Gerontology : Aging And Old Age

When we observe the demographics of today¡¦s society, we notice that there is quite a change in the average age, as well as life expectancy. In 1993, the average life expectancy rose to an amazing 75.5 years, with women living an average of 79 years and men living an average of 72 years (Hawkins, 1996, p. 4). With this gradual rise in age, the idea of therapeutic recreation for the aging population has taken on a significant role. Therapeutic recreation uses recreation and leisure activities to meet the needs of people in order to improve their quality of life. These needs include social, physical, cognitive, emotional, and spiritual. The experience of engaging in recreation is perceived to have therapeutic benefits. Engaging in

Activity theory of aging suggest that when elderly people interact with the community and include activities in their daily routine they are their happiest (Baird, 2011, p. 187). Ariel stated that “everyone need some form of release” (Lemmon, 1995).

Three theory apply to aging the elderly. Our first theory is called structural-functional theory. As the author of our textbook, John Macionis, agrees that this approach views society as a complex, but interconnected system, where each part works together as a functional whole (p.16). The author of the book applies this approach to the aging topic and show how the "operations" of the society can be confused and disordered on the fact that people grow old and die ultimately. As a result of that the society dissociate older people from important tasks or disband them from responsibilities as they grow older (p.439). Drawing on the structural-functional theory, the disengagement theory illustrates that as people grow old the society eliminates them from their responsibilities and their

As I make my way on this journey that is my life, I realize that I have always believed in the fundamental worth of all humanity and my responsibility as a fellow human being to respect this premise and also to support individuals, as much as I am able, to help unearth it should this basic truth become hidden to them. This is a guiding principle for me and I believe that many of the constructs of the field of Therapeutic Recreation (TR) are congruent with this philosophy. Making the decision to obtain a Therapeutic Recreation Specialization (TRS) degree offered a theoretical rationale in which to further explore the concept of leisure, define my professional philosophy and an opportunity to reflect critically on the field which I have

Traditionally leisure based programs such as the leisure ability model, have been implemented and focus on the client and assisting with independence and appropriate leisure functioning, with 3 main ideas, education, participation and treatment (Stumbo & Peterson, 1998, p. 82-83). The leisure ability model is used all around the world and focuses on an individuals “internal locus” (Stumbo & Peterson, 1998, p. 82). As the quality manager, this model, I believe is no longer relevant in current society. A move to the patient centered model would ensure relationships are the focus, where all clients live in a supportive and encouraging community (Fire films, 2014, June 26). The change to the patient centered model would ensure clients, staff, volunteers and families are included and able to form loving and caring relationships. (Fire films, 2014, June 26). By exploring the negatives and benefits of change in regards to clients and staff and also how the change would be implemented, a better understanding of the patient cantered model can be established. The patient centered model does not just view an individual as elderly but treats them as

Aging is a universal phenomenon and humans are no exception. Gerontology deals with the psychological, social and biological aspects of aging process. A recent study shows that people aged 85 years and older are expected to augment from 5.3 million people to 21 million as the world reach 2050. In today’s world Gerontology has an enormous role to play so that the senior citizens could be analyzed and their needs may be addressed with compassion and empathy.

Just because an individual enters a care facility, does not mean they lose citizenship, values, compassion or love. Everyone regardless of age, wants to feel loved and needed. There are many benefits and negatives associated with the leisure ability model in regards to patients and the staff. The Leisure ability model allows for flexibility as this type of model focuses on leisure, it can be used on any population group (Yaffe, 1998, p. 105). This makes it a very popular choice for homes, as any home regardless of culture, age and illness can implement it. The way in which, staff deliver the leisure is also up to them giving them flexibility in decision-making, they can also include the residents (Yaffe, 1998, p. 105). There are arguments for the leisure ability model as it allows patients to experience a human right, that being leisure and allows them to overcome constraints they may face in regards to leisure (Yaffe, 1998, p. 105). This means individuals who face barriers and constraints are assisted with the use of leisure and allows there to be a focus on wellness and health (Yaffe, 1998, p. 105). While there are advantages to the leisure ability model, there are also disadvantages to the model. Bullock (1998) argues that although the model has been present for two decades, it does not take into account current literature and research (p. 102). This model is extremely popular, but

In this essay, I will be looking closely at leisure activities from both the ancient world, and the modern one, and discussing how social status impacted on the way people experienced leisure. I will start by discussing leisure amongst the Romans, giving brief examples of what they did for leisure, then moving on to talk about if, or how, social status amongst them affected their experience of it. Then, I will move on to discuss leisure in the modern world, again, giving brief examples of what we do for leisure, then talking about whether or not social status affects how we experience it.

