Opposite Ends: widows' narratives of contemporary late life

Vasara, Paula

doi:10.3384/ijal.1652-8670.1619

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…Social restrictions, some still in place, proved to be particularly problematic for those living alone into older age. One participant, Georgia, reported fewer social outlets, particularly for single women, as a result of the pandemic and an "awkwardness" (Vasara 2020) in attending mixed-gender gatherings alone as a widow, both of which made her feel older than her 63 years. Kimberley reported feeling "invisible" (Biggs 1999;Walkner, Weare, and Tully 2017) at mid-life, particularly with her new identity as a widow, and older than her 57 years.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

What Is the Relationship between Remote Rural Island Place and Perspectives on Ageing of Mid-life Women?

Herbert

2024

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This article makes an original contribution to social gerontology and nissology by addressing the knowledge gap on contemporary gendered ageing in remote, rural island places. Drawing on empirical data gathered through in-depth interviews with 12 mid-life (48-69 years old) women living in the Uist islands of the Outer Hebrides in Scotland, the relationship between ageing and remote rural island place is examined. Reflecting the participant narratives, this study discusses personal and place identities, while exploring place attachment and its relationship with gendered island ageing. This qualitative work adopts a lifecourse framework in order to acknowledge lived experience and cultural context from childhood to adulthood. Data were gathered and analysed through the prism of constructivist grounded theory, a methodology well placed for exploratory research of topics about which relatively little is known. Rich participant insight and analysis eschew island mono-culturalism, instead extending the discourse around remote rural island ageing as distinct from mainland rural ageing. Empirical data informs substantive theory, and fresh considerations on gendered mid-life ageing and remote island place are offered for academia. Findings from this study indicate diverse relationships between ageing and place amongst mid-life women living in the Outer Hebridean regions of North Uist, South Uist, Benbecula and Berneray. The connection between ageing and island place is experienced through place attachment, and is influenced by a range of socio-economic factors: primarily of relevance to this study is that of the natural environment. Perspectives on ageing reflect lived lifecourse experience and thus vary between those native and non-native to the Outer Hebrides; those who live with a partner or alone; those who have children and those child-free; and between those who enjoy socio-economic stability and those who do not.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

What Is the Relationship between Remote Rural Island Place and Perspectives on Ageing of Mid-life Women?

Herbert

2024

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“…Critically, May needed paid work for reasons of connectivity, purpose and identity: to feel a ‘somebody’. Through widowhood and retirement, May felt cast into a position of solitude (Vasara, 2020), but ideally wanted to engage with the world through some form of paid employment: I'm really not able to work. If I had to sit for two hours, I'd hardly be able to walk when I stood up.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Why older rural women in Ireland want to work: it's not all about the money

Herbert

2021

Ageing and Society

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This paper extends our understanding of employment and gendered rural ageing by examining the latent benefits of paid work for mid-life women in rural Ireland. Existing social gerontology literature deals extensively with manifest financial reasons to work, consequences of gendered pay and pension inequalities, work-related health concerns and the negative impacts to an extended working life for women. However, there is much less focus on the latent non-financial positive contributions that work provides for the older woman, especially within a rural context. Findings from this study show how mid-life women, even if in lower-paid, precarious work or in poorer health may choose to continue working into older age. Paid work provides not only financial autonomy, but also temporal structure, life purpose, personal agency, social connectivity and a self-identity that most women are reluctant to relinquish to retirement. Meaningful work plays a critical role in the ageing experience of older rural women. A qualitative study of 25 women aged 45–65 in Connemara, Ireland was undertaken from a lifecourse perspective and analysed using constructivist grounded theory to allow rich, novel narrative to emerge. Narrative from seven, who best represent all participants, are utilised in this paper. Conclusions suggest that the latent benefits of paid work are at least as, if not more important than financial gain for rural mid-life women.

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Opposite Ends: widows' narratives of contemporary late life

Cited by 2 publications

References 12 publications

What Is the Relationship between Remote Rural Island Place and Perspectives on Ageing of Mid-life Women?

What Is the Relationship between Remote Rural Island Place and Perspectives on Ageing of Mid-life Women?

Why older rural women in Ireland want to work: it's not all about the money

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