This article contributes to emerging debates around age-friendly environments, providing empirical evidence concerning the relative age-friendliness of purpose-built retirement communities. Adopting a new definition – ‘underpinned by a commitment to respect and social inclusion, an age-friendly community is engaged in a strategic and ongoing process to facilitate active ageing by optimising the community's physical and social environments and its supporting infrastructure’ – the article analyses the age-friendliness of one retirement community in England. The Longitudinal Study of Ageing in a Retirement Community (LARC) encompassed two waves of a survey with residents, interviews and focus groups with stakeholders involved in staffing, managing and designing the community, and other qualitative data collected from residents. Reviewing the different data sources, the article argues that purpose-built retirement communities have the potential to be age-friendly settings but might better involve residents in a regular cycle of planning, implementation, evaluation and continual improvement if they are to facilitate active ageing. In addition, more clarity is needed on how such developments can better fit with the age-friendly agenda, particularly in terms of their capacity to support ageing in place, the accessibility of the wider neighbourhood, opportunities for intergenerational interactions, and the training of staff to work with older people.

This study examines how intergenerational exchanges affect elders' choice of preferred care-givers in the case of sickness among adult children in rural China. The sample derived from a four-wave longitudinal study in Anhui Province, China, based on which we constructed three time intervals (i.e. 2001–2003, 2003–2006 and 2006–2009) and stacked them. Our working sample included 10,181 observations from these three stacked intervals, representing 4,927 children with 1,170 elder parents. We used fixed-effects logistic regression to predict elders' favouritism among their children. Results show that those children who received more help with grandchild care from parents, who provided instrumental support to parents and whose spouses provided instrumental support to parents were more likely to be named the preferred care-givers. On average, parents favoured sons. For mothers, this favouritism was completely explained by proximity and intergenerational exchanges, and even reversed under certain circumstances. For fathers, this favouritism of sons was partially explained by proximity and intergenerational exchanges. Migrant children were less likely to be preferred care-givers. This effect was moderated by elder parents' help with caring for grandchildren. Particularly, mothers favoured daughters over sons if the above moderation effect was considered. We discuss these findings in the context of social changes including increased importance of daughters in elder parents' support networks and the large-scale rural to urban migration.

In recent years, there has been an increasing focus on creating age-friendly cities to accommodate the changing needs of older people and to promote their overall health and wellbeing. This paper focuses on some of the urban planning implications related to maintaining the social health, as a main component of overall health and wellbeing, of older people. Specifically, we look at the role and accessibility of third places (popular public places where many people go to socialise) in relation to older people living in different neighbourhood built-form patterns, and how these factors impact on the formation of absent, weak and strong social ties. The data draw upon interviews with 54 older people living in different neighbourhood built-form patterns on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. Our findings demonstrate the significant role third places have in affording older people opportunities to engage in the social lives of their local communities, thus contributing to their social health and overall wellbeing. This research supports previous studies relating to the accessibility of amenities by re-emphasising the importance of planning for the provision of third places that are conveniently located and easily accessible by older people. The paper concludes by arguing for the planning of transport and third-place interventions in Australia's sprawling suburban landscapes to allow older people more opportunities to be socially connected.

A central theme of ‘innovation theory’, which the author and a colleague have proposed and which is concerned with the triggers, types and benefits of innovation in later life, is that adding brand-new leisure activities after retiring from work enhances post-retirement wellbeing. The study reported in this article aimed to examine this proposition using quantitative data from a nationwide sample in Israel of 378 recently retired individuals. The study explored the frequency of post-retirement innovation in people's leisure repertoires, the association between innovation and retirees' life satisfaction, and factors in the differing life satisfaction of innovators and non-innovators. The results indicate that the inclination toward innovation significantly associated with the respondents' work and retirement histories, as well as with their self-rated health and world region of origin. Innovators had significantly higher life satisfaction than non-innovators, but this difference could not be explained by the number of new activities. In addition, socio-demographic differences failed to explain innovators' wellbeing. While some support for innovation theory was provided, further research is required to explore the dynamics by which innovation at older ages contributes to retirees' wellbeing.

In recent years, there has been a growth in academic interest in international retirement migration in Europe, particularly north-south retirement migration to destinations like Spain. In this paper we focus on those members of the British community who have lived in Spain for a considerable time and for whom familial, social and institutional ties with Britain are weak or disrupted. Age Concern España was established by members of the British community to provide information and services on healthcare, benefits and local services in Spain. Four indicative case studies of those requesting assistance and classified as being of ‘serious need’ are presented. They illustrate the ways in which happy and fulfilling lives in Spain were abruptly changed as the person's resources (bodily, economic, social and skills) for independent living diminished, and in which institutions and friendship networks played a key role in supporting life. The paper is the product of collaboration between researchers and practitioners in Spain and the UK, and brings together previous research with new qualitative case studies. Whilst policy-makers, practitioners and gerontologists have an increasing awareness of the needs of older migrants and the challenges they pose for public policy, particularly for health and social care systems in Spain, there have been little sustained analysis and cross-country debate.

