Gerontologist
Volume 55, Issue 4, 2015, Pages 526-536
The role of relevancy and social suffering in "Generativity" among older post-Soviet women immigrants (Article)
De Medeiros K.* ,
Rubinstein R. ,
Ermoshkina P.
-
a
Department of Sociology and Gerontology, Miami University, 375 Upham Hall, Oxford, OH 45056, United States
-
b
Department of Anthropology and Sociology, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, United States
-
c
Department of Sociology and Gerontology, Miami University, 375 Upham Hall, Oxford, OH 45056, United States
Abstract
Purpose of the Study: This paper examines generativity, social suffering, and culture change in a sample of 16 women aged 65 years or older who emigrated from the former Soviet Union. Key concerns with generativity are identity, which can be strongly rooted in one's original cultural formation, and a stable life course, which is what ideally enables generative impulses to be cultivated in later life. Design and Methods: To better understand how early social suffering may affect later life generativity, we conducted two 90-min interviews with each of our participants on their past experiences and current views of generativity. Results: The trauma of World War II, poor quality of life in the Soviet Union, scarcity of shelter and supplies, and fear of arrest emerged as common components in social suffering, which affected their identity. Implications: Overall, the theme of broken links to the future - the sense that their current lives were irrelevant to future generations - was strong among informants in their interviews, pointing to the importance of life course stability in relation to certain forms of generativity. © The Author 2013. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America.
Author Keywords
Index Keywords
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-84939522347&doi=10.1093%2fgeront%2fgnt126&partnerID=40&md5=98ed766e135194967021663e08eb93e2
DOI: 10.1093/geront/gnt126
ISSN: 00169013
Cited by: 2
Original Language: English