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Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives

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A special issue of Societies (ISSN 2075-4698).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2022) | Viewed by 51770

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Ieva Stončikaitė

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Chief Guest Editor

Group Dedal-Lit, University of Lleida, 25003 Lleida, Spain
Interests: cultural gerontology; senior tourism and leisure; social innovation related to active and healthy ageing research

Dr. Lucie Vidovićová

E-Mail Website
Co-Guest Editor

Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University, Žerotínovo nám. 617/9, 601 77 Brno, Czech Republic
Interests: sociology of aging; social gerontology; gerontology; sociology of age; sociology of the family; sociology of the labor market

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Ageing is a diverse and multifaceted experience that is unique to each person. The process of ageing is lived differently according to each individual’s socio-cultural, historical, and political context, among other factors. However, the stereotype of homogeneity is still one of the strongest aspects related to later life. This Special Issue invites manuscripts of original research to critically explore the experience of old age and the process of growing old from the social sciences and/or humanities perspectives. It opens space for topics related to social gerontology, social anthropology, age and gender studies, body politics, sexuality, active and healthy ageing, cultural and literary gerontology, and other related disciplines. This call seeks to collect arguments that show the variables and uniqueness of later life, and we welcome contributions that expand on the current theoretical frameworks in the field of age studies overall. The overall aim of this Special Issue—“Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Socio-cultural and Humanities Perspectives”—is to offer a collection of articles that can broaden the scholarship and develop critical thought of old age and the life course to contribute to the current and future dialogue on the unique experiences of ageing.

Dr. Ieva Stončikaitė
Dr. Lucie Vidovićová
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Societies is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Published Papers (14 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 852 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Materiality, Corporeality, and Relationality in Older Human–Robot Interaction (OHRI)

by Lucie Vidovićová and Tereza Menšíková

Societies 2023, 13(1), 15; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soc13010015 - 04 Jan 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1930

Abstract

This article presents interdisciplinary research on the social and technological aspects of interactions between older adults and the humanoid robot Pepper (SoftBank Robotics). Our case study is based on the regular meetings that are a part of an experimental intervention taking place at the Active Ageing Centre for older adults in Prague, run by the NGO Life 90. Through the methods of participant observation, unstructured interviews, analyses of video recordings from interventions with Pepper, and subsequent reflections on the “user” experience with the robot, we have unpacked the complexity of materiality and corporeality in older human–robot interactions (OHRI) in the context of age and gender. The project brings new applied knowledge, exploring OHRI using concepts relevant to gerotechnologies, informed by studies of materiality and ageing studies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives)

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15 pages, 4680 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Transformative Processes of Gerontological Responses in Different Models of Public Providentialism in the COVID-19 Context: A Bibliometric Review

by Bruno Pires and Hermínia Gonçalves

Societies 2022, 12(5), 142; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soc12050142 - 09 Oct 2022

Viewed by 1559

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the entire world population at multiple levels. Within the most vulnerable population, the elderly have seen their usual fragilities worsened in an epidemiological context. Thus, it was necessary to reinforce the gerontological response to aging at home, or in place, framed in situations of comorbidities, health problems, economic need and isolation, among other situations of premeditated situations of aging fragility. Objective: Seeking to explain a model of gerontological response to aging-in-place in future pandemic situations. For that purpose, we have explored, through a scientific literature review, the relationship between public participation and the gerontological response to aging-in-place during COVID-19, considering the four main European welfare models. During this analysis we also intended to identify the reconfigurations from those responses, considering their place-based/neutral order. Methodology: To proceed in this analysis, we used a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) to identify a series of articles that add value to this problem. Next, in order to identify current research trends, we undertook a Bibliometric Analysis (BA), using the metadata from the same set of articles collected from Scopus and Web of Science. Results: The literature on the subject is interdisciplinary, dispersed throughout areas such as health; social sciences; politics; and computational, molecular, and even environmental fields of study. Through the use of keywords, the literature found on the relationship between the type of gerontological responses to aging-in-place and providence systems is still insufficient. There are, however, other research possibilities, such as exploring indicators of gerontological responses, of public expenditure or of the type of support from interlocutor stakeholders through a comparative study between countries, which allowed us to robustly answer the central question: Is there any relationship between the different public welfare systems and the public participation model, which included community participation, in the gerontological response to aging-in-place during the COVID-19 pandemic? Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives)

