In the Swedish news-press, loneliness among older people is presented as a severe problem that needs to be solved. The issue of who is responsible for reducing loneliness and how this responsibility is designated is, however, rarely discussed. In this study, we have analysed how responsibility is designated and constructed in articles from the Swedish news-press. Focus has been on identifying responsibility in discourses proceeding from the concept of subject positions. This concept has enabled analysis on how responsibility is negotiated and who is positioned as a responsible actor with the ability to perform actions that reduce loneliness. Three dominating discourses were found. In the discourse of responsibility within politics and the welfare state, the responsibility is both self-taken and designated to other institutions held responsible for not initiating sufficient measures to reduce loneliness. In the discourse of responsibility within societal and evolutionary perspectives on loneliness, developments beyond the individual's control are considered to contribute to loneliness. At the same time ‘we’ in ‘society’ are considered capable of reducing loneliness, thereby constructing individuals as responsible actors. Within the discourses of responsibility within senior organisations, both senior organisations and people who participate in activities are constructed as responsible actors. In conclusion, the responsibility for reducing loneliness is, apart from the discourse on senior organisations, designated to those working with older people.

As a response to the ageing population, the United Kingdom (UK) government, like many others, has increased the State Pension Age. This has involved equalising women's State Pension Age with men's, raising it from 60 to 65, with further increases already underway. It has been argued that a key issue with how this change has been implemented is the lack of notice the government gave to the women affected, impacting on their ability to plan for retirement. So far, there has been very little research exploring inequalities in awareness of these developments and, in particular, considering whether women of particular socio-economic backgrounds are less likely to know about the changes. This has implications for potentially further widening inequalities in old age. In this paper we analyse data from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. We consider the role of cognitive ability in mediating the relationship between socio-economic background and awareness, given recent debates on deficiencies in financial literacy. We find that socio-economic inequalities exist, especially with respect to labour force status, occupation and education. We also find that cognitive ability, especially numeracy, mediates a sizeable proportion of the relationship. These findings have important implications in terms of implementing future policy changes and awareness campaigns to help mitigate the possibility that they will further entrench inequalities in older age.

Falls are common events with serious consequences for older people. With an ageing population and increasing health-care costs, information and communication technologies (ICT) will have a potential role in future health-care delivery. However, research on technology acceptance in health care for older people is limited and its application to falls prevention is unknown. The aims of this study were to explore and describe the perceptions of community-dwelling Australian and Irish older people about their current use of technology, and the potential use of technology for falls prevention. Qualitative data were collected from three focus groups conducted in and around Limerick in Ireland, and three in the Sydney area, Australia. A total of 35 older people participated. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Four themes emerged from the data: (a) perceptions of vulnerability to falls, (b) preferences for exercise interventions, (c) participation in and ownership of technology, and (d) perceptions about applications of technology for falls prevention. As the use of technology is an instrumental activity of daily living, health professionals need to assess the capacity of older people to adopt these technologies, and provide falls prevention interventions to accommodate the technology skills of older people. Some participants were reluctant to embrace technology and barriers to the effective use of technology to assist in preventing falls may conflict with future health service trends.

Respite services have traditionally been viewed as services for carers mainly. Perhaps as a result, the perspectives of people with dementia have been largely ignored. In this study, we consider these perspectives in relation to day and respite services, and contextualise them in light of Kitwood's prediction that person-centred care would be adopted only superficially by such services. Convenience sampling was employed and semi-structured interviews were conducted with six community-dwelling people with dementia. A thematic analysis was conducted and four themes were identified: ‘acceptability of service characteristics’, ‘meaningful engagement’, ‘personhood’ and ‘narrative citizenship’. The findings suggest that day services were more acceptable than residential respite, though some people would prefer home-based models, if available. ‘Meaningful’ engagement must be individually defined; however purposeful and reciprocal activity was commonly invoked as meaningful. ‘Personhood’ and ‘narrative citizenship’ were quintessential markers of quality care; while some people experienced personhood being bestowed upon them, others reported distinct instances of malignant social psychology, discrimination and stigma. In conclusion, an implementation gap may still persist regarding person-centred care in some respite services, based on the perspectives of people with dementia. Delivering the vision for care outlined here would require greater flexibility in service provision, more resources and more one-on-one staff–client time. The fundamental shift in thinking required by some staff relies on us supporting them to develop a greater self- and shared cultural-awareness around dementia.

