Hopes, fears and expectations about the future: what do older people's stories tell us about active ageing?

2007 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 465-488 ◽  
Author(s):  
AMANDA CLARKE ◽  
LORNA WARREN
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Residential Care ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Living Wills ◽  
Limited Resources ◽  
Active Ageing ◽  
Paid Work ◽  
Current Policy ◽  
Everyday Activities ◽  
Economic Framework

ABSTRACT‘Active ageing’ is a key concept in current policy and research on ageing and yet is under-analysed or interpreted largely within an economic framework. This paper explores active ageing in the broader context of older people's lives. Drawing on a series of biographical interviews with 23 people aged 60–96 years, the discussion focuses on the theme of future hopes and concerns. Exhortations for ‘active ageing’ may be challenged by a lifelong unwillingness to look forward or plan ahead. Nevertheless, the findings show that fears for a future of limited resources, decline and dependency can exist alongside not only the desire to live longer but also the positive anticipation of forthcoming events and strong inter-generational relations. ‘Living for now’ and ‘taking a day at a time’ – and by extension the accomplishment of everyday activities rather than the activity-driven goals of earlier years – are common strategies for dealing with the unpredictability of later life. In this respect, even stopping paid work and entering residential care may be actively chosen and empowering even though they are steps towards disengagement and dependency. Similarly, planning for death, such as writing (living) wills and making funeral arrangements, may be positive and proactive responses to beliefs and concerns about dying. ‘Active ageing’ therefore needs to offer choices for life to be lived at all stages whilst recognising that much of the focus for older people is on ordinary needs, deeds and relationships.

scholarly journals When Frail Older People Relocate in Very Old Age, Who Makes the Decision?

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fiona Scheibl ◽  
Morag Farquhar ◽  
Jackie Buck ◽  
Stephen Barclay ◽  
Carol Brayne ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Older People ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Residential Care ◽  
Care Home ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Old People ◽  
Care Needs ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Age In Place

Abstract Background and Objectives Older people are likely to transition to a new home closer to family who can provide assistance or to long-term residential care as their health declines and their care needs increase. A minority choose to move to “age-friendly” housing before the onset of disability, but the majority prefer to “age in place” and defer moving until health crises compel a transition. Older people living with dementia are likely to move into residential care, but not much is known about the role they play in decision making around these moves. This qualitative study addresses this gap in knowledge by examining how a rare cohort of “older old” people, most with some level of cognitive impairment, were involved in decisions surrounding assistance seeking and moving to a care home. Research Design and Methods Thematic analysis of qualitative interview data from Cambridge City over-75s Cohort (CC75C) study participants aged 95 years and older, who had moved in later life, and their proxy informants (n = 26). Results Moves at such an old age were made due to a complexity of push and pull factors which had layered dynamics of decision making. In most cases (n = 22), decision making involved other people with varying degrees of decision ownership. Only four older people, who moved voluntarily, had full ownership of the decision to move. Many relatives reported being traumatized by events leading up to the move. Discussion and Implications “Older old” people are sometimes unable to make their own decisions about moving due to the urgency of health crisis and cognitive decline. There is a need to support relatives to discuss moving and housing options at timely junctures before health crises intervene in an effort to optimize older people’s participation in decision making.

scholarly journals New Bikes for the Old

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 39-56
Author(s):  
Aske Juul Lassen ◽  
Tiago Moreira
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Older People ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Social Participation ◽  
Research Programme ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Active Ageing ◽  
Sustainable Living ◽  
Key Technology ◽  
Ethnographic Data

In the last 15 years, STS has established a research programme focused on the sociotechnical reconfiguration of later life, particularly as new political programmes aim to deploy ‘active ageing’ in contemporary societies. In Denmark, the bicycle is a key technology in this aim, because of how it articulates sustainable living, health and social participation. Thus, two new ‘inclusive cycling’ initiatives for older people have been developed. Drawing on ethnographic data, we explore the ways the bikes differ, and how they explicitly mobilise active ageing as a form of ‘good old age’ in different ways. We argue that whereas ‘Cycling without Age’ rickshaws attempt to assemble social participation for older people, ‘Duo-Bikes’ aim to enable capacities through physical activity in later life. We further explore what happens when these two schemes meet, and suggest how searching for a compromise will be necessary to enhance opportunities to cycle in later life.  

scholarly journals 126 Urinary Incontinence: Prevalence, Clinical Characteristics and Impact on Quality of Life of Older People in Ireland

2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (Supplement_3) ◽  
pp. iii17-iii65
Author(s):  
Paul Claffey ◽  
Rachel Sullivan ◽  
Rose Anne Kenny ◽  
Triona McNicholas ◽  
Robert Briggs
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Urinary Incontinence ◽  
Healthcare Professional ◽  
Older People ◽  
Representative Sample ◽  
Large Population ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Linear Regression Models ◽  
Everyday Activities

