scholarly journals The lived experience of being a hundred years and over

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Ashwina Naiker-Ratan

<p>The twentieth century has seen a decline in mortality after the age of eighty and an increase in survival rates of the oldest of the old. Centenarians (people over a hundred years of age) are the fastest growing group of this population in developed countries; however qualitative research on the oldest of the old is limited. The primary aim of this study was to gain an understanding of the essence of lived experiences and meanings of extended longevity as perceived by centenarians. It also aimed to explore the role of lifestyle characteristics, family, social, health and cultural factors in regards to their prolonged existence. The research was conducted with ten centenarians aged between 100 and 106 years living in the Lower North Island namely Wairarapa, Kapiti and Wellington of Aotearoa New Zealand. Biographical Narrative Interpretive Method of inquiry was used to guide the data collection through face-to-face interviews using unstructured open ended questions. Colazzi’s phenomenological framework was employed for data analysis. There were common patterns throughout the life stories related by the centenarians and resilience and acceptance of life was notable. The centenarians spoke nonchalantly about their experience of turning a hundred, describing their birthday as; “Just another day.” Positive personalities and resilient nature were prominent features of the participants who all expressed a sense of acceptance and satisfaction with life and contentment with living in the present. All centenarians had a privileged upbringing and were nurtured during their childhood by their parents, grandparents and siblings and these interrelationships were ongoing at an intergenerational level. They had all kept themselves active as much as they could throughout their lifetime. The results suggest that nurturing has an important role in the survival of the oldest of old.</p>

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Ashwina Naiker-Ratan

<p>The twentieth century has seen a decline in mortality after the age of eighty and an increase in survival rates of the oldest of the old. Centenarians (people over a hundred years of age) are the fastest growing group of this population in developed countries; however qualitative research on the oldest of the old is limited. The primary aim of this study was to gain an understanding of the essence of lived experiences and meanings of extended longevity as perceived by centenarians. It also aimed to explore the role of lifestyle characteristics, family, social, health and cultural factors in regards to their prolonged existence. The research was conducted with ten centenarians aged between 100 and 106 years living in the Lower North Island namely Wairarapa, Kapiti and Wellington of Aotearoa New Zealand. Biographical Narrative Interpretive Method of inquiry was used to guide the data collection through face-to-face interviews using unstructured open ended questions. Colazzi’s phenomenological framework was employed for data analysis. There were common patterns throughout the life stories related by the centenarians and resilience and acceptance of life was notable. The centenarians spoke nonchalantly about their experience of turning a hundred, describing their birthday as; “Just another day.” Positive personalities and resilient nature were prominent features of the participants who all expressed a sense of acceptance and satisfaction with life and contentment with living in the present. All centenarians had a privileged upbringing and were nurtured during their childhood by their parents, grandparents and siblings and these interrelationships were ongoing at an intergenerational level. They had all kept themselves active as much as they could throughout their lifetime. The results suggest that nurturing has an important role in the survival of the oldest of old.</p>


2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (7) ◽  
pp. 1387-1404
Author(s):  
Ashwina Ratan ◽  
Kay de Vries

AbstractThe aim of this study was to gain an understanding of the experiences of extended longevity as perceived by centenarians. Centenarians (people over 100 years of age) are the fastest growing group of the ageing population in developed countries. Ten centenarians aged between 100 and 106 years, living in the Lower North Island of New Zealand, participated in the study. The biographical narrative interpretive method of inquiry guided data collection through face-to-face interviews, and thematic analysis was subsequently undertaken. Four themes were identified: (a) ‘becoming a centenarian: ‘Just another day’; (b) ‘growing up in a privileged environment’ that revealed four sub-themes: ‘having freedom and choice’, ‘being loved and nurtured’, ‘living healthy lifestyles’ and having ‘good education prospects’; (c) ‘unique opportunities in adult life’; and (d) ‘positive ageing and celebration of longevity’. The centenarians spoke nonchalantly about their experience of turning 100 and positive personalities were prominent features of the participants, who all expressed a sense of acceptance and satisfaction with life and contentment with living in the present, a feature throughout their lives that was ongoing and at an intergenerational level. This study has provided further insights into the existing literature on longevity and through the narratives of the centenarians has demonstrated the value of Erikson's psycho-social stages of development and Tornstam's theory of gerotranscendence when considering positive ageing.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 4902
Author(s):  
Zia Ullah ◽  
Rana Tahir Naveed ◽  
Atta Ur Rehman ◽  
Naveed Ahmad ◽  
Miklas Scholz ◽  
...  

