Download or read book Loneliness among older people in the Swedish media written by Axel Ågren and published by Linköping University Electronic Press. This book was released on 2018-12-13 with total page 71 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Feelings of belonging or not belonging to other people are commonly seen as an essential and universal part of human existence. How loneliness is talked about and understood is, however, found to differ depending on historical, cultural and societal contexts. Today, there are intense discussions on loneliness among older people in the Swedish news-press. Constructions within mass media and - in this licentiate thesis - news-press are found to have a significant influence on how older people evaluate their own life and how older people are treated by the surrounding society. Research with this focus is, however, scarce despite the large amount of studies on loneliness and despite research on constructions of older people within mass media being a frequently addressed issue for ageing research. The aim of this thesis is to explore how loneliness among older people is constructed and how the responsibility for reducing loneliness is designated within the Swedish news-press. In Paper 1 the empirical material consisted of 94 news-press articles from the years 2013-2014. The prime finding was that loneliness was not the main focus in the articles from the Swedish news-press. The concept was used more to motivate the need for political change, enhancing the importance of volunteer work and described as a risk factor within research reports. The material analysed in Paper 2 consisted of 40 news-press articles from October 2016. The responsibility for reducing loneliness among older people was found to be designated between welfare state institutions on different levels. Institutions and political parties both defend the planned or performed measures to reduce loneliness, but also admit to not doing enough in this regard. Older people were found to be constructed as recipients of activities for reducing loneliness, and the “we” in “society” were those who should perform activities in order to reduce loneliness among older people. The main overall finding of the thesis is that loneliness was not the main focus in the articles from Swedish news-press. Instead, loneliness was used as a motive for political change and to enhance the value of volunteer work. Furthermore, loneliness among older people is understood as a problem that needs to be solved. The contexts and logics of the mass media were found to have an influence on how loneliness among older people was constructed, as the issue was mainly addressed in local debate articles with ambitions of achieving change. Känslor av tillhörighet med andra människor betraktas som en viktig och universell del av människans existens. Ensamhet är särskilt relaterat till åldrande och äldre människor. Hur ensamhet pratas om och förstås varierar dock beroende på historiska, kulturella och samhälleliga kontexter. Idag är diskussionerna om ensamhet bland äldre människor intensiva inom svensk dagspress. Konstruktioner inom massmedia har visat sig ha ett betydande inflytande på hur äldre människor värderar sitt eget liv och hur äldre behandlas av det omgivande samhället. Få studier har fokuserat på konstruktioner av äldres ensamhet i massmedia, trots det stora antalet studier om ensamhet och trots att forskning om konstruktioner av äldre inom massmedia är en ofta behandlad fråga inom äldreforskningen. Syftet med denna licentiatavhandling är att undersöka hur ensamhet bland äldre konstrueras och hur ansvaret för att minska ensamhet bland äldre utpekas inom svensk dagsspressen. I Studie 1 bestod det empiriska materialet av 94 artiklar från svensk dagspress, från åren 2013-2014. Det främsta resultatet var att ensamhet inte utgjorde huvudfokus i artiklarna från svensk dagspress. Ensamhet användes främst som ett begrepp för att motivera behovet av politisk förändring, betona värdet av volontärarbete och för att i forskningsrapporter beskriva riskfaktorer för äldre personers hälsa. Materialet som analyserades i Studie 2 var 40 artiklar från svensk dagspress, från oktober 2016. Ansvaret för att minska ensamhet bland äldre utpekades mellan välfärdsstatliga institutioner på olika nivåer. Institutioner och politiska partier försvarade de planerade eller genomförda åtgärderna för att minska ensamhet, men erkände också att de inte gör tillräckligt i frågan. Äldre personer konstruerades som mottagare av aktiviteter för att minska ensamhet, och "vi" i "samhället" var de som borde utföra aktiviteter för att minska ensamhet bland äldre. De främsta resultaten från denna avhandling är att ensamhet inte är huvudfokus i artiklarna från svensk dagspress. Istället användes ensamhet som motiv för politisk förändring och för att betona värdet av volontärarbete. Vidare förstås ensamhet bland äldre människor som ett problem som behöver lösas. Massmediala sammanhang och logiker visade sig ha ett inflytande på hur ensamhet bland äldre konstrueras, eftersom frågan huvudsakligen behandlades i lokala debattartiklar, med ambitioner om att åstadkomma förändring.