Abstract Background Urinary incontinence (UI) is one of the ‘giants’ of gerontological care, associated with early mortality, depression and falls in later life. It is often amenable to treatment, yet clinical experience suggests that older people with urinary incontinence often go undiagnosed and therefore untreated. The aim of this study therefore was to ascertain the prevalence of UI in a large population representative sample of Irish adults ≥50 years; to examine how often participants report UI to healthcare professionals; to profile factors associated with UI and its impact on quality of life (QOL). Methods This study was embedded within the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing. Participants were a population-representative sample of almost 7,000 Irish adults aged ≥50 years. UI was defined as any involuntary loss of urine from the bladder within the last 12 months, based on the International Continence Society Definition. QOL was measured using the Control, Autonomy, Self-realisation and Pleasure-19 Scale (CASP-19). Results Fifteen % (1,061/6,996) of participants had UI within the last 12 months; 9% (269/3,162) of males and 21% (792/3,834) of females. Almost half (486/1,061) of participants with UI had not reported it to a healthcare professional, with one fifth (240/1,061) reporting UI limited everyday activities. Logistic regression modelling demonstrated UI was associated with advancing age, female sex, alcohol excess, polypharmacy, chronic disease and depression. Linear regression models showed that UI was associated with significantly lower self-rated QOL, as measured by CASP-19 (β =-1.13 (95% CI: -1.69 - -0.57), p <0.001). Conclusion UI affects 1 in 7 people aged ≥50 years. It is closely associated with other geriatric syndromes such as polypharmacy, depression and multimorbidity and impacts significantly on QOL. Despite this, almost half of those with UI do not report symptoms to a healthcare professional, highlighting the need for structured assessment of UI as part of comprehensive age-attuned care.

Sleep and autonomy in later life: the SomnIA project

2018 ◽  
pp. 17-34
Author(s):  
Sara Arber ◽  
Susan Venn ◽  
Ingrid Eyers
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Medical Profession ◽  
Care Home ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Active Ageing ◽  
Poor Sleep ◽  
Night Time ◽  
Staffing Levels ◽  
Care Giving

This chapter discusses how the sleep of older people is linked to issues of autonomy and active ageing. For older people living in the community, this chapter demonstrates how the strategic use of napping is related to the goal of active ageing, discusses the reluctance of older people to take prescribed sleeping medication, and examines how care-giving can adversely affect the sleep of older people. For older people living in care homes, care home routines, staffing levels at night and night-time monitoring by staff can compromise the sleep of care home residents, which has implications for their daytime functioning. This chapter argues that poor sleep is often ignored by both the medical profession and by the general public, yet is fundamental in terms of optimising health and well-being in later life, and enabling older people to achieve independent and active lives.

scholarly journals Controlling active ageing: a study of social imaginaries of older people in Chile

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (7) ◽  
pp. 1428-1454 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cynthia Meersohn Schmidt ◽  
Keming Yang
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Social Exclusion ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Active Ageing ◽  
Social Imaginaries ◽  
Social Lives ◽  
The Social ◽  
Biological Criteria ◽  
Potential Risks ◽  
Artistic Images

AbstractA key issue in understanding the social lives of older people is how active they are in coping with the demands of ageing. Often the ‘successfulness’ of ageing is measured with medical and biological criteria. While the notion of ‘active ageing’ is more appealing and neutral, its meaning is often obscured, fragmented or inconsistent. Our aims in this study were to establish ‘active ageing’ as a process in which older people try to take control of their lives by conforming to or resisting different social imaginaries of later life, and to explore individuals’ strategies for making the best use of available resources and fending off potential risks of social exclusion. We adopted a two-stage research design. First, we produced artistic images that corresponded to social imaginaries of tensions in ageing in three social domains (politics, mass media and older people). Then, we used these images as stimuli in interviews with a balanced sample of 32 middle-aged and older residents of Santiago, Chile, to discover their strategies for coping with these tensions. Although imaginaries of ageing tended to describe ageing in terms of restrictions and stereotypes, we found diverse and increasingly flexible life projects and expectations of activity in later life.

scholarly journals Making it real or sustaining a fantasy? Personal budgets for older people

2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 683-695 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen West ◽  
Catherine Needham
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Original Data ◽  
Vantage Point ◽  
Current Policy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Discursive Positioning ◽  
The One ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the current policy of extending personal budgets to older people. Design/methodology/approach In developing this explanation, the paper draws upon a species of de-centred, post-foundationalist theory which draws attention to the way in which certain narratives can sustain a longing for the implementation of policies that are ultimately unachievable. The paper also draws upon original data from an evaluation of a national ageing charity’s project to increase take-up of personal budgets. Findings The paper draws attention to, and seeks to explain, the paradoxical discursive positioning of older adults as “the unexceptional exception” within the general narrative of universal personalisation. Research limitations/implications This analytical approach can secure a different vantage point in this debate by paying closer attention to the ideological and ethical dimensions of personalisation than has been the case until now. Practical implications The paper contributes to the critical interrogation of the personalisation agenda, in which debate (both in academic and practitioner circles) has become highly polarised. Social implications The paper contributes to discussions in critical social gerontology which point to a bifurcation of later life into, on the one hand, an ageless third age and a frailed fourth age, on the other. Originality/value The paper makes clear that the discursive positioning of older people as “the unexceptional exception” risks an inadvertent ageism.