The literature on sustainable tourism is scant, particularly in the least developed countries. Very few studies touch upon the concept and no holistic theoretical or conceptual frameworks around the idea of sustainable tourism have been formulated. This study aims at exploring the role of tour operators in developing sustainable tourism in Pakistan and how the tour operators (TOs) conceive their role in this regard. TOs were reached through phone calls, emails, and virtual sources as face-to-face interviews were not possible due to COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions on travel by the government. In-depth interviews were conducted to gather data. Results suggest that the TOs although realize the importance of social, environmental, and economic dimensions of tourism on the communities but have no management systems in place to cater accordingly. There are no incentives in place by the government facilitate TOs to design and implement such systems. The TOs do not select a destination based on Global Sustainable Tourism Council criterion, but rather the selection of destination is mostly demand-based and profit-oriented. The study suggests that corporate profit motive is the sole criterion for decision making and is one of the major causes impeding sustainable tourism in Pakistan. The role of TOs in developing sustainable tourism is vague as the TOs do not have any systems in place to implement sustainable models. The study recommends that efforts need to be put in place to incentivize sustainable tourism in Pakistan and proper laws should be set forth by the authorities to comply by the TOs. The role of TOs is important and understood, however, there is a need to put proper systems in place.


2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Herbert ◽  
Margaret Forster ◽  
Timothy McCreanor ◽  
Christine Stephens

<p class="Abstract">To broaden public health approaches to alcohol use, this study provides an initial exploration of the social context of alcohol use among Māori in Aotearoa/New Zealand, from the perspectives of older Māori. Utilising a Māori-centred research approach, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 13 older Māori people to explore their personal experiences of alcohol use across their lifetime. Thematic analysis was used to identify common themes that contextualised stories of alcohol use within a Māori cultural framework. Four themes were identified: alcohol use within (1) a sporting culture, (2) a working culture, (3) the context of family, and (4) Māori culture. These themes highlight the influence of social factors such as the desire to socialise and seek companionship; the physical location of alcohol use; the importance of social networks, particularly <em>whānau</em> (family); and the role of cultural identity among Māori. In regard to cultural identity, the role of the <em>marae</em> (traditional meeting place/s of Māori), <em>tikanga</em> (the right way of doing things), and the relationship of <em>kaumātua</em> (respected elder) status to personal and whānau alcohol use are highlighted as important focuses for further research among Māori in Aotearoa/New Zealand.</p>


2012 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 577-587 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam Dinham

A significant infrastructure of multi-faith engagement grew and consolidated throughout the first decade of the twenty-first century in England, called forth, at least in part, by government policy. This arose in response to three narratives of religious faith: a policy narrative which constructs faith groups as repositories of resources; a faith narrative which is concerned with the lived experiences of faith; and a partnership narrative which reflects the growing role of faith groups in the mixed economy of welfare (see Dinham and Lowndes, 2008). It is inflected, too, by a fourth narrative located in the bundle of ‘Prevent’ policies which sought to address the risks of religious radicalisation and extremism. This article examines multi-faith policy in England, and the issues driving it, and explores its relationship to the faith-based practices which are imagined by it. It asks the question whether the multi-faith paradigm, as crystallised in the policy document ‘Face to Face and Side by Side: A Framework for Partnership in Our Multi Faith Society’ (CLG, 2008), engages with a real and lived experience or remains a policy chimera and a parallel world.


Author(s):  
Nicole Brown

This sociological article reports an empirical study into the lived experience of fibromyalgia. It includes 28 participants (26 women, 2 men) with a formal diagnosis of fibromyalgia. Data collection consisted of the completion of an identity box project and subsequent interviews. Data analysis followed the principles of iterative, inductive, semantic thematic analysis, and led to the identification of four major themes: the role of the social in making sense of the experience, the process of redefining lifegoals, the refusal to accept fibromyalgia as a diagnosis, and the consideration of identifying as a patient. These themes in turn demonstrate four forms of resistance against processes of marginalisation amongst those who have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia: (1) the incorporation of societal expectations and norms into their life-stories; (2) the re-making the lifeworld at a cerebral level through redefining reality and creating a new, socially acceptable reality; (3) the active rejection of the fibromyalgia diagnosis; and (4) the employment of active and pro-active countermeasures to assuming the sick role.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Taingunguru Whangapirita Walker

