Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-m6dg7 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-04T18:02:35.903Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Understanding ageing in sub-Saharan Africa: exploring the contributions of religious and secular social involvement to life satisfaction

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 November 2010

IVY A. KODZI ,
STEPHEN OBENG GYIMAH ,
JACQUES B. EMINA  and
ALEX C. EZEH
IVY A. KODZI*
Affiliation:
Initiative in Population Research, Ohio State University, Columbus, USA.
STEPHEN OBENG GYIMAH
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada.
JACQUES B. EMINA
Affiliation:
Population Services International, Nairobi, Kenya.
ALEX C. EZEH
Affiliation:
African Population and Health Research Center, Nairobi, Kenya.
*
Address for correspondence: Ivy Kodzi, Initiative in Population Research, 251 Journalism Building, 242 West 18th Avenue, Columbus, OH 43210-1316, USA. E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Rapid urbanisation in sub-Saharan Africa is believed to have weakened the traditional family ties which sustained older people in the past, but there is little empirical evidence about how older people today perceive their ageing experience in sub-Saharan Africa. The international gerontology literature demonstrates that, apart from financial wellbeing and health status, religious and secular forms of social involvement are key predictors of life satisfaction in older ages. No formal analysis, however, exists on the effects of religious and non-religious social involvement on the subjective wellbeing of older people in sub-Saharan nations. This study sought to fill this gap by examining the relationship between religious identity, religiosity, and secular social engagement using survey data from a sample of 2,524 men and women aged 50 or more years living in informal settlements of Nairobi City. We found significant differences in life satisfaction between Moslems, Catholics and non-Catholic Christians. Secular social support, personal sociability and community participation had positive effects on subjective wellbeing. In this context, we also observed that next to health status, the social involvement of older people was very important for life satisfaction.

Keywords

sub-Saharan Africaageingsocial involvementreligionlife satisfaction
Type
Submitted Articles
Information
Ageing & Society , Volume 31 , Issue 3: Methodologies for Ageing Populations , April 2011 , pp. 455 - 474
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Agyarko, R. D., Kalache, A. and Kowal, P. 2000. Older People, Children and the HIV/AIDS Nexus. Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, Geneva.Google Scholar
Apt, N. A. 1994. Who is caring for the elderly? Bold (Valetta, Malta), 1, 4, 5–10.Google Scholar
BBC News 2005. Africans Trust Religious Leaders, 14 September. Available online at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4246754.stm [Accessed 2 February 2010].Google Scholar
Bowling, A., Farquhar, M., Grundy, E. and Formby, J. 1993. Changes in life satisfaction over a two and half year period among very elderly people living in London. Social Science and Medicine, 36, 5, 641–55.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bukov, A., Maas, I. and Lampert, T. 2002. Social participation in very old age: cross-sectional and longitudinal findings from BASE. Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Science, 57B, 6, 510–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carlson, L. E., Speca, M., Patel, K. D. and Goodey, E. 2000. Mindfulness-based stress reduction in relation to quality of life, mood, symptoms of stress and levels of cortisol, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) and melatonin in breast and prostate cancer outpatients. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 29, 4, 448–74.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Charlton, K. E. and Rose, D. 2001. Nutrition among older adults in Africa: the situation at the beginning of the millennium. American Society for Nutritional Sciences, 131, 9, 2424S–8S.Google Scholar
Cheng, S.-T. 2004. Age and subjective wellbeing revisited: a discrepancy perspective. Psychology and Aging, 19, 3, 409–15.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cheng, S.-T. and Chan, A. 2006. Relationship with others and life satisfaction in later life: do gender and widowhood make a difference? Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, 61B, 1, P46–53.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clark, A. E. and Oswald, A. J. 2000. The curved relationship between subjective wellbeing and age. Discussion Paper 2006-29, Paris-Jourdan Sciences Economiques, Paris.Google Scholar
Cohen, B. and Menken, J. 2000. Aging in Sub-Saharan Africa: Recommendations for Further Research. National Academies Press, Washington DC.Google Scholar