The tremendous growth in the ageing population over the past two decades has compelled the Hong Kong government to reformulate its housing policy by redeveloping and incorporating certain age-friendly housing design elements and facilities into the public housing schemes built in the post-war period. This research investigates whether these introduced design elements and facilities satisfy the numerous special needs of the seniors in line with the concept of ‘ageing in place’. Data were collected from 224 seniors through a comprehensive questionnaire survey in four large-scale redeveloped public rental housing estates. Using three designated built environment dimensions, namely micro, meso and macro, the results revealed that senior tenants were generally satisfied with the present living environments (in all the three scales) in the estates. At the micro-scale, seniors were satisfied with the level of privacy and sense of autonomy derived from the present design features in their homes. For the meso-scale, the study revealed that the seniors were particularly satisfied with the design elements such as convenient transportation and accessibility, including convenient walkways. At the macro-scale, the community care service is deemed important for seniors’ wellbeing. However, more attention is needed on safety measures in interior and shower areas, public seating in common areas and provision of sufficient community care services. This study provides insights for policy makers and development authorities on elderly housing provision.

Drawing on a recently completed longitudinal research project with 96 participants aged 55+, the paper provides insight into the challenges of carrying out ethical practices when engaged in longer-term research relationships with older people. It builds on a body of work that purposely records in detail the ethical dilemmas researchers face, the options available to them and the rationale guiding their reaction. The Co-Motion research, led by the University of York, examined the impact of major later-life transitions on mobility and wellbeing, and was therefore focused on times of change that were, for some participants, accompanied by suffering. Over three years, the project used a range of methods to explore with each individual the dynamic nature of lived experience: change, continuity, endurance, transition and causality. The paper addresses the negotiation of informed consent over the life of long-term research relationships; the ‘care work’ involved; contested understandings of vulnerability; and the need for ongoing ethical reflection. The paper concludes by calling for greater reflexivity and suggests a more participant-focused approach to ethics in the field, demanding both greater self-awareness from researchers and allowing the participants to have greater voice in the research processes.

This study examined the differences in the preference for long-term care (LTC) by age, period and cohort (A-P-C) in Japanese older adults through repeated cross-sectional surveys from 1998 – before the establishment of LTC insurance – to 2016, in a suburban city of metropolitan Tokyo. We analysed the direct effects of A-P-C on the preference for LTC, as well as the interaction effects of A-P-C on preference by gender, family structure and activities of daily living. Data were obtained at six time-points using repeated cross-sectional surveys for people aged 65 and older; surveys were conducted in 1998, 2002, 2004, 2010, 2013 and 2016. The preference for LTC was composed of three categories: informal care, community LTC services (CLTCS) and institutional LTC services (ILTCS). The cross-classified random-effect model was used to specify A-P-C effects. Informal care, CLITCS, ILTCS and other/no answer composed 35, 23, 33 and 9 per cent of preferences, respectively. In terms of the period effect, while there was an increase in levels of preference for CLTC between 1998 and 2010 as compared to informal care, the levels of preference were almost identical after 2010. In terms of the age effect, younger participants were more likely to prefer CLTCS and ILTCS over informal care. Moreover, the age influence was stronger in females and respondents who lived alone. We did not observe a cohort effect for preference. This study suggests that there are gaps by period and age between the preference for LTC services and the actual LTC use in Japanese older adults, and as a result, the use of actual LTC services cannot fully reflect the intentions and preference for LTC in them.

Compared to younger age groups, older people spend more time in their locality and rely more heavily on its pedestrian and public transport infrastructure. Qualitative studies provide unique insight into people's experiences. We conducted a qualitative evidence synthesis of United Kingdom-based studies of older people's experiences of travelling in the urban environment. We searched health, social science, age-related and transport-related databases from 1998 to 2017. Fourteen papers (from 12 studies) were included in a thematic synthesis, a three-staged process that moves iteratively between codes, descriptive themes and cross-cutting analytical themes. Emerging themes were discussed with policy advisers. Four overarching themes were identified. The first and second theme pointed to the importance of ‘getting out’ and of being independent travellers. The third and fourth themes highlighted how local environments and travel systems enabled (or prevented) older people from realising these valued dimensions of travel. The loss of local amenities and micro-environmental features, such as pavement quality, personal safety and aesthetic appearance, were recurrent concerns. Free modes of travel like walking and bus travel were highly valued, including the social engagement they facilitated. Our review suggests that, while its extrinsic value (reaching destinations) matters, the intrinsic value of travel matters too. The process of travel is experienced and enjoyed for its own sake, with older people describing its contribution to their wellbeing.

