Abstract
There is substantial evidence demonstrating the role age and aging play in the demand for and consumption of over-the counter medications. Available evidence indicates that the incidence of OTC drug abuse and misuse is extremely high among the elderly. Ample and accurate dissemination of drug-related information to the elderly is often seen as a key to diminishing the incidence of this problem. Despite the recent proliferation of elderly market segmentation research there has been no prior development of a typology of the information sources employed by the elderly in their evaluation and selection of OTC medications. This paper reports the development of such an information source typology for OTC drugs. The level of use and importance of these sources is examined across a priori designated segments of the elderly population. Implications for the treatment of elderly medication misuse are discussed.