Growing Old in Today’s Society

The issue of ageing is one that has been slow to gain recognition and serious consideration. With the United Nations declaration of 1999 as International Year of the Older Persons, we trust that this proves advantageous to older persons and their families. We hope that the societal issues of greatest concern to them might be moved to the “front burners” of those who need to make important decisions on these matters.

The new interest we see in ageing, and the concerns of older persons have come about worldwide, largely as a result of the demographic transition – the dramatic process that leads to an increased number and proportion of the elderly in the population.

A series of events have helped to determine this increase:

• Significant decline in mortality leading to an increase in population

• Fertility rate decline which leads to a decrease in the younger population and a trend towards an increased population of older age groups and

• Increased life expectancy.

Life expectancy at birth has now risen in the Caribbean from an average of 63 in 1960 to an average of 70 for men and 73 for women, in most English-speaking Caribbean countries.

With the expanded life expectancy, we now observe significant increases in the percentage of the elderly in our population. For Trinidad and Tobago, the population over 60 years is 10 per cent; for Barbados, approximately 12 per cent and Jamaica 10 per cent. These are significant increases on what they were in the 1940s.

Ageing is a concept, which has different meanings in different societies. It is a continuous process, which begins at the moment of birth. However, this is not the way in which ageing is conventionally perceived and we tend to use the term with reference to people who look “old” to us; to people who might have retired; or for people who are no longer in paid employment and in addition, are in failing health.

The field of gerontology has four ways of viewing ageing:

Chronological ageing – the number of years the individual has lived

Biological ageing – the physical changes that are taking place in the body

Psychological ageing – changes that take place in relation to one’s adaptability, one’s intelligence, memory and learning

Social ageing – the nature of social interaction that the older person has with family, extended family, the work environment and the community.

Ageism is a concept that refers to the prejudice and discrimination people experience on the grounds of age. It is just as offensive to the elderly as is racism or sexism. Some of the difficulties older people encounter are related to stereotypes and myths about ageing.

However, what happens to us when we age is not totally unrelated to our previous life situation: our family life, employment options, our lifestyle and perhaps, most importantly, to the provisions we made for the future. Data available form Trinidad, Jamaica, Barbados and St. Kitts show some similarities in relation to the social and psychological aspects of ageing and some of the common problems that confront the elderly.

In all of these societies, life expectancy is higher for women than it is for men; consequently many women find themselves without partners in their old age.

Widowhood is a situation that many women will experience. How the individual woman copes will depend on the relationship she had with her husband, her economic security, the relationship she has with her children, and other family members and community.

Migration is an important factor in Caribbean societies and the impact of the outward migration and to a lesser extent the rural-urban migration has important implications for the older person, as there are fewer family members with whom they may interact. However, available Caribbean data show that the majority of elderly persons do not live on their own. As a result, situations of social isolation are less common.

But emotional and psychological isolation is problematic. Elderly persons living in multi0generational households do not always benefit from positive integration due to differences in the values of other family members and the generation gap.

Changes in the family structure: The increasing rate of divorce has placed the elderly at particular risk. Elderly women who had hoped to live their evening days with their husbands, find themselves alone.

Sexuality and ageing: There are so many myths and half-truths. There will be a great variation in the sexual life, sexual need, habits and possibilities for older persons as there is for younger adults. Many older widowed women will never again participate in sexual activity, not because they have completely lost the desire, but because they perceive such activity as totally inappropriate to their situation. For men and women still in relationships, their sexual life will be guided in part by their health, their attitude to ageing, and their previous attitude toward sexual activity and their living accommodation.

As we go forward into the new millennium, we need a plan to ensure that the losses which are inevitable in old age are not any more traumatic than they need to be. Across the life span all of us need to be sure to plan for old age. Family and government also need to be prepared for the demands that will be made by our ageing population. Ageing represents changes, but affords opportunities for new things to be done.

by Joan Rawlins