Download or read book Loneliness and Dying as Issues of Public Concern in Sweden written by Axel Ågren and published by Linköping University Electronic Press. This book was released on 2020-12-21 with total page 78 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Loneliness among older people and how the dying should be cared for are issues that evoke public debate. These issues are often described as universal and existential aspects of the human experience. Societal understandings of loneliness and dying have, however, changed dramatically over the past decades. Loneliness among older people and how we die are surrounded with ideals of how to "age well" and "good deaths", where failure to meet these expectations is associated with tabus, stigma and personal and societal failures. Consequently, studying loneliness among older people and care of the dying gives rise to the question of to what degree loneliness and dying are personal or public concerns. The aim of this dissertation is to study how loneliness among older people is constructed in the Swedish news press and how care of the dying is constructed in policies and through the perspectives of experts in palliative care. Specifically, the analysis explores to what extent these issues have become public concerns, and how "old and lonely" and "the dying" are positioned and constructed. In Paper I, the focus is on identifying overall discourses on loneliness among older people in the Swedish news press. Paper II is an analysis of how the responsibility for reducing loneliness is designated in the Swedish news press. Paper III explores how policies on palliative care have emerged and developed in Sweden over time since the 1970s up until today. Paper IV highlights the perspectives of experts, in palliative care, on the development and current state of palliative care, and the role of policymaking in this context. The findings of Paper I illustrate that although loneliness among older people have seemingly gained increased attention, much of the news articles are about the deficiencies in the organisation of eldercare and volunteer work with aims of reducing loneliness. In Paper II, the main finding is that the task of reducing loneliness is discussed, defined, and designated by and to those who were "non-old" and "non-lonely", where ambitions of inclusion result in constructing old people as the "others". Paper III shows how policies on palliative care have changed, from an emphasis on psychological end-of-life care and an overarching critique of the hospice care philosophy, to claims for care to be instead inspired by the very same philosophy. Furthermore, ideals of dying at home have lost their significance as palliative care should be universal and carried out everywhere. Based on interviews with experts in palliative care, the results of Paper IV highlight the complex development of palliative care in between deficiencies in end-of-life care of the past and improvements of the present. These improvements resulted, however, in risks of too much bureaucracy. The overall findings of this dissertation indicate that loneliness among older people and care of the dying serve as symbols for criticising the idea of the development of "modern society", which is altogether viewed as individualistic, bureaucratised and medicalised. Throughout the studies included in this dissertation, the issues of individual autonomy and activity as well as responsibility have shown to be central. In the context of palliative care, the concept of autonomy has a key position and responsibility is on the dying person to make choices in order to achieve "good palliative care". Regarding loneliness among older people, emphasis is on how to make older people physically and socially active. Loneliness is constructed as a problem which should be avoided and solved by "society" bearing the responsibility for enabling older people not to be lonely. Ensamhet bland äldre och vård av döende personer är frågor som diskuteras i offentliga fora. Dessa frågor beskrivs ofta som universella och en central del av människans existens. Dock har samhälleliga förståelser av ensamhet och döende förändrats dramatiskt under de senaste decennierna. Ensamhet bland äldre människor och hur vi dör är frågor som är omgärdade av ideal om "god död" och om att "åldras väl", där misslyckanden med att uppfylla dessa förväntningar är förknippade med tabun, stigma och personliga och samhälleliga brister. Eftersom äldres ensamhet och vård i livets slut är frågor som till viss del välfärdsstaten i Sverige engagerar sig i aktualiseras frågan om i vilken grad ensamhet och vård av döende personer är individens eller samhällets ansvar. Den ökade samhälleliga uppmärksamheten för dessa frågor i media och genom policyer, motiverar behovet av forskning om hur ensamhet bland äldre konstrueras, vad som ger upphov till att vissa definitioner blir förgivettagna och vilka typer av definitioner som nyhetspressen och policyer lutar sig emot. Syftet med denna avhandling är att studera hur ensamhet bland äldre konstrueras i svensk nyhetspress och vård av döende konstrueras i policyer samt utifrån experters perspektiv. En central del av detta syfte är att analysera i vilken utsträckning dessa frågor är individens respektive samhällets ansvar. Syftet är vidare att undersöka hur ”ensamma äldre” och ”döende personer” positioneras och konstrueras. I Paper fokuserade jag på att identifiera övergripande diskurser om ensamhet bland äldre i den svenska nyhetspressen. Paper II utgjordes av en analys av hur ansvar för att minska ensamheten bland äldre utpekats i den svenska nyhetspressen. Hur policyer kring palliativ vård i Sverige först etablerades och har utvecklats över tid, mellan åren 1974-2018, studerades i Paper III. Experters perspektiv på utvecklingen och det nuvarande tillståndet för palliativ vård och vilken roll policyer haft i denna typ av vård belystes i Paper IV. Trots att ensamhet bland äldre till synes har fått ökad uppmärksamhet i media, visade resultaten i Paper I att nyhetsartiklarna till stor del handlade om bristerna i organiseringen av äldreomsorg och betydelsen av volontärarbete för att minska ensamheten. I Paper II var den övergripande slutsatsen att uppdraget att minska ensamheten diskuterades, definierades och utpekades av och till dem som var "icke-äldre" och "icke-ensamma", där ambitioner om inkludering resulterade i att konstruera äldre människor som de "andra”. I Paper III var ett centralt fynd att policyer kring palliativ vård förändrats från betoning på psykologisk vård i livets slut och en övergripande kritik av vårdfilosofin från hospicerörelsen till krav på att vården bör utgå från denna filosofi. Dessutom tappade idealen om att dö hemma sin betydelse eftersom policyer med tiden betonade vikten av att palliativ vård ska vara universell och kunna genomföras överallt. Baserat på intervjuer med experter inom palliativ vård var resultaten av Paper IV att den historiska utvecklingen av hospice-rörelsen och samtida internationella händelser inom palliativ vård fungerade som referenspunkter för att förstå utvecklingen och det nuvarande tillståndet för den palliativa vården. Dessa metaberättelser sammanflätades också med personliga erfarenheter från palliativ vård. De övergripande resultaten i denna doktorsavhandling var att ensamhet bland äldre och vård av döende tjänade som symboler för att kritisera utvecklingen av det ”moderna samhället” som betraktades som individualistiskt, byråkratiserat och medikaliserat. I de studier som ingår i denna doktorsavhandling var frågor om ansvar, individuell autonomi och aktivitet centrala. I policyer för palliativ vård var begreppet autonomi centralt och döende personer framställdes som ansvariga för att göra val för att uppnå ”god palliativ vård”. Beträffande ensamhet bland äldre låg tonvikten på att göra äldre fysiskt och socialt aktiva. Ensamhet bland äldre människor ansågs mestadels som ett problem som bör undvikas och lösas. Det var också ”samhället” som skulle göra det möjligt för äldre att inte uppleva ensamhet.