Sport participation is well known to promote health outcomes for children and adolescents. Nevertheless, there is insufficient evidence about the psychological and social outcomes of sport participation for older adults. This article provides the results of a systematic review of the psychological and social outcomes of sport participation for older adults. A systematic review of seven electronic databases was conducted and a total of 21 studies published that attended to psychological and/or social health benefits from sport participation of older adults (50 years old and over) were included. The outcomes of older adults’ sport participation included life satisfaction, depression, anxiety, stress, mood state, hedonistic values, socialisation, competition, and personal psychological outcomes such as personal empowerment, self-confidence, self-esteem and resistance to the negative view of ageing. Future studies are needed to conceptualise and operationalise the different levels of involvement of sport participation.

With declining vision ability, character spacing and size on smartphones designed for the general population are not accessible for older adults. This study aimed to explore how larger Chinese character spacing and size affect older adults’ user experience (UX). An orthogonal experiment was conducted. The optimal range of font size (FS), word spacing (WS) and line spacing (LS) were proposed utilising subjective evaluations to investigate the correlation of eye movement data with participants perceived UX. The results showed that improvement in different aspects of UX varied when FS, WS and LS increased. Overall, participants preferred larger FS, WS and LS, however, the larger FS, WS and LS values are more likely to cause errors and slower reading speed. These results suggest that the distinct combination of size and spacing depends on the motivation, needs and situation of older people when reading on a smartphone. These findings will help designers to provide better design for the older people.

In many countries, population ageing is challenging the viability of the welfare state and generating higher demands for long-term care. At the same time, increasing participation in the labour force is essential to ensuring the sustainability of the welfare state. To address the latter issue, affected countries have adopted measures to increase employment; e.g. welfare recipients in Germany are required to be available for any type of legal work. However, 7 per cent of welfare benefit recipients in Germany provide long-term care for relatives or friends, and this care-giving may interfere with their job search efforts and decrease their employment opportunities. Our paper provides evidence of the relationship between the care responsibilities and employment chances of welfare recipients in Germany. Our analyses are based on survey data obtained from the panel study ‘Labour Market and Social Security’ and on panel regression methods. The results reveal a negative relationship between intensive care-giving (ten or more hours per week) and employment for male and female welfare recipients. However, employment prospects recover when care duties end and are subsequently no longer lower for carers than for non-carers.

Previous studies of East Asian welfare regimes focus on similarities between social security schemes. In contrast, this paper explores cross-national variations in public–private pension mixes in six welfare states: China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan. Our research echoes the pension policy analysis of international organisations but takes a step forward with emphasis on the historical and institutional characteristics of the respective pension systems. The analysis identifies three institutional patterns. First, the statist pension system (Taiwan and China) primarily relies on public pensions to provide old-age security, with private pensions playing a rather minor role. Second, in the dualist pension system (Japan and Korea) both public and private pensions work in parallel to ensure retirement income, though a clear security gap exists between workers in the formal and informal economies. Finally, the individualist pension system (Hong Kong and Singapore) is characterised by genuine fully funded individual accounts, emphasising citizens’ own responsibilities for ensuring old-age security. These three types of pension systems demonstrate distinct institutional characteristics and policy outcomes, illustrated by the juxtaposition of their institutional structures as well as by the comparison of key indicators collected from government reports and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development statistics. The paper concludes with a theoretical reflection of East Asian pension policies and a diagnosis of the distinct challenges confronted by each of the various pension patterns.

