Aging has radically different definitions with varying cultures. Some cultures respect and revere their elders, viewing them as wise and insightful. Others tend to shut their elders away, sheltering them from a rapidly changing environment they cannot keep up with. Globally, there cannot be one single definition for aging so I will focus on the United States’s view of and reaction to aging. While this may not hold true for all families, many elders are tucked away in nursing or assisted living homes. In our culture, both the modernization and disengagement theories complement each other. Our rapidly advancing and changing society leaves no room for people who lag behind, namely the elders. For the families of these elders, it is increasingly difficult to budget time into caring for them, because time must be spent working and improving their own lives first. This is an example of the modernization theory, those incapable of staying informed of and able to utilize new technologies and methodologies will inevitably lag behind the bell curve. This effect of modernization complements the disengagement theory because when people fall behind the bell curve, they are no longer fit to remain as a comparably productive member of society and so society slowly pushes those people into their own section where they can live free of the pressure to conform. For the elderly, this comes in the form of movement from their family or their own house to an assisted living or nursing home environment. It is safer in these places and they can get any help they need at a moment’s notice, something often unavailable anywhere else. The view of aging in the U.S. focuses around trying to regain something lost, namely youth.
2a. If medical technological ad...
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...tive is to avoid the bias of focusing one a single phase when analyzing a person.
4b. Quartet, a film based around a retirement home whose occupants were and still are gifted musicians, manages to effectively display the life course perspective. The continuity theory is hard at work in this performance since all the characters wish to continue their past careers, albeit in a less-professional environment. However, there is also an argument for the virtues of life course perspective when Reg and Jean, his ex-wife, encounter each other again and are forced to live under the same roof. Jean would like to mend their relationship while Reg holds a grudge against Jean based on the section of her life when they were married. Later on they both realize that it is wrong to judge each other by what they were and, instead, love each other for everything they are and have been.
One important measure of the perception of the aging process is the manner in which aging and old age are depicted in various cultural forms. The condition of old age in primitive and prehistoric societies has been described by the folk tales and cave drawings of that have survived to the present (Fisher, 1978). Likewise, it is possible that current societal views of aging may be illuminated through the impressions created by contemporary agents of socialization. And while it is difficult to determine whether stereotypical images are derived from reality or if, if fact, such images create reality (Clark, 1980), it is possible to investigate how and to what extent certain institutions reflect various images of the aging process.
Hiller, S. M., & Barrow, G. M. (2011). Aging, the individual, and society. (9th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
Disengagement theory is useful and relevant in understanding the social world of older people. However, the theory is contradicted by empirical evidence that revealed high levels of activity and engagement amongst many older people. (Johnson & Barer, 1992) suggest that the idea that older people consider withdrawing from social roles and interactions from the society a positive step is preposterous. They carried a study to determine social adaptation among 150 individuals, 85 years and older. The sample was selected from municipal voting rolls on the US using a snowball technique. Data were collected through in-depth open ended structured interviews in the respondents’ homes. Health and functioning were evaluated by the OARS measures of perceived
Aging is universal and it is a process that everyone has to go through. The only difference is that everyone goes through this process at their own pace influenced by factors that will be discussed later on in this paper. When we think about factors that have an influence on older adults and how their life may be affected, we must consider the different social institutions while analyzing influences from social factors, cultural factors, and personal values. Abuse to older adults, stereotyping and informal care and technological advancements that affect older adults are the three topics that will be discussed in this reflection. Furthermore, will connect the three topics I have chosen to the knowledge that I have gained from my interaction
In today’s society, what was once said to be true and taken as fact regarding older people is no longer the whole story. As Laslett states, “At all times before the middle of the twentieth century and all over the globe the greater part of human life potential has been wasted, by people dying before their allotted time was up.” (1989a), and to a great extent a lot
Aging and old age for a long time presented as dominated by negative traits and states such as sickness, depression and isolation. The aging process is not simply senescence most people over the age of 65 are not Senile, bedridden, isolated, or suicidal (Aldwin & Levenson, 1994). This change in perspective led the investigation of the other side of the coin. Ageing is seen as health, maturity and personal Royal growth, self-acceptance, happiness, generatively, coping and acceptance of age-related constraints (Birren & Fisher, 1995). Psychological und...