Download or read book Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2020-05-14 with total page 317 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Social isolation and loneliness are serious yet underappreciated public health risks that affect a significant portion of the older adult population. Approximately one-quarter of community-dwelling Americans aged 65 and older are considered to be socially isolated, and a significant proportion of adults in the United States report feeling lonely. People who are 50 years of age or older are more likely to experience many of the risk factors that can cause or exacerbate social isolation or loneliness, such as living alone, the loss of family or friends, chronic illness, and sensory impairments. Over a life course, social isolation and loneliness may be episodic or chronic, depending upon an individual's circumstances and perceptions. A substantial body of evidence demonstrates that social isolation presents a major risk for premature mortality, comparable to other risk factors such as high blood pressure, smoking, or obesity. As older adults are particularly high-volume and high-frequency users of the health care system, there is an opportunity for health care professionals to identify, prevent, and mitigate the adverse health impacts of social isolation and loneliness in older adults. Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults summarizes the evidence base and explores how social isolation and loneliness affect health and quality of life in adults aged 50 and older, particularly among low income, underserved, and vulnerable populations. This report makes recommendations specifically for clinical settings of health care to identify those who suffer the resultant negative health impacts of social isolation and loneliness and target interventions to improve their social conditions. Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults considers clinical tools and methodologies, better education and training for the health care workforce, and dissemination and implementation that will be important for translating research into practice, especially as the evidence base for effective interventions continues to flourish.