scholarly journals Day-time sleep and active ageing in later life

2010 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 197-216 ◽  
Author(s):  
SUSAN VENN ◽  
SARA ARBER
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Later Life ◽  
World Health Organisation ◽  
World Health ◽  
Ageing Process ◽  
Active Ageing ◽  
Poor Sleep ◽  
Activity Levels ◽  
Night Time ◽  
Attitudes And Practices

ABSTRACTThe concept of ‘active ageing’ has received much attention through strategic policy frameworks such as that initiated by the World Health Organisation, and through government and non-governmental organisation initiatives. The primary goal of these initiatives is to encourage older people to be active and productive, and to enhance quality of life, health and wellbeing. It is well known that with increasing age, night-time sleep deteriorates, which has implications for how older people maintain activity levels, and leads to an increased propensity for day-time sleep. Using data from 62 interviews with people aged 65–95 years living in their own homes who reported poor sleep, this paper explores the meanings of day-time sleep, and how the attitudes and practices of ‘active ageing’ are intricately linked to the management of day-time sleep and bodily changes that arise from the ageing process. The desire to be active in later life led to primarily dichotomous attitudes to day-time sleep; older people either chose to accept sleeping in the day, or resisted it. Those who accepted day-time sleep did so because of recognition of decreasing energy in later life, and an acknowledgement that napping is beneficial in helping to maintain active lives. Those who resisted day-time sleep did so because time spent napping was regarded as being both unproductive and as a negative marker of the ageing process.

The experience of animal therapy in residential aged care in New Zealand: a narrative analysis

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-19
Author(s):  
Gemma Wong ◽  
Mary Breheny
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Older People ◽  
Residential Care ◽  
Narrative Analysis ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Aged Care ◽  
Residential Aged Care ◽  
Psychological Benefits ◽  
Animal Therapy ◽  
Care Facilities

Abstract Animal therapy has been shown to have both physiological and psychological benefits for older people, including improvements in outlook and social interaction. Volunteer-led animal visitation programmes are common within residential aged care facilities in New Zealand. Visits by animals and handlers are intended to improve the quality of life of people in residential care. Very little research has been conducted on the informal animal visitation programmes typical in care facilities in New Zealand. This project examined the experience of animal therapy in two residential aged care homes that receive animal visits from an animal welfare organisation. In-depth interviews were conducted with seven older people about their experiences of the programme and analysed using narrative analysis. Three overarching narratives were identified: animal therapy as a fleeting pleasure, residential care as a sad environment, and identity outside residential care as highly valued. Older people in residential care do value animal therapy, but it is narrated as a fleeting pleasure, rather than having a long-lasting or far-reaching impact on the daily experience of residential care. In some ways, the structure of the animal therapy programme may underscore the challenges to everyday autonomy and identity experienced in residential aged care. These findings can be used to develop animal visiting programmes which recognise the importance of a valued social identity in later life.

scholarly journals Pathways of participation in paid and unpaid work in mid to later life in the United Kingdom

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-28
Author(s):  
Lawrence B. Sacco ◽  
Laurie M. Corna ◽  
Debora Price ◽  
Karen Glaser
Keyword(s):  
Latent Class ◽  
Economic Status ◽  
Logistic Models ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Unpaid Work ◽  
Active Ageing ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Paid Work ◽  
Time Work ◽  
Paid And Unpaid Work

Abstract Policy responses to population ageing have focused on lengthening working lives, overlooking inequalities in older adults’ participation in unpaid activities. This paper examines participation in paid and unpaid activities between the ages of 55 and 70 to answer two questions: how do people navigate pathways of paid work, informal care, volunteering, civic participation and housework in mid to later life?; and how do these pathways relate to gender, socio-economic and health inequalities? Two-staged latent class analysis was used to identify activity pathways using data from the British Household Panel Survey (1996–2008). Multinomial logistic models assessed associations between latent pathways and socio-demographic and health characteristics. Three pathways were observed: full-time work to low activity (49%), part-time and in-home work (34%) and multiple activities (16%). Aside from retirement from full-time work, the pathways of participation in paid and unpaid activities were characterised by continuity; substitution between different forms of paid and unpaid work was not observed. Participation in multiple paid and unpaid activities was more common for respondents in better health and of higher socio-economic status. Since the promotion of paid work and volunteering in later life may mainly benefit individuals in advantaged circumstances, policies should avoid taking a blanket approach to encouraging participation in multiple activities, a key component of active ageing.

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