Cohen, B. and Menken, J. A. (eds)2006. Aging in sub-Saharan Africa: recommendations for furthering research. Panel on policy research and data needs to meet the challenge of aging in Africa. The National Academies Press, Washington DC.Google Scholar
Deaton, A. 2007. Income, aging, health and wellbeing around the world: evidence from the Gallup World Poll. Working Paper 13317, National Bureau of Economic Research, New York.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Diener, E., Suh, E. M., Lucas, R. E. and Smith, H. L. 1999. Subjective wellbeing: three decades of progress. Psychological Bulletin, 125, 2, 542–75.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Doctor, H. V., Phillips, J. F. and Sakea, E. 2009. The influence of changes in women's religious affiliation on contraceptive use and fertility among the Kassena-Nankana of Northern Ghana. Studies in Family Planning, 40, 2, 113–22.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Easterlin, R. 2006. Life cycle happiness and its sources: intersections of psychology, economics and demography. Journal of Economic Psychology, 27, 4, 463–82.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ellison, C., Gay, D. and Glass, T. 1989. Does religious commitment contribute to individual life satisfaction? Social Forces, 68, 1, 100–23.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ellison, C. and Levin, J. S. 1998. The religion–health connection: evidence, theory and future directions. Health Education and Behavior, 25, 6, 700–20.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ezeh, A., Chepngeno, G., Kasiira, A. and Woubalem, Z. 2006. The situation of older people in poor urban settings: the case of Nairobi, Kenya. In Cohen, B. and Menken, J. (eds), Aging in Sub-Saharan Africa: Recommendations for Further Research. National Academies Press, Washington DC, 189–213.Google Scholar
Fiori, K. L., Antonucci, T. and Cortina, K. S. 2006. Social network typologies and mental health among older adults. Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, 61B, 1, P25–32.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fung, H. H. and Carstensen, L. L. 2000. Motivational changes in response to blocked goals and foreshortened time: testing alternatives to socioemotional selectivity theory. Psychology and Aging, 19, 1, 68–78.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gallup International 2000. Religion in the World at the End of the Millennium. Gallup International, Washington DC. Available online at http://www.gallup-international.com [Accessed 16 October 2003].Google Scholar
Garner, R. C. 2000. Safe sect? Dynamic religion and AIDS in South Africa. Journal of Modern African Studies, 38, 1, 41–69.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Girzadas, P. M., Counte, M. A., Glandon, G. L. and Tancredi, D. 1993. An analysis of elderly health and life satisfaction. Behavior, Health and Aging, 3, 2, 103–17.Google Scholar
Gyimah, S. O. 2007. What has faith got to do with it? Religion and child survival in Ghana. Journal of Biosocial Science, 39, 6, 923–37.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gyimah, S. O., Takyi, B. K. and Addai, I. 2006. Challenges to the reproductive health needs of African women: on religion and maternal health utilization in Ghana. Social Science and Medicine, 62, 12, 2930–44.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
HelpAge International 2002. HIV/IADS and Older People: The African Situation. HelpAge International, Nairobi.Google Scholar
Idler, E. L. 1994. Cohesiveness and Coherence: Religion and the Health of the Elderly. Garland, New York.Google Scholar
Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) 2006. Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic. UNAIDS, Geneva.Google Scholar
Koenig, H. G. 2001. Religion and medicine. II: Religion, mental health and related behaviors. International Journal of Psychiatry in Medicine, 3, 1, 97–109.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Koenig, H., McCullough, M. and Larson, D. 2001. Handbook of Religion and Health. Oxford University Press, New York.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Krause, N. 1999. Mental disorder in late life: exploring the influence of stress and socioeconomic status. In Aneshensel, C. S. and Phelan, J. C. (eds), Handbook of the Sociology of Mental Health. Plenum, New York, 183–208.Google Scholar
