San Francisco: MIG Communications.