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16 pages, 288 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Examining Social Relationships among Older Muslim Immigrants Living in Canada: A Narrative Inquiry

by Nada Nasir, Carri Hand and Suzanne Huot

Societies 2022, 12(3), 74; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soc12030074 - 29 Apr 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2639

Abstract

Social connectedness and engagement are particularly important among groups who are at risk of experiencing social isolation, such as immigrant older adults. The objective of our study was to understand the social relationships of aging Muslim Lebanese immigrants living in Canada by exploring their lives in their ethnic and wider communities. This study used a life course perspective and adopted a constructivist narrative inquiry to understand the diverse lived experiences of four older adults who immigrated to Canada during early adulthood. Participants engaged in a narrative interview and follow-up session in which they storied their lived experiences. Findings describe one core theme, cultivating social relationships through family, friends, and community interdependence, and three related sub-themes: (1) navigating and creating family interdependence and planting new roots; (2) family interdependence in later life: the important role of grandchildren; and (3) cultivating ethnic and local interdependence to support aging in place. The participants’ stories provided an understanding of how culture, religion, aging, family, and immigration experiences interrelated throughout their life course and shaped their social relationships during later life. This study sheds new insight on the importance of culturally tailored activities and awareness about the social needs of immigrant older adults. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives)

14 pages, 295 KiB

Open AccessArticle

(Non-)Politicized Ageism: Exploring the Multiple Identities of Older Activists

by Daniel Blanche-T. and Mireia Fernández-Ardèvol

Societies 2022, 12(2), 40; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soc12020040 - 02 Mar 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2825

Abstract

The increase in ageing populations has spurred predictions on the growth of a politically powerful old-age bloc. While their protest mobilizations have risen to reach youth standards, there is scarce scholarly evidence of the role of multiple identities in older activists’ involvement. We address this gap by interviewing activists in Iaioflautas, an older adults’ social movement emerging from the heat of the protest cycles in Spain in 2011. In-depth interviews with 15 members of varying levels of involvement revealed the paramount role of the movement in the identity construction of its participants. Iaioflautas endows a strong sense of collective identity based on intergenerational solidarity and enables to counter the culturally devalued identity of older adults and retirees. Whereas perceptions of widespread ageist stereotypes against older adults abound in this group, they omit to view the movement through an old-age identity politics lens. Furthermore, they reproduce ageist attitudes against age peers refraining from active involvement. This paradox suggests that the non-politicization of ageism restrains the development of a collective identity based on old age. We highlight how an increase in ageing populations might advance this issue in future research. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives)

14 pages, 594 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Place-Making through Media: How Media Environments Make a Difference for Long-Term Care Residents’ Agency

by Sarah Wagner

Societies 2022, 12(1), 27; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soc12010027 - 14 Feb 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3016

Abstract

This paper explores the unique relationships care home residents have with communication media. Drawing on findings from an ethnographic case study at a long-term care site in British Columbia, Canada, I describe how care home residents’ everyday media practices are intertwined with their negotiations of longstanding attachments and new living spaces. The research draws connections between the spatiotemporal contexts of media use and residents’ experiences of social agency. Long-term care residents in this research were challenged to engage with the wider community, maintain friendships, or stay current with events and politics because their preferred ways of using communication media were not possible in long-term care. The communication inequalities experienced by care home residents were not simply about their lack of access to media or content but about their inability to find continuity with their established media habits in terms of time and place. While most research about communication media in care homes has been intervention oriented, this research suggests that long-term care service and funding policies require greater attention to create flexible, diverse, and supportive media environments. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives)

