The Home: A Cage or a Castle? The significance of home in the lives of two older people ageing in place in Nijmegen, the Netherlands
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2019-04-15
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en
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Efforts to make cities and communities more age-friendly have gained popularity in recent years. One of the dominant approaches has been to encourage ageing in place (AIP). AIP policy (and the supporting literature) attaches particular importance to the neighbourhood and its community, and pays little, to no, attention to the home itself. It portrays a too negative image of home (as a space that imprisons and confines), and a too positive image of the neighbourhood (as a space that liberates and socialises). This case study research takes a more balanced view of the older person’s home. By focusing on the interrelations between older people’s time-space routines inside the home and those outside the home, this research moves beyond the home-neighbourhood (or private-public) divide. In this way, it accentuates the home’s complexity. Firstly, this research shows that the home is a site of ambiguity, that is best defined by contrasting connotations. Secondly, it shows that the meanings of home, and the routines performed inside it, are never fixed; they are continuously altered and renewed. In brief, this research shows that the home is less of a cage, and more of a castle.
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Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen