Interventions Against Social Isolation Among Elderly People - The Impact Of Semi-Public Places Of Social Encounter On The Social Connectedness Of People At Age
Keywords
Loading...
Authors
Issue Date
2023
Language
en
Document type
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Title
ISSN
Volume
Issue
Startpage
Endpage
DOI
Abstract
Preliminary research shows that elderly people are exposed to a high risk of social isolation, for example caused by different life-course transitions and declining health at this age. The status of social isolation has significant impact on seniors since it influences the physical and mental health negatively and reduces the quality of life. Especially the trend of ageing in place can lead to declining social networks and infrequent engagement in social activities for the person at age living alone. Therefore, this study focuses on the evaluation of possible approaches addressing social isolation among elderly and examines the impact that semi-public places of social encounter have on the degree of social isolation experienced by people at age.
The research is based on a qualitative case study, including the methods of observations and semi-structured interviews. The collected data show that group activities at semi-public places of social encounter can contribute to reducing or preventing social isolation by strengthening or expanding the social network, experiencing social cohesion, creating bridging and bonding social capital, increasing the attachment to the place of residence, or finding a structure for the day or week. Furthermore, the findings emphasise the influence of personal characteristics on the effectiveness of interventions and the accessibility of places of social encounter. Especially the need to support people with more passive coping strategies is underlined, which claims more individualised and holistic approaches within the landscapes of care. One important component is to recognise elderly people as a heterogenous group and offer a wider range of services and group activities at semi-public places of social encounter in order to reach as many people at age and their personal interests as possible.
Description
Citation
Supervisor
Faculty
Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen