This ground-breaking study of the baby boomer generation, who are now entering old age, breaks new ground in ageing research. This post-war cohort has experienced a range of social, cultural, and medical changes in regard to their notions of body, from the introduction of the Pill and the decoupling of sex and procreation to the H-Bomb and Earthrise. Yet, paradoxically, ageing is also universal. This exciting book reflects the intersection of time, ageing, body and identity to give a more nuanced and enlightened understanding of the ageing process.
Synopsis This research story reflects on the situated experiences, attitudes and opinions of one UK ‘baby boomer’ couple; referred to here as Matthew and Eileen, or the Cees. The informants are also my parents. In some respects, therefore, this is an autobiographical or ‘close’ account, since we once shared a home context, as well as formative life experiences. We have also sustained positive relationships into adult life. Furthermore, the dialogues that are examined here refer to family relations, including my siblings, grandparents, aunts and uncles, as
another new, virulent rhetoric has risen up – that of the ‘selfish generation’ and ‘stolen futures.’ Some of the stereotypes of ageing that Kuhn and the Grey Panthers agitated about have been dispelled. She stated that old people are not ‘wrinkled babies’ and senior care homes are not ‘glorified playpens.’ Longevity, understanding, and exploration of the meaning of old age are central to the postwar generation’s coming 2 Baby boomers of age. If those images of wrinkled babies and glorified playpens still exist within pockets of society, this generation will most
homeowners, with 75 per cent outright owners. This is one of the highest rates of homeownership in the world (Yates and Bradbury, 2009). The baby boom generation (those aged 50–64 years at the 2006 Census) have followed this trend with 83 per cent owning, or currently purchasing, their home. Homeownership is generally viewed as an advantage in older age as it provides security of tenure, reduced housing costs in retirement, and the means to alter through the housing market a person’s housing situation to suit their needs. However, there is considerable diversity in
, with one of my contributions being the provision of a small financial allocation to support the Social Science in the City initiative. Public engagement and understanding old age Social care for older people has a high profile in England and Wales at the moment. There is wide recognition that the ageing of the so-called ‘baby boom’ generation will place high pressures on public and private pensions systems and, subsequently, as they age further, on health and welfare budgets. There is great disquiet among older people and their relatives about how they might
Populations around the globe are ageing rapidly. This demographic shift affects families, market structures and social provisions. This timely volume, part of the Ageing and the Lifecourse series, argues that the lifecourse perspective helps us understand the causes and effects of population ageing. The lifecourse perspective suggests that individuals’ experiences at an early age can influence their decisions and behaviour at a later age. This much-needed volume combines insights from different disciplines and real-life experiences to describe the theories and practices behind this idea. It therefore caters to the needs of scholars, practitioners and policy makers in a range of areas including sociology and political science.
Media representations of ageing play a role in stereotype formation and even reinforce them. Encountering these stereotypes can negatively impact the self-esteem, health status, physical wellbeing and cognitive performance of older people.
This international collection examines different dimensions of ageing and ageism in a range of media. Chapters include explorations of the UK media during the COVID-19 pandemic; age, gender and mental health in Ghana; advertising in Brazil; magazines in Canada; Taiwanese newspapers; comics, graphic novels and more.
Bringing together leading scholars, this book critically considers differences in media portrayals and how older adults use and interact with the media.
The housing we live in shapes individual access to jobs, health, well being and communities. There are also substantial differences between generations regarding the type of housing they aspire to live in, their attitudes to housing costs, the nature of their households and their attitudes to different tenures. This important contribution to the literature draws upon research from the UK, Australia and the USA to show how lifetime attitudes to housing have changed, with new population dynamics driving the market and a greater emphasis on consumption. It also considers how the global financial crisis has differentially affected housing markets across the globe, with variable impacts on the long term housing transitions of different populations.
This myth-busting and question-focused textbook tackles the fascinating and important social and policy issues posed by the challenges and opportunities of ageing.
The unique pedagogical approach recognises the gap between the lives of students and older people, and equips students with the conceptual, analytical and critical tools to understand what it means to grow old and what it means to live in an ageing society.
Features include:
• Myth-busting boxes incorporated into each chapter that unpack the common assumptions and stereotypes about ageing and older people in a clear and striking way;
• A multidisciplinary and issue-focused approach, interspersed with lively examples and vignettes bringing the debates to life;
• Group and self-study activities;
• A comprehensive glossary of key terms.
Answering questions which have arisen over years of longitudinal and systematic research on the social implications of ageing, this lively and engaging textbook provides an essential foundation for students in gerontology, sociology, social policy and related fields.
Many developed nations face the challenge of accommodating a growing, ageing population and creating appropriate forms of housing suitable for older people.
Written by an architect, this practice-led ethnography of retirement housing offers new perspectives on environmental gerontology. Through stories and visual vignettes, it presents a range of stakeholders involved in the design, construction, management and habitation of third-age housing in the UK, to highlight the importance of design decisions for the everyday lives of older people.
Drawing on unique and interdisciplinary research methods, its fresh approach shows researchers how well-designed retirement housing can enable older people to successfully age in place for longer, and challenges designers, developers and providers to evolve their design practices and products.