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11 pages, 239 KiB

Open AccessArticle

“With Friends Like These”: Unpacking Panicked Metaphors for Population Ageing

by Sally Chivers

Societies 2021, 11(3), 69; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soc11030069 - 01 Jul 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 4374

Abstract

Age studies scholars have long noted problems with using a tsunami metaphor to describe population ageing. Age-friendly offers a new way to respond to an increase in older adults. Though critical gerontologists identify the related movement’s limits, “age-friendly” itself is rarely recognized as a metaphor. This paper proposes that, while the metaphor of age-friendly is more benign than that of the tsunami, it still portrays an ageing population as a homogenous problem to be solved through morally obligatory individual actions, thereby participating in a form of age panic. The analysis draws on a humanities-based close reading of the World Health Organization’s 2007 “Global Age-Friendly Cities: A Guide.” The method uncovers attitudes that anchor the metaphor and hamper the movement’s effectiveness, particularly when trying to reach people who have not already been well served all their lives. The emphasis on a narrow version of active ageing feeds a neoliberal imagination that affects how value is assigned to an ageing population. That underlying emphasis needs to shift before new metaphors, policies and practices for population ageing—that allow for the variability and uniqueness of late-life experience—can take hold. How might we reconceptualize the ageing population if we focus on contributions and meaning instead? Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives)

16 pages, 619 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Co-Design as Learning: The Differences of Learning When Involving Older People in Digitalization in Four Countries

by Björn Fischer, Britt Östlund, Nicole K. Dalmer, Andrea Rosales, Alexander Peine, Eugène Loos, Louis Neven and Barbara Marshall

Societies 2021, 11(2), 66; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soc11020066 - 21 Jun 2021

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3657

Abstract

Involving older people through co-design has become increasingly attractive as an approach to develop technologies for them. However, less attention has been paid to the internal dynamics and localized socio-material arrangements that enact this method in practice. In this paper, we show how the outcomes that can be achieved with user involvement often pertain to learning, but their content can differ significantly based on how the approach is implemented in practice. Combining explorative, qualitative findings from co-design conducted in four countries (Canada, the Netherlands, Spain, and Sweden), we illustrate how different types of learning occurred as design workshops engaged the experiences and skills of older people in different ways. Our findings make visible how learning can be a core outcome of co-design activities with older adults, while raising awareness of the role of the power relations and socio-material arrangements that structure these design practices in particular ways. To benefit from the full wealth of insights that can be learned by involving older people, deeper knowledge is needed of the implicit features of design, the materials, meanings, and power aspects involved. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives)

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9 pages, 240 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Aging in Place with Age-Related Cognitive Changes: The Impact of Caregiving Support and Finances

by Alexandra Wagner

Societies 2021, 11(2), 31; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soc11020031 - 06 Apr 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3232

Abstract

In the United States, aging in place is a common concept that refers to older adults’ desire to remain in their homes as they age. However, this ability to age in place is a complex process that is not only impacted by the home’s accessibility or individual functional abilities. This paper aims to examine different factors, such as home environment and home modification, caregivers, finances, and other supports present in the participants’ lives, that impact older adults with age-related cognitive changes (ARCC) (in)ability to age in place. Qualitative interviews with older adults with ARCC (n = 5) and their caregivers (n = 5) were conducted. The participants’ experiences while aging in place indicate that finances and caregiving support greatly impacted their lives at home and ability to age in place. Personal finances dictated where some of the participants could age and the support, they could afford from home health aides. Additionally, informal and formal caregivers were an important source of support that aided in the older adults’ ability to remain home. As researchers, we need to continue to address personal finances and the support that the individual has in their lives to most effectively promote aging in place and their life at home. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives)