Download or read book Critical Gerontology written by Meredith Minkler and published by Routledge. This book was released on 1999 with total page 390 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This refreshing book uses broad political and moral economy perspectives to explore the intersections of race, class, gender and aging and how these help determine the experience of aging and growing old. The twenty chapter volume includes new contributions by many of the top names in critical gerontology. Both political and economic factors, and those shared norms about fairness and obligation that help shape our aging policies, are examined in relation to a wide range of contemporary issues in gerontology.

Download or read book Ageing Men and Social Relations written by Paul Willis and published by Policy Press. This book was released on 2024-03-12 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: While there has been an increase in scholarship on men, ageing and masculinities, little attention has been paid to the social relations of men in later life. This collection fills this gap by foregrounding older men’s experiences, providing new perspectives across the intersections of old age, ethnicities, class and sexual and gender identity.

Download or read book The Concept and Measurement of Quality of Life in the Frail Elderly written by James E. Birren and published by Academic Press. This book was released on 2014-06-28 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This work presents the first serious attempt to impose rigor on the definition and measurement of quality of life among the elderly. The book uses a conference to develop background but goes well beyond the meeting in terms of depth of reviews of the literature and of integration among the chapters.This book is intended for use by researchers in the many disciplines which focus on the mental and physical well-being of the elderly, including those in medicine, nursing, psychiatry, psychology, rehabilitation, sociology and social work, among others. In addition, this book provides important background information for professionals and policy makers interested in ensuring quality of life in the later years.

Download or read book The Internet and Health Care written by Monica Murero and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-09-13 with total page 440 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Internet and Health Care: Theory, Research, and Practice presents an in-depth introduction to the field of health care and the Internet, from international and interdisciplinary perspectives. It combines expertise in the areas of the social sciences, medicine, policy, and systems analysis. With an international collection of contributors, it provides a current examination of key issues and research projects in the area. Methods and data used in the chapters include personal interviews, focus groups, observations, regional and national surveys, online transcript analysis, and much more. Sections in the book cover: *e-Health trends and theory; *searching, discussing, and evaluating online health information at the individual level of analysis; *discussing health information at the group or community level; and *implementing health information systems at the regional and social level. The Internet and Health Care will prove useful for university educators and students in the social, public health, and medical disciplines, including Internet researchers. It is also oriented to professionals in many disciplines who will appreciate an integrative theoretical, empirical, and critical analysis of the subject matter, including developers and providers of online health information.

Download or read book Gender Health and Ageing written by Prof. Dr. Gertrud Backes and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2008-05-07 with total page 315 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The different research fields – gerontology, gender and health – have generated different views, knowledge and foci on ageing, health and gender. It is now necessary to integrate these aspects into research, policy and practice. The objective of this book is to provide an overview of gender, health and ageing. Important theoretical concepts, such as life course and "Lebenslagen" in old age, or differences in men's health, are introduced. It is increasingly important to build a European basis of knowledge, to conduct discussions on European research findings, and to develop European research frameworks. In this volume, central theoretical debates on gender impacts on life course and old-age health, and vital issues of health research in the context of gender and old age are introduced. Specific aspects, such as the impact of gender and age on cardiovascular health, elder abuse and mental health, or care between gender relations, gender roles and gender constructs, are pointed out. Special attention is given to the impact of social, political and economic change in different New EU Member States, like Hungary, Poland and Slovenia.

