scholarly journals Ageing, corporeality and social divisions in later life

2016 ◽  
Vol 37 (8) ◽  
pp. 1681-1702 ◽  
Author(s):  
CHRIS GILLEARD ◽  
PAUL HIGGS
Keyword(s):  
Later Life ◽  
Demographic Ageing ◽  
Social Division ◽  
Third Age ◽  
The Third ◽  
Social Divisions ◽  
The Social ◽  
Post War ◽  
Social Divide ◽  
The 19Th Century

ABSTRACTThis paper concerns the social divisions of later life. Although research in this field has focused on class, gender and, more recently, sexuality as sources of division in later life, the division between the fit and the frail has tended to be ignored or viewed as an outcome of these other divisions. This paper challenges this assumption, arguing that corporeality constitutes a major social division in later life. This in many ways prefigures a return to the 19th-century categorisation of those ‘impotent through age’, whose position was among the most abject in society. Their ‘impotence’ was framed by an inability to engage in paid labour. Improved living standards during and after working life saw age's impotence fade in significance and in the immediate post-war era, social concern turned towards the relative poverty of pensioners. Subsequent demographic ageing and the expanding cultures of the third age have undermined the homogeneity of retirement. Frailty has become a major source of social division, separating those who are merely older from those who are too old. This division excludes the ‘unsuccessfully’ aged from utilising the widening range of material and social goods that characterise the third age. It is this social divide rather than those of past occupation or income that is becoming a more salient line of fracture in later life.

Exploring social inclusivity within the University of the Third Age (U3A): a model of collaborative research

2015 ◽  
Vol 36 (8) ◽  
pp. 1580-1603 ◽  
Author(s):  
REBECCA PATTERSON ◽  
SUZANNE MOFFATT ◽  
MAUREEN SMITH ◽  
JESSICA SCOTT ◽  
CHRISTOPHER MCLOUGHLIN ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lifelong Learning ◽  
Collaborative Study ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Third Age ◽  
Social And Emotional ◽  
The Third ◽  
North East ◽  
The Social ◽  
The University

ABSTRACTLifelong learning is believed to have physical, social and emotional benefits for older adults. In recognition of this, numerous programmes encouraging learning in later life exist worldwide. One example is the University of the Third Age (U3A) – a lifelong learning co-operative rooted in peer-support and knowledge sharing. This article is based on a collaborative study conducted by university researchers and members of a U3A in North-East England (United Kingdom) investigating the social inclusivity of the group in light of low attendance levels among those from social housing and non-professional backgrounds. A qualitative approach comprising semi-structured interviews and focus groups was adopted to explore knowledge and experience of lifelong learning and the U3A. Sixty individuals aged 50+ were interviewed. The demographic profile of participants largely reflected the socio-economic make-up of the area, with the majority living in areas of high socio-economic deprivation. Several barriers to lifelong learning were revealed, including: poor health, insufficient transport and caring responsibilities. Regarding U3A participation, three exclusionary factors were outlined: lack of knowledge, organisational name and location. Poor comprehension of the purpose and remit of the U3A can result in the development of ‘middle-class' myths regarding membership, perpetuating poor participation rates among lower socio-economic groups. Such perceptions must be dispelled to allow the U3A to fulfil its potential as a highly inclusive organisation.

scholarly journals SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE FOURTH AGE

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S696-S697
Author(s):  
John Pothen ◽  
Emily C Dore ◽  
Ellen Idler
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Human Dignity ◽  
Oldest Old ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Social Characteristics ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Social ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Network Patterns

Abstract How can we differentiate distinct phases of aging in later life? Theorizations of the third and fourth age posit that later life often involves a time of continued growth and increased opportunity (the “third age”) as well as a time marked by growing cognitive, physical, and social losses (the “fourth age”). In contrast to population-based definitions that place this transition around the age of 80, a person-based definition using frailty as a marker offers more sensitivity by focusing on ability and agency instead of age alone. In this study, we apply both definitions in order to examine the social characteristics of the fourth age. Using a nationally representative sample of adults over the age of 65 from from the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) seventh round (n=6,312) we find that the population-based definition overestimates the number of adults in the fourth age (2,834 vs 569; p<0.001). Additionally, social network patterns observed when comparing adults above and below the age of 80 - increased rates of including a daughter or son and a decreased rate of including a friend - are not seen when comparing adults who do and do not meet criteria for frailty. Our findings suggest that common understandings of the social characteristics of the oldest old - understandings with important implications for policy and the promotion of human dignity - may be biased by focusing on age alone as a marker of change instead of ability and agency.

MASTERY BELIEFS AND PRODUCTIVE LEISURE ACTIVITIES IN THE THIRD AGE

2003 ◽  
Vol 31 (7) ◽  
pp. 643-656 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erika Timmer ◽  
Marja Aartsen
Keyword(s):  
Strong Predictor ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Control Beliefs ◽  
Third Age ◽  
The Third ◽  
Productive Activities ◽  
Broad Concept ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Impact

In the present study we examined the associations between beliefs of mastery and 2 important kinds of productive activities in the third age: participation in education, and volunteering. Within the broad concept of mastery beliefs, differential aspects of self-regulatory cognitions were studied, that is, self-esteem, control beliefs, effort to complete behavior, persistence in the face of adversity, and willingness to initiate behavior. Effects of these aspects on carrying out activities were investigated and controlled for the impact of some situational and demographic factors. Findings suggest that a general sense of mastery, as reflected in self-esteem and control beliefs, is not a precondition for study and volunteering work in the third age. However, special components of self-efficacy turned out to play a part. Willingness to initiate behavior emerged as a strong predictor for taking on educational activities, as was persistence in the face of adversity for being active as a volunteer. In the discussion possibilities were looked at fpr how better to match productive activities in later life to personal dispositions.