15 pages, 3809 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Representation and Agency of Aging Superheroes in Popular Culture and Contemporary Society

by Kateřina Valentová

Societies 2021, 11(1), 18; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soc11010018 - 08 Mar 2021

Viewed by 6450

Abstract

The figure of the superhero has always been regarded as an iconic representative of American society. Since the birth of the first superhero, it has been shaped by the most important historical, political, and social events, which were echoed in different comic issues. In principle, in the superhero genre, there has never been a place for aging superheroes, for they stand as a symbol of power and protection for the nation. Indeed, their mythical portrayal of young and strong broad-chested men with superpowers cannot be shattered showing them fragile or disabled. The aim of this article is to delve into the complex paradigm of the passage of time in comics and to analyze one of the most famous superheroes of all times, Superman, in terms of his archetypical representation across time. From the perspective of cultural and literary gerontology, the different issues of Action Comics will be examined, as well as an alternative graphic novel Kingdom Come (2008) by Mark Waid and Alex Ross, where Superman appears as an aged man. Although it breaks the standards of the genre, in the end it does not succeed to challenge the many stereotypes embedded in society in regard to aging, associated with physical, cognitive, and emotional decline. Furthermore, this article will show how a symbolic use of the monomythical representation of a superhero may penetrate into other cultural expressions to instill a more positive and realistic portrayal of aging. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives)

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7 pages, 211 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Fourth Ageism: Real and Imaginary Old Age

by Paul Higgs and Chris Gilleard

Societies 2021, 11(1), 12; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soc11010012 - 05 Feb 2021

Cited by 24 | Viewed by 4301

Abstract

This paper is concerned with the issue of ageism and its salience in current debates about the COVID-19 pandemic. In it, we address the question of how best to interpret the impact that the pandemic has had on the older population. While many feel angry at what they see as discriminatory lock-down practices confining older people to their homes, others are equally concerned by the failure of state responses to protect and preserve the health of older people, especially those receiving long-term care. This contrast in framing ageist responses to the pandemic, we suggest, arises from differing social representations of later life, reflecting the selective foregrounding of third versus fourth age imaginaries. Recognising the tension between social and biological parameters of ageing and its social categorisations, we suggest, may offer a more measured, as well as a less discriminatory, approach to addressing the selective use of chronological age as a line of demarcation within society. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives)

21 pages, 7233 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Moving from the Margins: Towards an Inclusive Urban Representation of Older People in Zimbabwe’s Policy Discourse

by Busisiwe Chikomborero Ncube Makore and Sura Al-Maiyah

Societies 2021, 11(1), 7; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soc11010007 - 21 Jan 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 4580

Abstract

Population ageing has become a major global demographic shift but perhaps less noticeable in the Global South. Zimbabwe, like many African countries, is experiencing and will continue to witness an increase in older age, hence questioning its readiness to handle such change. Ageing in Zimbabwe is currently occurring in the context of increasing poverty, political unrest, changing family structures, and weakening infrastructures. Despite this, Zimbabwe is committed to promoting change and betterment for its citizens through adherence to international agendas and national development strategies. However, the first step towards the realisation of an inclusive urban environment begins with a fair representation of the various actors and social groups. This review paper is aimed at examining the representation of Zimbabwe’s older people, a subject that has rarely been the focus of critical analysis, concentrating on the political discourse in urban development programmes. A sample of 45 international and national policy documents published post-2002, was carefully selected and inspected to determine the level of presence of older people using discourse analysis. The findings reveal that in the context of the efforts made towards a Zimbabwe that is inclusive of all citizens, the idea of older persons as subjects of rights and active participants has yet to truly gain sufficient currency. There is a dominance of a one-dimensional perspective across the majority of the publications, with older people constructed as “dependent”, “vulnerable” and “passive”, overseeing vital contributions to society. A realistic and more empowering representation of this social group, showing them as active caregivers rather than passive recipients is therefore a necessity if Zimbabwe is to fulfil its vision of inclusivity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives)