An inclusive neighbourhood is a key facilitator enabling older adults to age in place. Neighbourhoods have been identified as a dimension of social exclusion important to older adults, and it has been argued that older adults are particularly vulnerable to neighbourhood change. The aim of this study was to explore older adults’ experiences of neighbourhood exclusion within the context of neighbourhood change. Focus groups were undertaken in the urban and rural areas of a metropolitan borough in England involving a total of 41 older adults, with data analysed via thematic analysis. Urban areas in the borough studied have transformed following the closure of the mining industry, with a high level of deprivation in many areas, while some rural areas have undergone gentrification. Within the context of structural neighbourhood change, four themes were identified: community cohesion, political agency, feelings of safety and the physical environment. The themes were interlinked, which calls for collaboration across traditional lines of professional responsibility, and for research that encompasses different aspects of neighbourhood exclusion. This study contributes with knowledge on older adults’ experiences of exclusion, including novel findings on the importance of political agency and collective memory, and identifies actions to combat exclusion. An active involvement of older adults in the development of initiatives to tackle social exclusion is recommended.

For a long time researchers have used photography for different purposes, in different ways and with different focus. Photovoice is a qualitative visual research method that refers to photographs taken by the participants themselves. It has been used with different age groups and populations. The use of photovoice in older populations requires its own study of approaches, techniques and challenges. In this article, we review existing studies using photovoice with older participants specifically, to consider its potential as a qualitative research method in the field of gerontology. We discuss advantages and limitations of the method in gerontological research and provide guidelines for future studies. Our results show that photovoice has been used to study a wide range of topics in older people, from health issues and the impact of environment on health and wellbeing, to leisure experiences of groups living with HIV/AIDS. Using photovoice helps researchers to capture live experiences and perceptions of older persons and conduct engaging, involving and empowering research facilitating interaction, reflection and connection of participants. However, conducting photovoice studies can be practically challenging, such as when addressing special needs of the participants, or ethical and other feasibility issues. To conclude, photovoice has great potential for being used in gerontological research, it can be altered to fit specific goals, divergent issues studied and different research contexts.

In the context of worldwide ageing, increasing numbers of older people are lonely, isolated and excluded, with serious implications for health, and cognitive and physical functioning. Access to good public transport can improve mobility and social participation among older adults, and policies that improve access and promote use, such as concessionary travel schemes, are potentially important in promoting healthy and successful ageing. Concessionary travel schemes for older people are in place in many countries but are under threat following the global financial crisis. Evidence regarding their success in encouraging activity and social participation is generally positive but based largely on qualitative or observational associations and, in particular, is often limited by the lack of appropriate comparison groups. We use changes in the English statutory scheme, in particular the rising eligibility age from 2010 onwards, as a natural experiment to explore its impact on older people's travel. A difference-in-difference-in-difference analysis of National Travel Surveys (2002–2016) compares three age groups differentially affected by eligibility criteria: 50–59 years (consistently ineligible), 60–64 years (decreasing eligibility from 2010) and 65–74 years (consistently eligible). Compared with 50–59-year-olds, bus travel by 60–74-year-olds increased year-on-year from 2002 to 2010 then fell following rises in eligibility age (annual change in weekly bus travel: −2.9 per cent (−4.1%, −1.7%) in 60–74- versus 50–59-year-olds). Results were consistent across gender, occupation and rurality. Our results indicate that access to, specifically, free travel increases bus use and access to services among older people, potentially improving mobility, social participation and health. However, the rising eligibility age in England has led to a reduction in bus travel in older people, including those not directly affected by the change, demonstrating that the positive impact of the concession goes beyond those who are eligible. Future work should explore the cost–benefit trade-off of this and similar schemes worldwide.

This study examines the relationship between filial piety (adult children's filial behaviours and attitudes as well as elderly mothers’ overall evaluation of children's filial piety) and elderly mothers’ reports of intergenerational ambivalence (positive feelings, negative feelings and combined ambivalence) in rural China. We analysed the data from a survey in 2016 covering 2,203 adult children and 802 elderly mothers in Sichuan Province using a two-level mixed-effects modelling analysis. The results indicate that most components of filial piety are associated with mothers’ ambivalence, in that less ambivalence was reported by mothers when their adult children provided more emotional support to, had less conflict with and were evaluated as more filial by their mothers. Interestingly, mothers demonstrated greater positive feelings when their children were more filial in behaviour and attitude, but they also reported greater negative feelings and ambivalence when their children were more obedient, implying that absolute obedience to elderly parents might no longer be accepted by people. These findings may provide further understanding about the correlation between the culture of filial piety and intergenerational relationships in rural China.

