The University of Auckland, New Zealand.
The University of Auckland, New Zealand.
Soc Sci Med. 2012 Feb;74(3):416-424. doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.11.005. Epub 2011 Dec 14.
Resilience is a concept of growing interest in relation to older people and within the context of population ageing. In this paper we explore older people's understandings and experiences of resilience, drawing on interviews and participant-led focus groups with 121 older people living in two case-study communities in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Close reading of extended conversations about what characterises resilience, such as positive attitude, counting blessings or keeping busy, reveal how all of these apparently internal or personal characteristics are deeply embedded in social and physical contexts. We argue that resilience should be seen as a contextualised process which can be both individual and environmental. Older people's experiences highlight the need to consider the effectiveness of environmental community resources and social-political structures such as state-funded service availability, as well as the personal characteristics that are usually focused on when considering resilience in old age. We also argue that it is important to consider different aspects of resilience, so that a person or group might face constraints in one area, such as physical or economic wellbeing, but be strong in other areas such as social relationships or mobility. Resilience can mean acknowledging and incorporating 'vulnerability' and balancing wellbeing across a range of areas. Thus even those living with significant illness or hardship can be understood to be ageing well and indeed to be resilient. Far from using resilience as a narrow measure against which to succeed or fail, resilience is a useful concept framing how ageing well can incorporate multidimensional pathways including both vulnerability and flourishing. We must pay adequate attention to the broader physical and social contexts and scales that underpin--or undermine--individual resilience.
韧性是一个与老年人相关的日益受到关注的概念，也是人口老龄化背景下的一个重要概念。本文通过对居住在新西兰奥克兰两个案例研究社区的 121 名老年人的访谈和以参与者为主导的焦点小组，探讨了老年人对韧性的理解和体验。深入阅读关于韧性特征的扩展对话，如积极的态度、感恩或保持忙碌，揭示了所有这些看似内在或个人的特征是如何深深植根于社会和物理环境中的。我们认为，韧性应该被视为一个具有情境性的过程，可以是个人的，也可以是环境的。老年人的经验强调了需要考虑环境社区资源和社会政治结构的有效性，如国家资助的服务可用性，以及在考虑老年人韧性时通常关注的个人特征。我们还认为，考虑韧性的不同方面很重要，这样一个人或群体可能在一个领域面临限制，如身体或经济福利，但在其他领域如社会关系或流动性方面则很强。韧性意味着承认和融入“脆弱性”，并在一系列领域实现幸福感的平衡。因此，即使是那些患有严重疾病或面临困难的人，也可以被理解为健康老龄化，实际上是有韧性的。韧性远非作为衡量成功或失败的狭隘标准，而是一个有用的概念框架，说明健康老龄化可以包括多维的途径，包括脆弱性和繁荣。我们必须充分关注支撑或破坏个人韧性的更广泛的物理和社会背景和规模。