Growing old gracefully: social dance in the third age

2002 ◽  
Vol 22 (6) ◽  
pp. 689-708 ◽  
Author(s):  
LESLEY COOPER ◽  
HELEN THOMAS
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Older People ◽  
Research Project ◽  
Social Dance ◽  
Third Age ◽  
The Third ◽  
Social Dancing ◽  
The Social ◽  
One Year

This paper examines the meaning of social dancing for older people. It is based on a one-year qualitative research project, which is seeking to explore the experiences of social dance for people aged 60 years or more who attend various dance events in Essex and south-east London. The findings suggest that the social dance experience is not only or simply a beneficial physical experience for older people, it also bestows other significant benefits for those who enter the third age and beyond. It can provide continuity within change. It offers an opportunity to be sociable and have fun in ways that both reflect, and avowedly move beyond, the dancers' teenage years. It promotes a welcome sense of a community spirit. It is a way of becoming visible and aesthetically pleasing, and it bestows a sense of worth and achievement in skills learnt through dancing. Last but not least, dancers can experience the joy of a fit and able body in both real and mythic senses.

scholarly journals "UNIVERSITY OF THE THIRD AGE" AS A FORM OF SENIOR CITIZENS’ LIFELONG EDUCATION

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. 324
Author(s):  
Larisa Lezhnina ◽  
Natalia Morova ◽  
Svetlana Domracheva
Keyword(s):  
Social Integration ◽  
Life Style ◽  
Senior Citizens ◽  
Main Idea ◽  
Educational Institutions ◽  
Lifelong Education ◽  
Third Age ◽  
The Third ◽  
Active Life ◽  
The Social

The article is devoted to the urgent problem of finding ways of social integration of senior citizens  to the conditions of the rapidly changing society. The main idea is to use the resources of life-long education for providing retired people  with the conditions to obtain information about the world on a systematic basis. The subject of the research are the form and the content of senior citizens’ lifelong education that is aimed at preserving their active life style and enriching their intrapersonal potential. The article gives the social-pedagogical model of lifelong uducation of elderly people that corresponds to their needs, and describes  the author's conceptual basis (openness of education, voluntariness, focus on the learners’ needs) and the content of the model (giving knowledge, developing skills, interaction and self-development training). The methods of the research are modeling and pedagogical natural experiment. The five-year experience of implementing the model of senior citizens’ lifelong education in the form of  "University of the Third Age" allows the authors to conclude that it is effective. In the students’ opinion, the educational programs of "University of the Third Age" meet their cognitive needs, provide their social integration, help them to maintain active life style, increase their satisfaction with the quality of their life. Thus, higher educational institutions can and should become the place where senior citizens can get education and training. 

scholarly journals Catechesis of Seniors in the Context of Their Activity

2020 ◽  
Vol 57 ◽  
pp. 265-282
Author(s):  
Kazimierz Skoczylas
Keyword(s):  
Good Health ◽  
Professional Activity ◽  
Third Age ◽  
Social Good ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Family ◽  
Religious Tourism ◽  
The World ◽  
The Church

Modern seniors who are characterized by good health at the end of their professional activity engage in new forms of activity. Some of them are involved in the activities of universities of the third age, belong to the Family of Radio Maryja, are volunteers or use various forms of religious tourism and pilgrimages. Many manifestations of their activity come from the religiosity of seniors. The growing religiosity of seniors requires a systematic catechesis that helps them in its development. The church emphasizes that this catechesis should be adapted to the situation of a senior. Catechesis helps to read the religious meaning of this stage of life and to strengthen the motivation for Christian presence in the family and environment. Therefore, this catechesis should strengthen religious interest in faith, shape and sustain the motivation of Christian activity, in the Church and in the world. This is reflected in the Christian involvement in family upbringing, in the ecclesial community, for the social good and also in an attractive way of spending free time.

Social divisions and social differences

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Chris Gilleard ◽  
Paul Higgs
Keyword(s):  
Working Life ◽  
Later Life ◽  
The Body ◽  
Social Differences ◽  
Social Divisions ◽  
The Social ◽  
Communities Of Interest ◽  
A Site ◽  
Distinct Features ◽  
The Impact

This chapter draws the distinction between social divisions that reflect structural patterns of inequality and social differences that express social identity and the articulation of communities of interest. It then goes on to consider some of the distinct features of such divisions and differences that help define the social locations of later life. These include the impact of the transition from working to post working life, the intersectionality that exists amongst these divisions and the growing salience of the body as both a site and source of division.

Identity and intersectionality

2020 ◽  
pp. 123-140
Author(s):  
Chris Gilleard ◽  
Paul Higgs
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Social Groups ◽  
Later Life ◽  
The Political ◽  
Multiple Sources ◽  
Social Divisions ◽  
Social Positioning ◽  
The Social ◽  
Power And Influence

This chapter addresses the question of intersectionality and the positioning of older people at points in a complex set of locations structured and leant upon by multiple sources of difference and inequality. It argues that social locations are no longer organised through simple binary divisions underpinned by single hierarchies of power and influence. Instead, identities and inequalities are located in the interstices that social divisions and differences form. The positioning both of age and of able-bodiedness, class, ethnicity, gender is rendered contingent by this intersectionality, making each of these potential divisions the source of at most a limited set of demi-regularities that constrain both the political claims of different social groups and the restrict the commonalities of different communities. The chapter concludes that intersectionality, though a much-contested concept, does draw attention to the social positioning of and social divisions within later life.

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