Gerontology and Ageing

The Social Context of Ageing

• Gerontology is a multi-disciplinary science that studies ageing, integrating biological, psychological, and social aspects.

The Study of Ageing

• Gerontology is a relatively young science, with the term "gerontology" first used by Russian biologist Metchnikoff in 1908.
• Interest in old age and older people has existed for thousands of years.
• The oldest reported lifespan is that of Methuselah, who is supposed to have lived for 969 years, while the longest verifiable lifespan was that of Jeanne Calment, who died in 1997, aged 126.

Perspectives on Ageing

• There are three main perspectives on ageing: biological, psychological, and social.
• Gerontology is a multidisciplinary field that integrates these perspectives to understand ageing and later life.

The Biological Perspective

• The biological approach to ageing focuses on how the passage of time affects physiological systems.
• The biological perspective is concerned with understanding the physical changes that occur with ageing, such as wrinkles and grey hair.
• The key question is whether these changes are a result of ageing or growing older, or whether they are influenced by social and environmental factors.
• Biologists are interested in longevity, life span, and life expectancy.
• The biological definition of ageing is based on Strehler's (1962) criteria: universality, internality, progressiveness, and harmfulness.
• Error-based theories of ageing propose that ageing results from the development and replication of errors within the physiological system.
• Programming theories of ageing hypothesize that ageing and the maximal life span are programmed into the genes of an organism.

The Psychological Perspective

• The psychological approach to ageing focuses on examining personality, mental function, and notions of self and identity.
• The psychological perspective is concerned with understanding differences in behaviour between individuals and changes within individuals with the passage of time.
• This area of research includes topics such as cognitive function, health psychology, mental illness, and personality and adjustment.

The Social Perspective

• The social perspective on ageing is concerned with understanding the social and environmental context of ageing.
• The social perspective focuses on the diversity of ageing and older people, and the different factors that are important to experiences of old age and ageing.
• The social perspective is critical of the biomedical model, which is often negative, decline, and loss-oriented.

Key Concepts

• Ageing: the process of growing older, characterized by physical, psychological, and social changes.

• Age: a measure of the passage of time, often used to define stages of life.

• Life expectancy: the average number of years remaining to a person of a specific age.

• Life span: the period between birth and death.

• Longevity: the maximum lifespan that a species could attain under optimal conditions.

• Senescence: the process of ageing, characterized by decreases in the efficient functioning of an organism.### The Social Perspective on Ageing

• The focus of social gerontology has been on adjustment to loss rather than self-development in later life.

• The sociology of ageing uses sociological perspectives to understand ageing.

• Social gerontology is a broader discipline that incorporates multiple social science perspectives to achieve a better understanding of ageing and old age.

• The discipline has three distinct perspectives: individual, social, and societal, at two levels of analysis: microscale and macroscale.

• The microscale approach examines ageing as an individual experience, investigating topics like changes in perceived age identity.

• The social approach examines the social context that defines ageing and seeks to understand the position of older people within society.

• The societal perspective is concerned with the demographic, structural, cultural, and economic transformation resulting from the increase in the number and proportion of older people in society.

Defining Old Age

• There is no readily agreed biological definition of ageing or the onset of old age.
• The physiological manifestations of biological ageing occur at different rates in different people, making it difficult to define old age.
• Chronological age is often used to define old age, but it is a rough guide to the ageing of the individual in biological terms.
• The interpretation and meaning of specific chronological ages vary historically and culturally.
• Another approach to defining old age is through the lifecycle or life stage, but this is a complex concept and difficult to operationalise.

Theoretical Perspectives on Ageing

• Social gerontology is a multidisciplinary enterprise that includes the social sciences and arts and humanities in the study of the social context of ageing.
• The development of theory within gerontology remains limited, with many studies focusing on describing aspects of behaviour in later life rather than understanding and theorising.
• The focus of much social gerontological research is on identifying, classifying, and describing the experience of later life, rather than understanding and theorising.
• There is a need to enhance the theoretical bedrock of social gerontology, as theory is important for explaining and understanding the social world of older people.

Evaluating Theoretical Perspectives

• In evaluating theoretical perspectives on ageing, it is essential to establish the level at which the theoretical proposition is operating: micro or macro.
• The distinction between micro and macro perspectives is not clear-cut, but rather a continuum.
• Theoretical propositions should be able to explain current events, predict future events, and generate new theoretical insights.
• The assumptions and ideologies that underpin the various theoretical positions should be considered.

Old Age as a Social Problem

• The consideration of old age and later life as a social problem is a framework that has consistently informed social gerontological research in Britain.

• This framework focuses on the problematic nature of ageing, both for individuals and societies.

• The definition of which aspects of ageing are defined as 'problematic' is crucial, and who defines these problems is an issue of power and ownership.

• This approach is concerned with the problematic and difficult aspects of ageing, yielding little evidence on the 'non-problematic' or 'normal' aspects of ageing.### The Emergence of Older People as a Specific Problem Group

• In the late 19th century, older people in Britain emerged as a specific problem group, requiring specific social policies.

• Prior to this, older people were not differentiated from the rest of the pauper classes, and old age was not seen as a social problem.

• Demographic changes are not a sufficient explanation for the emergence of older people as a problem group, as the major period of growth in the absolute and relative number of older people did not occur until the early 20th century.

• Three interrelated factors contributed to the recognition of older people as a problem group: a growing awareness of the complexity of poverty, the difficulties of older workers remaining in the labour force, and the concentration of older people in rural areas.

The 'Old Age as a Social Problem' Perspective

• There are two distinct forms of the 'old age as a social problem' perspective: the humanitarian and the organisational.
• The humanitarian perspective focuses on the problems of old age and ageing for the individual, while the organisational perspective is concerned with the problems of an ageing population for society.
• The humanitarian perspective has a long and honourable pedigree in British academic research, and has concentrated on describing the circumstances of the poorest and most disadvantaged sections of the community.
• Examples of this tradition include the work of Mayhew, Booth, and Rowntree, as well as more recent studies such as Tunstall's work on loneliness and isolation and Townsend's work on residential homes and the social world of older people.

The Limitations of the 'Old Age as a Social Problem' Perspective

• The 'old age as a social problem' perspective has contributed to the perpetuation of negative stereotypes of older people and has not looked at the positive aspects of ageing.
• The perspective often focuses on the negative aspects of ageing, such as morbidity, quality of life, and social relationships, and has not considered the contributions made by older people.
• The perspective has also been used to justify the notion that older people are a burden to society, and has been used to argue for the reduction of welfare benefits and the promotion of 'self-sufficiency' in old age.

Theories of Ageing

• Theories of ageing can be categorised as either micro or macro level, and either interpretist or normative.
• Theories of ageing include functionalist theories, such as disengagement, activity, and continuity theories, as well as age stratification theories.
• Functionalist theories view society as a system of interrelated parts, and are concerned with understanding how these parts function to maintain social order.
• Critiques of functionalism argue that it is a conservative approach that prioritises social order and maintenance of the status quo, and does not allow for individual agency or change.

The Influence of Functionalism on Gerontological Thinking

• Functionalism has been highly influential in the development of theoretical frameworks in social gerontology.
• Theories that have developed from functionalism, such as disengagement, activity, and continuity theories, have been used to explain the social context of ageing.
• The emphasis on social order and the maintenance of the status quo has led to a focus on personal and social adjustment to old age, changes in social roles, and life satisfaction.