Recreation and leisure activities are integral parts of a person’s day-to-day life. For the purposes of this paper, recreation and leisure will be defined as something that a person chooses to do when they are not working; that contributes positively to their overall quality of life; that contributes positively to the quality of society and the surrounding people; that make a person feel confident and allow those around them to have positive experiences; and that improve ones physical health. Recreation and leisure cannot be measured; it is simply what makes a person feel enriched. This paper will analyze the recreational activities of homosexual elderly people in

Aging is described as a sequential, irreversible, progressive, and non-pathological process of maturation in an organism and that translates to a gradual decline in the ability to perform activities optimally. Aging is an individual process that can be a period of stress for individuals especially following their retirement (Hiller & Barrow, 2015). The current study sought to understand the process and experience of aging from the perspective of elderly individuals. In discussing matters of aging and retirement, many assume that women are always eager to retire, and adjust well, as compared to their male counterparts (Bauger & Bongaardt, 2016). Many people assume that since women are generally made as homemakers, they are willing and happy to retire while men, whose nature is to be the main source of family income, find it hard to be out of work (Moody & Sasser, 2014). Indeed, there exists very little literature that sheds some light on this area, particularly on the attitudes of each gender towards retirement and process of aging. Given the significance of retirement to this life stage, the study sought to understand the emotions and views of individuals regarding their retirement through the lenses of (1) Physical health and wellbeing, (2) Friends, Family, and Community, (3) Work and leisure, (4) Finances and lifestyles, and (5) Living

As more models of analysis are being made around the research of leisure there has been a shift in terminology. There has been a movement away from the term “barrier” to the more inclusive term “constraint.” In addition, we do not mean to imply that the existence of barriers automatically leads to non participation in leisure activities. Individuals are not passive; instead, they often successfully or unsuccessfully negotiate through constraints (Jackson, 1995; Crawford et al, 1991).

The purpose of this research is to look at dating couples, engaged couples, and married couples to see the difference in how they participate in leisure and the different benefits that come from participating in these different types of leisure. The participants in this study were four different Christian people. Two of the participants are from Gordon College, and the other two are from Litchfield Hills Church in Bethlehem, CT. The four people were all asked the same series of questions so the answers can be compared from one participant to another. The results of this study will be presented by going through each question and how the participants differed in their responses.

The importance of leisure is shown throughout social, psychological and cultural dimensions; but it also has great economic focus

1) The article from The Gerontologist supports the activity theory of aging. This states that as people age, it is very important for them to be engaged in various activities and social roles. As described in the lecture, studies have shown that those who stay involved have less signs of depression and have a lesser decline in mental health. In addition, they are considered more competent than others in their age group by the general population since they are actively participating in society. The research described in the article proved that those who had moderate or high participation in activities such as working, volunteering, and caregiving had a better psychological well-being. It is not necessarily just taking part in these, but the level in which one does so is also crucial. It appears that moderate participation is the best way to a better psychological well-being, as one does not want to be overworked, but should still be involved.

Rural and urban areas have different availabilities for what there is to do when one has free time. One cannot go driving around on muddy trails on a four-wheeler in a city where an individual who lives in the country has more likely of a chance of that being an option. How adolescents spend their time is much different from adults and children, but as a teen, they are still on a search for their identity and the most exploration is done in and around an adolescent period. A study that was conducted in Australia focused on teens and how leisure effects their self-esteem and satisfaction. Winsome Rose Gordon and Marie Louise Caltabiano (1996) took note of the leisure types that adolescents engaged in from two separate towns. One type was a relaxed leisure that consisted of eating, sleeping,