Relative distance

Ageing in rural New Zealand

Datos Bibliográficos

ID11201550
AutoresSilvia Keeling (0000-0002-8330-1647, University of Otago, autor de correspondencia), Sally Keeling
Año2001
Volumen21
Número5
Páginas605-619
Fecha de publicación2001-09-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaAgeing and Society (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0144-686X • E-ISSN: 1469-1779
EditorialCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s0144686x01008443
OpenAlexW2159157016
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas12

This paper explores aspects of kinship and geographical distance in terms of the social context of older people in the South Island of New Zealand, and with particular reference to the long-term epidemiological study of ageing in the community of Mosgiel. Comparisons between the numbers of relatives reported in the social networks of the older participants at baseline and in the six-year follow-up study indicate both losses and gains over time. A local qualitative study carried out within the Mosgiel study interprets meanings of closeness and distance from the ways that older people talk about family and friends. In discussing definitions of family, aspects of genealogical and generational connection are described, along with processes which allow for ‘proxies’ and ‘substitution’ in the light of geographical proximity. These role definitions within families, and the wider social networks within which they operate, provide continuity and reliable social support together with flexibility and adaptability to change. The Mosgiel study illustrates some aspects of the combined effects of low population density in the region, rural-to-urban migration, and recent health and social service restructuring on older people and on their families

Adaptability · Closeness · Context (archaeology) · Demographic economics · Flexibility (engineering) · Geography · Kinship · Population · Population ageing · Social distance · Sociology · Demography · Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving · Medicine · Migration, Aging, and Tourism Studies · Rural development and sustainability