Download or read book Media Logic written by David L. Altheide and published by SAGE Publications, Incorporated. This book was released on 1979-08 with total page 268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Analyzes such social institutions as politics, religion, and sport as they are presented and transformed by the media to affect our shared stock of knowledge. Altheide and Snow move beyond a consideration of the reasons for the picture given by media of these institutions and the ways in which media has impact, to a more pervasive view of our culture as shaped by the media that are a part of it. 'Altheide and Snow do successfully show how a common media logic has gripped such apparently different areas as spectator politics, sport and religion. They do show how all other media tend to conform to a dominant television format.' -- The Media Reporter, Spring 1980

Download or read book Imagining Apocalyptic Politics in the Anthropocene written by Earl T. Harper and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2021-09-28 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Bringing together scholars from English literature, geography, politics, the arts, environmental humanities and sociology, Imagining Apocalyptic Politics in the Anthropocene contributes to the emerging debate between bodies of thought first incepted by scholars such as Mouffe, Whyte, Kaplan, Hunt, Swyngedouw and Malm about how apocalyptic events, narratives and imaginaries interact with societal and individual agency historically and in the current political moment. Exploring their own empirical and philosophical contexts, the authors examine the forms of political acting found in apocalyptic imaginaries and reflect on what this means for contemporary society. By framing their arguments around either pre-apocalyptic, peri-apocalyptic or post-apocalyptic narratives and events, a timeline emerges throughout the volume which shows the different opportunities for political agency the anthropocenic subject can enact at the various stages of apocalyptic moments. Featuring a number of creative interventions exclusively produced for the work from artists and fiction writers who engage with the themes of apocalypse, decline, catastrophe and disaster, this innovative book will be of great interest to students and scholars of the politics of climate change, the environmental humanities, literary criticism and eco-criticism.

Download or read book Aging in European Societies written by Constantinos Phellas and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-09-28 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Between longer life expectancies and declining birth rates, Europe’s elder population is growing into a sizable minority with considerable impact on nations, health systems, and economies—in other words, global implications as well as local and regional ones. Those investing in the health of older adults need a double perspective: the social and clinical complexity of aging and the larger forces shaping these experiences. Aging in European Societies examines aging trends across the continent, analyzing individual and collective variables that affect the lives of older adults, and drawing salient comparisons with other parts of the world. An interdisciplinary panel of experts provides theory, research, and empirical findings (with examples from the UK, Cyprus, Sweden, and others) in key areas such as family and social supports, physical and cognitive changes, dependence and autonomy issues, and living arrangements. The book’s wide-net approach offers insights into not only aging, but aging well. And of particular importance, it details approaches to defining and measuring the elusive but crucial concept, quality of life. Included in the coverage: The potential for technology to improve elders’ quality of life. Dementia and quality of life issues. Changes in functional ability with aging and over time. Family networks and supports in older age. Factors influencing inequalities in quality of life. Late-life learning in the E.U. Gerontologists, sociologists, health and cross-cultural psychologists, and public health policymakers will welcome Aging in European Societies as a springboard toward continued discussion, new directions for research, and improvements in policy and practice.