This paper examines the extent of mental ill-health and probable depression among older people in long-term care. It presents selected findings from a study in Greater Belfast, Northern Ireland, that compared the quality of life, autonomy and mental health of older people living in nursing and residential homes with those of older people living in private households who were receiving domiciliary care. Structured interviews were conducted with 214 residents in institutions and 44 older people receiving domiciliary care. The study found that those in private households were more severely physically-impaired and had a higher level of mental ill-health than the residents of institutional homes. It is suggested, however, that the mental ill-health effects were associated less with physical impairments than with the restrictions placed on the older person's decisional autonomy, and that long-term care environments that constrain the older person's autonomy contribute to the development of depression. Although the UK National Service Framework for Older People specified that those with depression should be given treatment and support, priority should also be given to preventing the depression associated with living in long-term care settings.

Older people are among the most vulnerable in major disasters. In their aftermath, it is crucial to institute efforts that will maintain a high level of elders' quality of life (QoL). This paper presents QoL assessments of elderly survivors five years after the Bam earthquake in Iran, and evaluates the determinants. A cross-sectional analysis of 210 randomly-selected survivors was carried out in 2008 using the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire. A comparison of the results with data on the general population showed that experiencing the earthquake may adversely affect psychological dimensions of QoL even five years after, but paradoxically the earthquake resulted in better social relationships in affected communities than in the general population. Lower QoL associated with female gender, higher age, living alone, severe earthquake-related injury, poor quality of living conditions, increased dependency in the activities of daily living, living in an urban area, and being temporarily housed. Recovery experts and donors should carry out long-term monitoring of health status and QoL in disaster-affected communities, with a focus on psychological wellbeing. Intervention programmes that emphasise post-disaster quality of care and satisfactory housing may lead to better QoL of the victims and may shorten the recovery phase.

With the increase of childlessness in European societies, its consequences have become a matter of concern. Studies in this field, however, have concentrated on what childless people lack and need in terms of social, financial and moral support. In contrast, this article focuses on what childless people give to their families, friends, unrelated others and to society at large. Using 2004 data on social support and financial transfers given and received by people aged 50 or more years in ten European countries from the Survey of Health Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), the analyses show that the support networks of childless older people tend to be somewhat weaker than those of parents and that links with members of the younger generations in the family are stronger for parents than for those without children. The results also indicate, however, that the differences in transfer behaviour between parents and childless adults are small, and that the support networks of the childless are more diverse than those of parents, and characterised by stronger links with ascendants and lateral relatives and with non-relatives. Moreover, people without children tend to be more intensely involved in charities and comparable organisations.

The purpose of this study was to examine older adults' experiences and perspectives regarding transportation mobility. Using a community-based participatory research approach, residents of Arlington, Texas, age 55 and older, participated in individual interviews (N = 15) or one of six focus groups (N = 45) as part of an overall study about ageing well in a large ethnically diverse city in the United States of America. Thematic analysis was conducted using inductive and deductive qualitative methods and social equity as a sensitising concept. Findings indicate that older adults who are transportation-disadvantaged experience limited access to health care, goods and services and are isolated from familiar lifestyle habits and social networks. Access to affordable, adequate transportation is compromised through social and political forces, which marginalise historically disadvantaged populations. Implications for cross-disciplinary practice and future research on sustainable transportation and policy development are discussed within a social justice and social equity framework.

Using data from the first wave of the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study conducted in 2002–03, this paper examines the economic, psychological and social wellbeing among 1,467 men aged 40–59 years with different parenthood histories and circumstances: the childless, fathers who live with their children, non-co-resident fathers, and ‘empty-nest fathers’. The gerontological interest is whether there are variations in wellbeing by parenting, and whether they persist in old age. The results showed that fathers have higher incomes than childless men, regardless of their partner history. As regards psychological wellbeing, men's partner history counts, not their parenthood status. Being single contributes to low levels of psychological wellbeing. The findings provide evidence of the socially integrating effects of parenthood and for men's ‘good-provider’ role. Childless men and non-co-resident fathers report poorer quality family relationships. In addition, childless men were least likely to report helping others in the community. Overall, more support is found for the notion that fatherhood is a transforming event than that the wellbeing benefits derive from fathering activities. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications of the findings for inequalities in wellbeing and informal support among the male members of the cohort born during 1943–63 when they reach old age.

This paper discusses findings from a qualitative study which explored older adults' experiences of becoming regular exercisers in a gym triggered by health problems and their interactions with their younger gym instructors. A key question which the study sought to address was whether becoming embedded in the sub-field of exercise challenged traditional discourses of ageing (age habitus). While these older gym users reported significant benefits (greater health capital, expanded social networks and a return to active life after illness), they nevertheless were engaged in a complex and ambiguous negotiation of attitudes to bodily ageing and meanings of fitness and competence. In contrast, the instructors subscribed to a model of physical activity oriented towards physical capital as greater fitness. The paper suggests that these positions manifest competing understandings about what constitutes appropriate and desirable physical capital in later life. Budgetary constraints, beliefs about physical ability, professional expectations and the persistence of the discourse of decline prevent this gap from being easily bridged and allow alternative notions of ageing physicality to colonise the sub-field of exercise. The paper concludes that there is a need to develop ways of breaking down barriers in communication to overcome divergent understandings of what constitutes legitimate physical capital as we get older.

This paper examines the culture and narratives occurring in a purpose-built retirement community. It is argued that in order to understand the effects that such a community can have on wellbeing, it is necessary to analyse the interaction of a variety of interweaving narratives used to sustain a secure micro-cultural base. These narratives include formal representations, daily life as experienced by tenants and imaginative associations within community culture. Retirement communities for older people have been represented as containing the positive features of both residential care and neighbourhood life. They have also been criticised as promoting exclusivity and negative attitudes to outsiders. Tenants reported experiences of a high level of interdependence and peer support. They saw the community as a positive alternative to nursing homes, continued residence in their local neighbourhoods and reliance on family support. It was found that this retirement community was perceived to have a positive effect on wellbeing which was attributed to peer culture and was sustained by imaginative narratives of miracle and progress. However, certain groups were excluded from this dominant reading.

An observational study was carried out in order to measure the quality of life of elderly people in two different types of long-stay care (two NHS nursing homes and a hospital ward). This formed part of a wider evaluation study of these two forms of institutional care. Qualitative techniques provided insights into the behaviours, moods, interactions and atmospheres in the settings, which were difficult to measure using traditional survey approaches. The observational study showed that it is.essential not to rely solely on interview material, and assessments of mental and physical functioning, when evaluating long-stay care. Characteristics of ‘total institutions’ clearly emerged from the analyses of the hospital ward, although the inclusion of the hospital patients' Club in the study revealed that these need not be inevitable, and that both the ward and the homes could be improved if modelled on the more autonomous and flexible philosophy of the Club.

Retirement is an event that often brings about great changes in a person's personal and social life. For many people, work is not only a way to fill time and earn money, but also important for their identity and meaning in life. After retirement, these benefits of work are lost, and it is expected that people will seek substitutes for this loss. This paper focuses on the effects of retirement on informal civic activities such as the support given to family and friends as well as more formal types such as volunteering and organisational involvement. Using two waves from the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study, a conditional change model is employed. Two groups are compared: men and women who kept working, and men and women who retired. Results show that following retirement, people appear to change the nature of some relationships by providing more instrumental support. Furthermore, retirees seem to start spending more time volunteering after retirement, and they increase their organisational memberships. Implications, strengths and limitations of the study are discussed.

Gerontological inquiries into understandings of successful ageing have been culture-specific. This means that they have only been studied in the specific cultural settings that have given them their meaning. Understandings of successful ageing that are simultaneously influenced by two cultures have yet to be studied. This study is based on a newly-designed culturally-relevant theoretical framework for the study of successful ageing, and focuses on the context of migration where culture of origin and host culture meet. Interviews based on vignettes have been conducted with 30 Iranian immigrants in Sweden in order to reveal if, and how, the pre- and post-migration understandings of successful ageing differ. The findings show that cultural contexts determine how the construct in question is understood and that migration between different cultures can challenge these understandings.

The unprecedented increase in the ageing population, coupled with urbanisation, has led to a vast number of research publications on age-friendly cities and communities (AFCC). However, the existing reviews on AFCC studies are not sufficiently up-to-date for AFCC researchers. This paper presents a thorough analysis of the annual publication trend, the contributions of authors and institutions from different countries, and the trending research themes in the AFCC research corpus through a systematic review of 98 publications. A contribution assessment formula and thematic analysis were used for the review. The results indicated a growing AFCC research interest in recent times. Researchers and institutions from the United States of America, Canada, United Kingdom and Hong Kong made the highest contribution to the AFCC research corpus. The thematic analysis classified the AFCC research corpus into four main themes: conceptualisation; implementation and development; assessment; and challenges and opportunities. The themes indicate the current and future research patterns and issues to be considered in the development of AFCC and for interested researchers to make proposals for future research. Future directions are proposed, including suggestions on adopting new assessment methods and instruments, collaboration and cross-nation comparative research, considering older adults as place-makers and conducting a prior participatory analysis to maximise the participation of older adults.