Krause, N. 2004. Common facets of religion, unique facets of religion, and life satisfaction among older African Americans. Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 59B, 2, S109–17.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Krause, N. 2006. Exploring the stress-buffering effects of church-based and secular social support on self-rated health in late life. Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 61, 1, S35–43.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Levin, J. S., Chatter, L. M. and Taylor, R. J. 1995. Religious effects on health status and life satisfaction among Black Americans. Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 50B, 3, S154–63.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Levin, J. S. and Taylor, R. J. 1993. Gender and age differences in religiosity among Black Americans. The Gerontologist, 33, 1, 16–23.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Liang, J., Levin, J. and Krause, N. M. 1989. Dimensions of the OARS mental health measures. Journal of Gerontology, 44, 5, 127–38.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Makoni, S. 2008. Aging in Africa: a critical review. Journal of Cross-cultural Gerontology, 23, 1, 119–209.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Matthews, D. A., McCullough, M., Larson, D., Koenig, H. G. and Swyers, J. 1998. Religious commitment and health status: a review of the research implications for family medicine. Archives of Family Medicine, 7, 2, 118–24.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Neugarten, B. L. 1982. Age or Need? Sage, Beverly Hills, California.Google Scholar
Nyambedha, E., Wandibba, S. and Aagaard-Hansen, J. 2001. Policy implications of the inadequate support systems for orphans in Western Kenya. Health Policy, 58, 1, 83–96.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Odimegwu, C. 2005. Influence of religion on adolescent sexual attitudes and behaviour among Nigerian university students: affiliation or commitment? African Journal of Reproductive Health, 9, 2, 125–40.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ogunmefun, C. and Schatz, E. 2006. Caregiver's Sacrifices: The Opportunity Costs of Adult Morbidity and Mortality of Female Pensioners on South Africa. Institute of Behavioral Science, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado.Google Scholar
Rowe, J. W. and Kahn, R. L. 1997. Successful aging. The Gerontologist, 37, 4, 433–40.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sarkissian, C., Hays, A. R. D. and Mangione, C. 2002. Do older adults expect to age successfully? The association between expectations regarding aging and beliefs regarding healthcare seeking among older adults. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 50, 11, 1837–57.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Seeman, T. E., Albert, M., Lusignolo, T. N. and Berkman, L. 2001. Social relationships, social support, and patterns of cognitive aging in healthy, higher functioning older adults: MacArthur studies of successful aging. Health Psychology, 20, 4, 243–55.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, D. J. 2004. Youth, sin and sex in Nigeria: Christianity and HIV/AIDS-related beliefs and behaviour among rural–urban migrants. Culture, Health and Sexuality, 6, 5, 425–37.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Steverink, N., Lindenberg, S. and Ormel, J. 1998. Towards understanding successful aging: patterned change in resources and goals. Ageing & Society, 18, 4, 441–67.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Takyi, B. K. 2003. Religion and women's health in Ghana: insight into HIV/AIDS preventive and protective behavior. Social Science and Medicine, 56, 6, 1221–34.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tate, R. B., Lah, L. and Cuddy, T. E. 2003. Definition of successful aging by Canadian males: the Manitoba follow-up study. The Gerontologist, 43, 5, 735–44.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Trinitapoli, J. A. and Regnerus, M. D. 2006. Religion and HIV risk behaviors among married men: initial results from a study in rural sub-Saharan Africa. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 45, 4, 505–28.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Uecker, J. E. 2008. Religion, pledging, and the premarital sexual behavior of married young adults. Journal of Marriage and Family, 70, 3, 728–44.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) 2003. Africa's Orphaned Generations. UNICEF, New York.Google Scholar
Usui, W. M., Keil, T. J. and Durig, K. R. 1985. Socioeconomic comparisons and life satisfaction of elderly adults. Journal of Gerontology, 40, 1, 110–4.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Van Willigen, M. 2000. Differential benefits of volunteering across the life course. Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 55B, 5, S308–18.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Velkoff, V. A. and Kowal, P. R. 2006. Population Aging in Sub-Saharan Africa: Demographic Dimensions. Current Population Report P95/07-1, Bureau of the Census, Department of Commerce, US Government Printing Office, Washington DC.Google Scholar
Williams, A. and Tumwekwase, G. 2001. Multiple impacts of HIV/AIDS epidemic on the aged in rural Uganda. Journal of Cross-cultural Gerontology, 16, 3, 221–36.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Witter, R., Stock, W. A., Okun, M. and Haring, M. 1985. Religion and subjective wellbeing in adulthood: a quantitative synthesis. Review of Religious Research, 26, 4, 332–42.CrossRefGoogle Scholar