Loneliness among older people as a social problem: the perspectives of medicine, religion and economy

Abstract

This article offers a theoretical framework for studying loneliness among the elderly from a social problems perspective. The framework is a combination of the constructionist approach to social problems by Spector and Kitsuse and the theory of social systems by Luhmann. With the first we understand the social problem of loneliness among the elderly as the result of claims-making activities by different key actors. These activities are guided by cultural themes, images and causality constructions. With the second, we can explain how these claims-making activities are framed differently within different social systems. Due to their distinctive viewpoints social systems construct loneliness among the elderly in unique ways.Variations of meaning attributed to loneliness depend on the operative logic and the semantic stock of the respective social system. The argument of the article is illustrated with respect to three different social systems: medicine, religion and economy. In terms of underlying morality, causes and consequences, responsibilities and solutions loneliness among the elderly appears as something different from each of these perspectives: as a matter of health and illness, as a matter of spirituality, and a matter of incentives and commodities, respectively.The value added of combining constructionism and systems theory for research on elderly and loneliness is to give justice to the non-objective, observer-dependent nature of social problems. The relevance for both researchers and practitioners working with loneliness 2 among the elderly on a policy-level is the increase of awareness of the multiperspectivity behind constructions of social problems. The failure of current intervention methods against loneliness is, at least partially, due to the lack of knowledge about the variation of (potentially contradictory) problem definitions of loneliness among the elderly. Ignoring this variation has practical consequences for the efficiency of possible measures against the social problem of loneliness.

Reducing loneliness among older people – who is responsible?

“…Thus, loneliness is constructed as an evolutionary issue and social relations are presented as a crucial part of human existence. The report is, therefore, not a type of societal diagnosis where developments in modern society alone are seen as generating loneliness (Schirmer and Michailakis, 2016). Regarding the issue of responsibility, elder-care is seen as focusing on all other factors affecting humans and not focusing on the social needs of older people.…”

“…Another finding from their study, which also touches on the issue of responsibility, was that older people were represented as forgotten by society and that elder-care was described as inhuman. In the study by Schirmer and Michailakis (2016), societal changes and the transition from traditional to modern societies was seen as causing an individualistic society with less fellowship, leading to an increase in loneliness.…”

‘The Devil’s Company’: A Grounded Theory Study on Aging, Loneliness and Social Change Among ‘Older Adult Children’ in Rural Indonesia

“…As such, our findings are one of the first to highlight the social dimensions of loneliness and this emotion’s capacity to affect social life and norms. While many have highlighted the growing awareness of emotions’ intrinsic link with social life, studies addressing such questions on a group or cultural-level are considerably underrepresented ( Keltner and Haidt, 1999 ; Schirmer and Michailakis, 2016 ; Van Kleef, 2016 ). To the best of our understanding, the majority of studies on loneliness apply a medical or psychological perspective emphasizing on the associations of loneliness with physical or mental health.…”

Understanding corporate social responsibility with cross‐cultural differences: A deeper look at religiosity

“…In the materialistic surface of secular dominance, although religion may have confronted a declining node in power assumption, the role of religious congregations, preaching, and beliefs in societal moves at this stage cannot be ruled out in the study of social responsibility because millions of people are associated with religions (Schirmer & Michailakis, 2016). A previous study of 3,055 corporations of countries of Europe and Eastern Asia showed that CSR performance was influenced by Hofstede's Cultural dimensions and the tendency of socially responsible practices by corporations in European countries was ahead than those in East Asian countries (Thanetsunthorn, 2015).…”