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Participation in advanced age: enacting values, an adaptive process

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 June 2016

PAUL SUGARHOOD ,
PAMELA EAKIN  and
LYNN SUMMERFIELD-MANN
PAUL SUGARHOOD*
Affiliation:
Department of Allied Health Sciences, School of Health and Social Care, London South Bank University, UK.
PAMELA EAKIN
Affiliation:
Department of Allied Health Sciences, School of Health and Social Care, London South Bank University, UK.
LYNN SUMMERFIELD-MANN
Affiliation:
Department of Allied Health Sciences, School of Health and Social Care, London South Bank University, UK.
*
Address for correspondence: Paul Sugarhood, Department of Allied Health Sciences, School of Health and Social Care, London South Bank University, 103 Borough Road, London SE1 0AA, UK E-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

The concept of participation, introduced through models such as the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health, has become increasingly important in health and social care. However, it has not been consistently defined or operationalised, and there is very limited research into participation in the context of advanced age and disability. This article reports a study which explored participation from the perspectives of community-living people aged over 80 years with physical rehabilitation needs. Using a grounded theory methodology, 11 participants aged 81–96 years were recruited from a National Health Service Trust in the United Kingdom. The main finding was that participation was experienced as the enacting of values. Values provided the motivation for specific ways of participating in life, guided actions and behaviours, and were the means through which participation was interpreted. Commonly enacted values were: connecting with others; maintaining autonomy; affirming abilities; doing the best you can; being useful; maintaining self-identity; and pursuing interests. A process was evident whereby participation was challenged by deteriorating health and losses and the participants adapted (or not) to overcome these challenges. To promote participation in advanced age, health and social care policy and practice must consider the values important to older people. Interventions should be congruent with these values and promote strategies through which they can be enacted.

Keywords

participationInternational Classification of FunctioningDisability and Health (ICF)advanced agedisabilityvalues
Type
Articles
Information
Ageing & Society , Volume 37 , Issue 8 , September 2017 , pp. 1654 - 1680
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2016 

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