The role of identity in older adults’ decision-making about assistive technology adoption has been suggested but not fully explored. This scoping review was conducted to understand better how older adults’ self-image and their desire to maintain this influence their decision-making processes regarding assistive technology adoption. Using the five-stage scoping review framework by Arksey and O'Malley, a total of 416 search combinations were run across nine databases, resulting in a final yield of 49 articles. From these 49 articles, five themes emerged: (a) resisting the negative reality of an ageing and/or disabled identity; (b) independence and control are key; (c) the aesthetic dimension of usability; (d) assistive technology as a last resort; and (e) privacy versus pragmatics. The findings highlight the importance of older adults’ desire to portray an identity consistent with independence, self-reliance and competence, and how this desire directly impacts their assistive technology decision-making adoption patterns. These findings aim to support the adoption of assistive technologies by older adults to facilitate engagement in meaningful activities, enable social participation within the community, and promote health and wellbeing in later life.

Across Europe a rising number of migrants are reaching higher ages. As old age is related to care dependency, care-giving within migrant families is becoming more important. To date, little research has focused on health outcomes for migrant care-givers. Theories and empirical evidence suggest differences in the relationship of care-giving and health between migrants and non-migrants due to differences in support, income, norms and values. Furthermore, across Europe the degree of formal care supply and the obligation to provide informal care vary considerably and presumably lead to different health outcomes of care-giving in different countries. Based on data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (Waves 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6) and the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (Waves 2–6), this paper studies the relationship between informal care-giving inside the household and health for migrant and non-migrant care-givers across Europe and analyses changes in health. In most countries migrant care-givers are in worse self-perceived and mental health compared to non-migrant care-givers. When controlling for important influences no differences in the relationship between health and care-giving for migrants and non-migrants can be found. Moreover, care-giving deteriorates mental health irrespective of origin. The country models showed that for non-migrants care-giving is most detrimental in Southern welfare states whereas for migrants care-giving is also burdening in Nordic welfare states.

As the HIV population ages, how the ageing and HIV experiences intersect to shape the lives of older people living with HIV (PLWH) becomes an increasingly pressing question. This multi-method study investigated social support, mental health and quality of life among 100 older PLWH in the United Kingdom. Drawing on data from three focus groups and 74 life-history interviews with older (aged 50+) White men who have sex with men (MSM), and Black African and White heterosexual men and women, living with HIV, we explore participants’ distinctions between, evaluations of and access to sources of social support. Participants distinguished between support from the HIV-negative (Goffman's ‘the own’) and experientially based support from other PLWH (Goffman's ‘the wise’), and viewed the former, while valuable, as needing to be supplemented by the latter. Furthermore, access to experientially based support varied across participant groups, whose communities had different histories with HIV/AIDS and thus different degrees of knowledge about HIV and avenues for connecting to other PLWH. Thus, social support among older PLWH cannot be neatly divided into ‘formal’ and ‘informal’ domains, or fully appreciated by applying traditional social support measures, including, in the context of health conditions, ‘peer support’ created through formal service organisations. Rather, older PLWH's own distinctions and evaluations better illuminate the complexities of social support in the context of ageing with HIV.

About 65 million people use wheelchairs worldwide. Powered wheelchairs offer independent mobility for those who find it difficult to propel a manual wheelchair. Previous studies have described powered wheelchairs as a mixed blessing for the users in terms of usability, accessibility, safety, cost and stigma; however, few studies have explored their impact on mobility and participation over time. Therefore, as part of a larger longitudinal study, we used a combined retrospective and prospective lifecourse perspective to explore the experiences of older adult powered wheelchair users. Based on the interpretive description approach, 19 participants took part in a series of semi-structured interviews over a two-year period about their mobility, social participation and ageing process. The participants were powered wheelchair users, at least 50 years of age, recruited in Vancouver, Montreal and Quebec City (Canada). We identified three themes that highlighted how the powered wheelchair experience was integrated into the life continuum of the users. ‘It's my legs’ emphasised how powered wheelchairs are a form of mobility that not only enables users to take part in activities, but also impacts their identities, past and present. ‘Wheels of change’ explored the dynamic nature of powered wheelchair use and changes related to ageing. ‘Getting around’ illustrated how users’ mobility was affected by the interaction with their physical and social environments. Developing public policies to advance social and environmental changes could help countries to ensure equity of access and social inclusion of those ageing with disabilities.