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26 pages, 1147 KiB

Open AccessArticle

What Role Does Rural Place Play in the Lives of Mid-Life Women in Sweden and Ireland?

by Alison Herbert

Societies 2020, 10(4), 84; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soc10040084 - 06 Nov 2020

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2842

Abstract

Rural place is a significant influencer of the ageing and states of well-being experienced by older women. This paper extends existing knowledge on gendered rural place by examining its influence on mid-life (45–65 years) women in rural Sweden and rural Ireland. This paper also examines rural place identity, self-identity and the enhancement of the self, and the multiple pathways to place attachment at mid-life. Qualitative data were gathered in 2019 from ten women living in Sweden’s rural Värmland region, and in 2012–2013 from 25 women living in Ireland’s rural Connemara region. Adopting a social constructionist approach within a lifecourse framework, methodology was informed by constructivist grounded theory, using one-to-one semi-structured interviews. These distinct studies show both similarity and difference in rural place identity and self-identity among mid-life women, and highlight nuances around place attachment, the home, social relationships, and the natural environment. The data show a compelling need for a greater consideration of the critical and diverse role rural place plays in shaping women’s experiences of ageing and well-being both at mid-life and in older age. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives)

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16 pages, 1100 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Retirement Rhythms: Retirees’ Management of Time and Activities in Denmark

by Aske Juul Lassen, Kenneth Mertz, Lars Holm and Astrid Pernille Jespersen

Societies 2020, 10(3), 68; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soc10030068 - 16 Sep 2020

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2873

Abstract

We scrutinize how the everyday lives of well-educated and healthy Danish retirees are structured and experienced and study how they organise their days and weeks. Our aim is to investigate how retirees manage and organise time and the ways these relate to societal rhythms in order to contribute to theories of retirement and social gerontology. We have combined qualitative (individual interviews, focus group interviews, design games, and drawings) and quantitative (activity monitoring, sleep quality, and health markers) data from 13 participants over the age of 65 years, who are research participants in a randomised controlled trial (RCT). Our interdisciplinary dataset allows us to analyse and compare subjective experiences of everyday activities with objective measures of daily activities. The older adults lead busy lives with many diverse activities and use these to structure their everyday lives in ways resembling the rhythms of the labour market with organised and busy mornings and loose afternoons and evenings. We discuss how our findings relate to continuity theory and suggest that Lefebvre’s rhythmanalysis allows us to study the retirement rhythms of older adults as part of both biological, social, and societal rhythms. This has practical as well as conceptual implications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives)

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12 pages, 281 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Creative Writing Workshop on Sexuality and Ageing: A Spanish Pilot Case Study

by Ieva Stončikaitė and Núria Mina-Riera

Societies 2020, 10(3), 57; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soc10030057 - 26 Jul 2020

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3775

Abstract

Negative stereotypes about old age abound in our present-day society, which often considers older people as sexually incapable or even asexual. On the other hand, active ageing ideologies foster the practice of sex in later life as a sign of healthy and active ageing. The aim of this pilot case study was to examine the impact that poetry on sexuality, ageing and creativity had on older individuals. In total eight participants, aged 49–76, participated in a workshop offered by the University of Lleida (Spain). The initial hypothesis was that the participants, following the example set by the poems, would produce pieces of creative writing in which they voiced their own concerns and experiences about sexuality in later life from the distance that metaphor grants. While some of the participants’ writings engaged with the poems that deal with sexuality in older age, none of the participants’ creative pieces contained explicit instances of sexual experiences. The analysis of the participants’ creative pieces suggests that: first, they regard intimacy in older age as essential; and second, their unwillingness to write about sexuality in older age is partly rooted in their upbringing during Franco’s dictatorial regime, in which sexuality for non-reproductive aims was constructed as immoral. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ageing as a Unique Experience: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Ageing and Later Life from Social and Humanities Perspectives)

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