In this article, the authors critically examine themes that have become associated with work and retirement in the context of demographic change. Two discourses are looked at in detail, those of 'active' and 'productive' ageing, with a focus upon International and European social policy. Drawing on the work of Foucault and others, the emergence of a dominant discourse and its effects on policy-based understandings of ageing are examined. A new orthodoxy of ageing subjectivity is identified, restricting the social contribution of older adults to work and work-like activities. A subtext refers to the co-option of liberal gerontological priorities into new and socially rigid forms of identity that legitimize particular ways of growing old. The authors conclude that a radical re-positioning, inspired by mature identity, is required to rely less upon economically determined roles and more upon alternative grounding in existential life tasks and experience to give space for a 'mature subjectivity' and a desirable 'mature subject'.

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Retirement communities are a relatively new long-term accommodation and care option in the United Kingdom. Policy makers and providers endorse the proposition that they are suited for the accommodation of both ‘fit’ and ‘frail’ older people, although comparatively little is known about what it is actually like to live in such communities, about whether they cater adequately for older people with a wide spectrum of needs and abilities, or if they provide acceptable solutions to older people's housing or care needs. This paper addresses these questions by reporting the findings of an independently funded three-year study of a new retirement village, Berryhill, in the north Midlands of England. The paper examines the background to this and similar developments, details how the study was carried out, and then examines what it was like to live at Berryhill. It focuses on the housing and care aspects, and explores the residents' motivations for moving to the village; their views about the accommodation; and their use of and satisfaction with the social and leisure amenities. The health and care needs of residents and the formal and informal supports are also featured. The conclusion discusses whether the village can truly be a ‘home for life’ in the face of increasing frailty, and whether or not these new models of accommodation and care can indeed cater for both ‘fit’ and ‘frail’ older people.

Three traditions of social theory are examined in this article, with a special emphasis being given to the ways that the concept of "generation" has been conceived and developed over time. These include Psychodynamic, Sociological, and Gerontological approaches with attention drawn to the similarities and differences among them. It is concluded that while conceptual development has been uneven, taken together, they provide a rich basis for a critical examination of contemporary social problems with implications for policy toward intergenerational relationships.This article examines the way the concept of generation has been used in various theories and approaches to the adult lifecourse. Generation goes to the heart of a number of debates about the nature of contemporary society. It has biological roots through the family, where generations generally refer to successive parentchild bonds. There are psychological dimensions in the sense of belonging and identity that can arise, depending upon the stance that an individual takes toward the generation in question. Generation is also used to locate particular birth cohorts in specific historical and cultural circumstances, such as the "baby boomers." It is a truly crossroads phenomenon that links a number of different fields and levels of analysis.The adult lifecourse, and its influence on intergenerational relations, is in a period of considerable flux. Scientific advances promise to extend the lifecourse, there are social and economic concerns about the sustainability of society's payas-you-go approach to pensions, and lifestyle changes appear to be redefining traditional roles and aspirations associated with later life. Each of these factors will influence the way that succeeding generations define each other and the degree of solidarity and rivalry that might result.

Two areas of controversy are examined in this article, arising from contemporary debate on identity in later life. The first centers on whether adults are essentially similar regardless of age or whether different stages of life confer different life priorities. The second addresses the management of self in later life, with special attention being given to alternative interpretations of the relationship between interior and exterior experience. An increasing awareness of diversity in life-course patterns suggests that issues concerning uniformity, distinctiveness, and the uses of masquerade in intergenerational contexts should be revisited. Here, the influence of simple and complex states of mind is examined as a factor in intergenerational power, and the expression of agency in later life is discussed. These issues not only propel us forward in our understanding of gerontological phenomena, they also point to potential sources of research bias associated with specifically intergenerational contexts. Finally, suggestions are made with respect to research training.