Search results for ‘Subject term:"very old people"’ Sort:
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An investigation into the patterns of loneliness and loss in the oldest old – Newcastle 85+ Study
- Authors:
- BRITTAIN Katie, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Ageing and Society, 37(1), 2017, pp.39-62.
- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
Old age is often characterised as being associated with neglect, isolation and loneliness, not least since established risks factors for loneliness include widowhood, living alone, depression and being female. Cross-sectional data have challenged the notion that loneliness is especially an old-age phenomenon but longitudinal data on loneliness is scarce. Moreover, an under-represented group in prior studies are the oldest old, those aged 85 years and more. This paper addresses these knowledge gaps using data from the Newcastle 85+ Study, a large population-based cohort aged 85 years at first interview with follow-up interviews at 18 months and three years. At baseline over half (55%) reported being always or often alone, and 41 per cent reported feeling more lonely than ten years previously, although only 2 per cent reported always feeling lonely. Women spent more time alone than men and reported more loneliness both currently and compared to the past. Length of widowhood was a key factor, with those recently widowed having twice the risk of feeling lonely and those widowed for five or more years having a lower risk of reporting increased loneliness. Overall, the findings show that loneliness is a minority experience in the oldest old but is strongly driven by length of widowhood, challenging the notion that loneliness in later life is a static experience. (Publisher abstract)
Sustaining the self in the “fourth age”: a case study
- Author:
- TANNER Denise
- Journal article citation:
- Quality in Ageing and Older Adults, 17(3), 2016, pp.157-167.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to illuminate from the perspective of an older person (Harriet) the factors that support and jeopardise mental well-being in the fourth age. Design/methodology/approach: The paper is based on unstructured narrative interviews with an older woman who was originally interviewed for a previous research study 15 years ago. At that time she was aged 82; she is now aged 97. This paper explores themes of change and continuity in her experience of ageing with a view to re-evaluating the model of sustaining the self-developed in the earlier study and comparing the findings with current conceptions of the fourth age. Findings: Harriet’s previous efforts to remain independent have been replaced by an acceptance of dependency and diminished social relationships and activity. However, she retains significant threads of continuity with her earlier life and employs cognitive strategies that enable contentment. Her experience of advanced old age fits conceptions of neither the third nor fourth age, indicating the need for more sophisticated and nuanced understandings. Originality/value: The paper is original in exploring the lived experience of someone in advanced age across a 15 year time period. Its value lies in rendering visible the factors that have promoted and/or undermined her mental well-being and in generating insights that can be applied more generally to experiences of advanced age. (Publisher abstract)
A gendered lifecourse examination of sleep difficulties among older women
- Authors:
- WALKER Ruth B., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Ageing and Society, 32(2), February 2012, pp.219-238.
- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
This article takes a gendered lifecourse approach to explore the high prevalence of sleep difficulties in older women, and to understand the sociological underpinnings of why sleep disorders disproportionately affect older women. In-depth interviews were conducted with 12 community-dwelling women aged 80 years and over who currently experienced sleep difficulties. The participants were encouraged to share their personal experience of factors which have impacted on their sleep and were asked to describe how they responded to their sleep disturbance. Five themes emerged from the analysis: significant life stages; contingent lives; daily concerns in relation to ageing; attitudes and responses of women and general practitioners; and stigma and sleeping pills. For all women, sleep difficulties were not related to physical aspects such as pain or discomfort, but were largely shaped by demands associated with family relationships at different times in the lifecourse. The findings suggest that responses by women themselves, and health professionals, reflect a sense of stigma around sleep difficulties and use of sleeping pills. The article concludes that more emphasis on the social contextual explanations underpinning sleep difficulties might lead to better prevention and treatment of such problems, and increase quality of life.
How equitable is Sweden's changing care-mix? Linking individual and regional characteristics over time
- Authors:
- DAVEY Adam, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Ageing and Society, 27(4), July 2007, pp.511-532.
- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
Given its relative ethnic and socio-economic homogeneity, Sweden is an ideal nation for the study of variations in formal and informal care as a function of gender, disability and advanced age. This paper reports an analysis of the relationships between gender, disability and age and the formal care delivered to more than 1,200 people aged 75 or more years in Sweden in 1994 and 2000. In municipalities that provided above-average home-help hours per recipient, and that had high institutional placement rates, women were relatively less likely to have been receiving informal assistance alone, those with greater disability were more likely to have been receiving all forms of assistance, the oldest-old were less likely to have been receiving either informal or formal help alone, and rates of formal assistance and of no informal care were relatively low. In municipalities with high rates of institutional placement, the oldest-old were relatively more likely to have been receiving both formal and informal assistance. Sweden's system of old-age care appears broadly equitable although the quality of care could not be fully assessed. Although home and community-based service provision (HCBS) has recently decreased, variations in the volume and mix of delivered formal services reflect differences in need.
‘Old but not that old’: Finnish community-dwelling people aged 90+ negotiating their autonomy
- Authors:
- PIRHONEN Jari, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Ageing and Society, 36(8), 2016, pp.1625-1644.
- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
Autonomy is a pervasive concept in Western lifestyles today. However, people in the fourth age are assumed not to be autonomous but dependent on other people. The data of this study consisted of interviews with Finnish community-dwelling 90–91-year-old people. The study aim was to examine how these people see their own autonomy in their everyday lives. The analysis was based on membership categorisation analysis. Respondents considered their autonomy through three distinct themes. Functional ability was considered in terms of being physically capable of managing daily tasks. Independence in decision making was based on material and financial self-sufficiency and on the respondents' supposition that they were capable of making decisions due to an absence of memory disorders. Additionally, autonomy was considered as contesting norms of age-appropriateness. Among respondents, chronological age seemed to have been replaced by functional and cognitive ability as a definer of categorisations; age-others became ability-others. The study revealed that the perceptions of autonomy also included gendered features as they were linked with differing gendered ideals, roles and life domains of women and men. The results highlight the internal diversity among the oldest old and challenge the third/fourth age division. Instead, they suggest the existence of a certain ‘grey area’ within old age, and urge an analysis on the subtle meaning making involved in older people's constructions of age-categorisations. (Edited publisher abstract)
Quality of life related to fear of falling and hip fracture in older women: a time trade off study
- Authors:
- SALKELD G, et al
- Journal article citation:
- British Medical Journal, 5.2.00, 2000, pp.341-346.
- Publisher:
- British Medical Association
This paper presents research to estimate the utility (preference for health) associated with hip fracture and fear of falling among older women. Results indicate that among older women who have exceeded average life expectancy, quality of life is profoundly threatened by falls and hip fractures. Older women place a very high marginal value on their health. Any loss of ability to live independently in the community has considerable detrimental effect on their quality of life.
Elderly women's experiences of living with fall risk in a fragile body: a reflective lifeworld approach
- Authors:
- HALLRUP Leena Berlin, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Health and Social Care in the Community, 17(4), July 2009, pp.379-387.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the lived experience of fall risk from a lifeworld perspective in elderly women with previous fragility fractures. Thirteen elderly women with a high risk of fall and fracture, aged 76–86, living in their own homes in rural areas, were recruited from a voluntary fracture prevention programme. All women had a history of fragility fractures and were interviewed in their homes from spring to autumn 2004. A phenomenological reflective lifeworld approach was chosen to analyse in-depth interview data. The study was conducted within an interdisciplinary research group inspired by dialogical research. Elderly women's life space has been narrowed due to advanced age, physical injury or by efforts to prevent new injuries leading to changes in self-perception. However, the women seek strategies to challenge limitations and insecurity, and strive to retain mobility and daily life routines. The four major constituents of the phenomenon 'elderly women's experiences of fall risk' emerged in this study: a changing body, living with precaution, ambiguous dependency and influence and need for understanding. Employing the women's thoughts and resources in trust-based dialogues with caregivers may strengthen their concord and the prospects to continue an active life. Elderly women seek strategies to challenge limitations and feelings of insecurity, and strive to maintain mobility and daily life routines. A trust-based care respecting the preferences of the women seemed to stimulate behavioural change in maintaining an active life.
Seen but not heard: elderly women's experiences in hospital
- Authors:
- FREEMAN Amy, O'CONNOR Deborah
- Journal article citation:
- Canadian Social Work Review, 19(1), 2002, pp.65-84.
- Publisher:
- Canadian Association for Social Work Education
This article identified critical gaps in five areas: bathing, mobility, nutrition, communication and care of dentures. Additionally patients lost their sense of personal identity whilst in hospital. To cope with such gap in care, patients looked to alternative sources of support including informal care from family members.
Functional capacity and self evaluation of health and life of oldest old in China
- Authors:
- YI Zeng, VAUPEL James W.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Social Issues, 58(4), Winter 2002, pp.733-748.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This study is based on survey data from a sample of 8,805 elders aged 80-105 in 22 provinces of China. Rural oldest old are significantly more active in daily living than urban oldest old; adaptation is perhaps the major explanation of this difference. Female oldest old are seriously disadvantaged in functional capacities and self-reported health as compared with their male counterparts. Percentages of being active in daily living, having good physical performance, normal cognitive function and well-being drop dramatically from age 80-84 to 100-105. Proportion reporting satisfaction in current life, however, remains almost constant from age 80-84 to 90-94 and declines slightly afterwards. This may suggest that being more positive in self-feeling of life is one of the secrets of longevity.