Download or read book New Boundaries Between Aging Cognition and Emotions written by Rocco Palumbo and published by Frontiers Media SA. This book was released on 2018-12-07 with total page 150 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Developing Sport for Women and Girls written by Emma Sherry and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2020-04-16 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Women and girls are often excluded from organised sport or face challenges in accessing sport or developing within sport. This is the first book to focus on sport development for women and girls. It provides a theoretical and practical framework for readers in the emerging field of sport development. Developing Sport for Women and Girls examines both the development of sport, and development through sport with expert contributions from Australasia, North America and Europe. It offers critical analysis of contemporary sport development, from high performance pathways to engaging diverse communities to the use of sport to empower women and girls. Each chapter explores various contexts of sport development and sport for development theory with a specific focus on women and girls. It covers key topics such as health, education, sexual orientation and participation across the lifecourse, and features international case studies in every chapter. This is essential reading for students, academics, researchers and practitioners working in the area of sport development or sport management.

Download or read book International Handbook of Population Aging written by Peter Uhlenberg and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2009-04-29 with total page 758 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The International Handbook of Population Aging examines research on a wide array of the profound implications of population aging. It demonstrates how the world is changing through population aging, and how demography is changing in response to it.

Download or read book Mental Health Effects of COVID 19 written by Ahmed Moustafa and published by Academic Press. This book was released on 2021-06-11 with total page 350 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The physical effects of COVID-19 are felt globally. However, one issue that has not been sufficiently addressed is the impact of COVID-19 on mental health. During the COVID-19 pandemic, citizens worldwide are enduring widespread lockdowns; children are out of school; and millions have lost their jobs, which has caused anxiety, depression, insomnia, and distress. Mental Health Effects of COVID-19 provides a comprehensive analysis of mental health problems resulting from COVID-19, including depression, suicidal thoughts and attempts, trauma, and PTSD. The book includes chapters detailing the impact of COVID-19 on the family's well-being and society dynamics. The book concludes with an explanation on how meditation and online treatment methods can be used to combat the effects on mental health. - Discusses family dynamics, domestic violence, and aggression due to COVID-19 - Details the psychological impact of COVID-19 on children and adolescents - Includes key information on depression, anxiety, and suicide as a result of COVID-19

Download or read book The SAGE Handbook of Social Gerontology written by Dale Dannefer and published by SAGE Publications. This book was released on 2010-09-14 with total page 713 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume reflects the emergence of ageing as a global concern, including chapters by international scholars from Asia, Australasia, Europe and North America. It provides a comprehensive overview of key trends and issues in the field, drawing upon the full range of social science disciplines. The Handbook is organized into five parts, each exploring different aspects of research into social aspects of ageing: * Disciplinary overviews: summaries of findings from key disciplinary areas within social gerontology * Social relationships and social differences: topics include: social inequality, gender and ageing, the role of religion, inter-generational ties, social networks, and friendships in later life. * Individual characteristics and change in later life: chapters in this section examine different aspects of individual aging, including self and identity, cognitive processes, and biosocial interactions and their impact on physical and psychological aging. * Comparative perspectives and cultural innovations: topics in this section include: ageing and development, ageing in a global context, migration, and cross-cultural perspectives on grandparenthood. * Policy issues: The final section examines some of the main policy concerns affecting older people across the world. Topics include: developments in social policy, long-term care, technology and older people, end of life issues, work and retirement, crime and older people, and the politics of old age. This will be essential reading for all students, researchers and policy-makers concerned with the major issues influencing the lives of older people across the globe.

Download or read book Systems Theory for Social Work and the Helping Professions written by Werner Schirmer and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2019-03-21 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Social systems occur in many contexts of social work. This book provides an easy-to-read introduction to systems thinking for social workers who will encounter social problems in their professional practice or academic research. It offers new insights and fresh perspectives on this familiar topic and invites creative, critical, and empathetic thinking with a systems perspective. Through introducing systems theory as a problem-oriented approach for dealing with complex interpersonal relations and social systems, this book provides a framework for studying social relations. The authors present a strand of systems theory (inspired by sociologist Niklas Luhmann) that offers innovative, surprising, and practically relevant understandings of everyday social life, inclusion/exclusion, social problems, interventions, and society in general. Systems Theory for Social Work and the Helping Professions should be considered essential reading for all social work students taking modules on sociology and social policy as well as students of nursing, medicine, counselling, and occupational health and therapy.