<p>Māori live within a post-colonial society, and were subjected to colonisation, warfare, land loss and urbanisation. These policies changed Māori from an agrarian society into an industrialised society within the cities. The impact on whānau of this included the separation from traditional lands, marae, hapu, iwi and the support of other whānau members. Māori living in cities were then categorised as urban Māori, which does not sit comfortably with participants in this study, who reject this term. This thesis explores, with Ngati Porou participants, their lived experience of whānau. The views of three age cohorts are canvassed in order to identify whether their understandings of whānau differ. These three cohorts were divided as follows: 65 years and over; 35–64 and 21–34. A total of thirty-eight participants were interviewed. They spoke passionately about who they were, where they came from and why they valued whānau. This is a qualitative research project, which utilises both Western and a Māori/tribal worldview. It was of importance to ensure that the data retained the Māori messages and the essence of the kōrero. A whakapapa and whānau sampling method was used to identify hapu and whānau. Face-to-face interviews were conducted, using a „snowball‟ technique. Some of the issues explored included who participants counted as members of whānau, the various whānau types identified by the literature (kaupapa whānau, whaamere, family, virtual whānau, new whānau, statistical whānau and whānau ora) and whether the „whānau mantra‟ is a „myth‟. Participants were asked for their views on the roles within whānau, what strengthens and divides whānau and whānau leadership. Other topics explored were the role of whāngai within whānau, cross-cultural relationships, maintaining whakapapa links, urbanisation and the impact of policies on whānau. Recently, government has begun to use whānau within policies in ways that differ from the lived experience of whānau. Academics have also used the metaphor of whānau in an attempt to explain some of the contemporary groupings of Māori, such as kapa haka activities. The pakeke cohort, most of whom lived within the tribal area, were totally involved with whānau, hapu and iwi. The middle cohort, most of whom were employed, were involved with whānau and marae when required. They cared for both mokopuna and aging parents. There were other qualities they valued in addition to whakapapa. The youngest cohort, some of whom were young parents, were passionate about being members of whānau. Because many of them had been born away from the tribal area, they felt the need to traverse the lands where their tīpuna had lived, worked and played in order for the whakapapa to become real. This thesis has identified that whakapapa is of the utmost importance to the participants‟ understanding of whānau, and that this shapes their lived experience.</p>


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Taingunguru Whangapirita Walker

<p>Māori live within a post-colonial society, and were subjected to colonisation, warfare, land loss and urbanisation. These policies changed Māori from an agrarian society into an industrialised society within the cities. The impact on whānau of this included the separation from traditional lands, marae, hapu, iwi and the support of other whānau members. Māori living in cities were then categorised as urban Māori, which does not sit comfortably with participants in this study, who reject this term. This thesis explores, with Ngati Porou participants, their lived experience of whānau. The views of three age cohorts are canvassed in order to identify whether their understandings of whānau differ. These three cohorts were divided as follows: 65 years and over; 35–64 and 21–34. A total of thirty-eight participants were interviewed. They spoke passionately about who they were, where they came from and why they valued whānau. This is a qualitative research project, which utilises both Western and a Māori/tribal worldview. It was of importance to ensure that the data retained the Māori messages and the essence of the kōrero. A whakapapa and whānau sampling method was used to identify hapu and whānau. Face-to-face interviews were conducted, using a „snowball‟ technique. Some of the issues explored included who participants counted as members of whānau, the various whānau types identified by the literature (kaupapa whānau, whaamere, family, virtual whānau, new whānau, statistical whānau and whānau ora) and whether the „whānau mantra‟ is a „myth‟. Participants were asked for their views on the roles within whānau, what strengthens and divides whānau and whānau leadership. Other topics explored were the role of whāngai within whānau, cross-cultural relationships, maintaining whakapapa links, urbanisation and the impact of policies on whānau. Recently, government has begun to use whānau within policies in ways that differ from the lived experience of whānau. Academics have also used the metaphor of whānau in an attempt to explain some of the contemporary groupings of Māori, such as kapa haka activities. The pakeke cohort, most of whom lived within the tribal area, were totally involved with whānau, hapu and iwi. The middle cohort, most of whom were employed, were involved with whānau and marae when required. They cared for both mokopuna and aging parents. There were other qualities they valued in addition to whakapapa. The youngest cohort, some of whom were young parents, were passionate about being members of whānau. Because many of them had been born away from the tribal area, they felt the need to traverse the lands where their tīpuna had lived, worked and played in order for the whakapapa to become real. This thesis has identified that whakapapa is of the utmost importance to the participants‟ understanding of whānau, and that this shapes their lived experience.</p>


Methodology ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joachim Gerich ◽  
Roland Lehner

Although ego-centered network data provide information that is limited in various ways as compared with full network data, an ego-centered design can be used without the need for a priori and researcher-defined network borders. Moreover, ego-centered network data can be obtained with traditional survey methods. However, due to the dynamic structure of the questionnaires involved, a great effort is required on the part of either respondents (with self-administration) or interviewers (with face-to-face interviews). As an alternative, we will show the advantages of using CASI (computer-assisted self-administered interview) methods for the collection of ego-centered network data as applied in a study on the role of social networks in substance use among college students.


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