Un-Stuck in Place? The Experience of Rural Elders Moving to Age in Place in Town

• In Event: 349 - Section on Aging and the Life Course Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 07. Social Networks and Social Isolation

Abstract

Aging in place is not the same for all places. Much of the work about aging-in-place promotes this concept as being almost universally positive and favored by all older persons or negative as being “stuck in place,” regardless of the setting one is moving from and to. There is a push within the literature to look behind aging-in-place as a generic concept. Researchers call for an understanding of how aging-in-place really works and highlight the need to incorporate greater diversity in discussions of placed-based aging, including those aging in rural settings where many myths and stereotypes remain. Using data from 40 semi-structured interviews with elders aging in place in a rural community and directed content analysis, this study examines these older persons’ assessments of their current living situation living rurally but now in a more town-like location. These elders, although moving within a rural environment, for different reasons, do not report feelings of being “stuck in place.” Rather this group of individuals can entertain positive thoughts of earlier life (i.e. in farm settings) while seeing benefits of being “in town” and close to amenities (i.e. activities and family) yet still a part of the same rural place.

Author

• Joyce Weil, University of Northern Colorado