Friday, 26 March 2021

The 2021 KBS Spring Series continues on Tuesday 30th March at 1:00 pm with a seminar by Martin Laheen.  The seminar format is informal and interactive facilitating discussion and Q&A and will take place on MS Teams Click here to join the meeting.  the title and abstract are below

The Risk Management of Old Age - The Impact on the Older Adults Sense of Social Identity – Martin Laheen

Abstract: This paper looks at old age and social perceptions of the older adult in western societies. While old age represents the final stage in the life course, traditionally, the older adult could expect to retire and enjoy his or her “golden years”. In western societies in particular, factors such as increased life expectancy, a declining welfare state, and pressure to stay longer in the workforce, means that growing old has also been transformed from a collective social responsibility to an individual experience (Curryer et al. 2018), where older adults feel socially and politically pressured to self-scrutinise their own ageing process. This has consequences for the older adult. First, it influences and canalizes the older adult into thinking and acting according to a socially objectified “sense of self. Second, it dictates the degree of agency they can expect to enjoy in a social “future” that is politically and socially predicted.