The elderly in America are thought of to be part of the population that have already lived their lives and are waiting to pass away. They are the last priority in society because they are the past and the country is focused on the future. What America tends to forget is that the elderly were once in time able to work for a living, and able to contribute their assets to add to what the country is today. As people age they are eventually not able to work and will have to retire. After the retirements, although they may receive government assistance, they still have to maintain homes and things to keep their lifestyle going for the rest of their years. Some elderly are paying a great amount of money to live in regular homes. Other seniors are
Some critics have argued that disengagement theory may have accurately characterized the behavior of the older population in the 1950s, but that it was a mistake to infer that this pattern was universal. According to these critics, activity theory or continuity theory might well be a better description of how older people actually live today. If the critics’ view is correct, does it mean that any theories of aging simply express the way aging appears at a certain time in history? If so, how would it be possible to develop an account that is more general and not limited to a certain time and place?
In an attempt to define ageing one must take in consideration the biophysiological together with the psychosocial aspects; these two aspects are intertwined.
Older adults are a very knowledgeable population and have had a lot of life experiences. As people age, things start to change physically, mentally, and socially. It’s important to understand the process of aging, so that older adults can be taken care of properly. I interviewed P.R. who is a 71-year-old male that lives alone in his home. P.R. is a retired coal miner, and is currently living off his social security and savings. He lives close to both his daughter and son, who frequently help him out with things that are needed. P.R. was able to give me a lot of insight about specific challenges that he has experienced in his life that is associated with aging. I will be discussing challenges that P.R experienced physically, mentally,
The disengagement theory is one of the psychological theories on the development process of ageing (Williams, Tibbitts & Donohue, 2008). The idea behind the disengagement theory is that it is an inevitable and natural process for older adults to disengage from society and their relationships that were the centre of their adulthood (Williams, Tibbitts & Donohue, 2008). There are nine postulates in Henry and Cumming’s theory of disengagement. Firstly, is that they lose relationships because they are expecting death (Williams, Tibbitts & Donohue, 2008). Second is that as they disengage, they are freed from social norms which in turn reinforces the disengagement process (Williams, Tibbitts & Donohue, 2008).
According to theorist Cumming and Henry disengagement from society occurs to everyone and there is nothing anyone can do about it. It was one of the most controversial theories and has been argued by some of the top psychologist of its time (Achenbaum, 1994, p.756). Disengagement theory states it is an “inevitable process of aging whereby many relationships between the individual and society are altered and eventually severed” (Achenbaum, 1994, P. 758). In other words the relationship between the individual and society is unavoidable and that the alteration the individual and society makes is unnecessary. It all started with the University of Chicago’s committee on Human Development and their ideas about disengagement. It was believed that the social phenomena affected the elderly status of independence on their physical status. The data that was gathered was bias because it consisted of “3,000 white, English-speaking, mentally co...
Older generations are treated similarly within the culture of Samoan Islanders, who believe that old age is to be a pleasant time of life. In contrast, the united states, an industrial society with the huge economic ability to support their generation of elderly people, thrives of independence and self-reliance. The united states define age chronologically, labelling anyone over sixty-five as being ‘old’ and they are expected to retire, despite their abilities. After the age of 65, life tends to become a period of
She grew up in Germany, a country that is very close to the United States in regards to how people view aging. According to McConatha, Schnell, Volkwein, Riley, and Leach (2003), Germans, compared to US Americans, view aging a somewhat more negatively. They are often more pessimistic about the likelihood of finding contentment in old age and generally do not expect to feel good when they are older. To my surprise, my aunts views about aging were very positive.
A term used for elders is aged, which is having reached a specific age (McKenzie & Pinger, 2015, p.273). Another term used by elders is aging, which means getting older. Some elders live in assisted-living facilities, which provide an alternative to long-term care in a nursing home. They also can live in retirement communities, which are areas that have been specifically developed for those in their retirement years (McKenzie & Pinger, 2015, p.288). For elders, health care is a major issue for them.