In policy debates it is commonly claimed that older workers are entering a period of choice and control. In contrast, Guy Standing's book The Precariat: The Dangerous New Class, published in 2011, argues that older people are increasingly joining the ‘precariat’, by taking low-level jobs to supplement dwindling pension incomes. We argue that many older workers, not just those in ‘precarious jobs’, feel a sense of ‘ontological precarity’. Pressures to work longer, combined with limited alternative employment prospects and inadequate retirement incomes, give rise to a heightened sense of precarity. We develop a new theoretical model for understanding precarity as a lived experience, which is influenced by the intersection between precarious jobs, precarious welfare states and precarious households. This model is then illustrated using qualitative research from two organisations in the United Kingdom: ‘Local Government’ and ‘Hospitality’. In both organisations, older workers experienced a sense of ontological precarity because they worried about the long-term sustainability of their jobs and saw limited alternative sources of retirement income. Household circumstances either reinforced interviewees’ sense of precarity, or acted as a buffer against it. This was particularly important for women, as they typically accrued smaller financial resources in their own right. Our concluding discussion builds on this more advanced theoretical understanding of older worker precarity to call for a rethinking of state and employer support for decisions around later-life working and retirement.

Chronological age can be an unsatisfactory method of discriminating between older people. The lay concept of how old people actually feel may be more useful. The aim of the analyses reported in this paper was to investigate indicators of age-identity (or subjective age) among a national random sample of people aged 65 or more years living at home in Britain. Information was initially collected by home interview and a follow-up postal questionnaire 12–18 months later. The age that respondents felt was a more sensitive indicator than chronological age of many indicators of the respondents’ health, psychological and social characteristics. Multiple regression analysis showed that baseline health and functional status, and reported changes in these at follow-up, explained 20.4 per cent of the variance in self-perceived age. Adding baseline mental health (anxiety/depression), feelings and fears about ageing at follow-up explained a further 0.8 per cent of the variance, making the total variance explained 21.2 per cent. It is concluded that measures of physical health and functional status and their interactions influenced age-identity. Mental health status and psychological perceptions made a small but significant additional contribution.

This paper examines the opinions of Spanish older people regarding the ideal living situation in later life – living in their own home, co-residing in a relative's home or institutionalisation – differentiating between two hypothetical situations: healthy ageing and frailty. Data are drawn from the Instituto de Mayores y Servicios Sociales (Institute of Older People and Social Services; IMSERSO) survey Encuesta de Mayores 2010 (Older People Survey 2010), comprising 2,535 individuals aged 65 and over living in private dwellings. The results confirm that residential preferences vary depending on expected health conditions. Remaining in one's own home is preferred when older people foresee a healthy old age, whilst co-residence at a relative's home turns into the favoured solution if older people have to face some physical or cognitive limitation. The particularities of the Spanish context regarding family-oriented values about care responsibilities and the structural deficiency in the provision of formal support, in addition to other socio-demographic, psychological and attitudinal aspects, were explanatory factors of the lower desirability for ageing at home in the case of frailty. The findings question the uniform image of ‘ageing in place’ as a preference, inviting reflections on the need to distinguish between later-life stages and national contexts.

An increased demand for long-term care services coupled with the decreased availability of informal (family) carers in many industrialised countries has led to the employment of growing numbers of ‘migrant care workers’. Little is known about this heterogeneous group or of their experience of employment in long-term care. Providing an important insight into a hitherto little researched and poorly understood topic, this article presents the findings of a qualitative study in Ireland that sought greater understanding of migrant carers' experience of care work and of the intra-group differences among them. The findings suggest that some members of the long-term care workforce are more likely to confront obstacles and discrimination than others. The data indicate that the experiences of European, South Asian and African carers are significantly different and that relationships may exist between carers' region of origin and their experience of care work, employment mobility and long-term plans for remaining in the sector. The findings underscore the significance of acknowledging the unique barriers and obstacles faced by particular populations of care workers. A better understanding of the changing demographic profile and needs of both care recipients and their paid (migrant) care-givers is required to ensure that appropriate policy and practical interventions are developed to support both groups.