CINTESIS - Center for Health Technology and Services Research (Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar (ICBAS), Portugal.
Centre for Social Studies - University of Coimbra, Portugal.
J Aging Stud. 2021 Dec;59:100977. doi: 10.1016/j.jaging.2021.100977. Epub 2021 Oct 27.
Although the importance of older citizens' civic engagement has been highlighted in research and policy, the topic remains underexplored. In this study, we discuss older Portuguese citizens' motivations for civic engagement. The research is based on interviews with eighteen participants aged over 60, who are retired but active in civic organisations, in which they hold or have held leadership positions. We employed thematic analysis to examine the qualitative data. The findings suggest a range of motivations for participation, with personal and ideological/political motives emerging as relevant for involvement, retention and leaving, and interpersonal relationships motivating involvement and retention. However, the specific motivations differ as a function of not only the stages of involvement/retention/leaving, but also the type of organisation and the participants' life experiences. There are notable differences between the motivations for involvement in cultural and recreational organisations, neighbourhood organisations and volunteer programmes, where the emphasis is on fostering interpersonal relationships, and the more ideological/political motivations that appear as determinant within political and activist organisations. As such, this study brings a more complex understanding of the range of motivations for civic engagement in later life, with significant implications for fostering older citizens' mobilisation and sustained engagement.
虽然老年人参与公民事务的重要性在研究和政策中得到了强调，但这个话题仍然没有得到充分的探讨。在这项研究中，我们讨论了葡萄牙老年公民参与公民事务的动机。该研究基于对 18 名 60 岁以上的参与者的访谈，他们已经退休，但活跃于公民组织中，在这些组织中担任或担任过领导职务。我们采用主题分析方法来研究定性数据。研究结果表明，参与有一系列动机，个人和意识形态/政治动机与参与、保留和离开相关，人际关系则是参与和保留的动机。然而，具体的动机不仅因参与/保留/离开的阶段而异，还因组织类型和参与者的生活经历而异。在文化和娱乐组织、邻里组织和志愿者计划中，参与的动机存在显著差异，这些组织强调培养人际关系，而在政治和激进组织中，更强调意识形态/政治动机，这些动机是决定性的。因此，本研究更深入地了解了老年人参与公民事务的动机范围，这对促进老年公民的动员和持续参与具有重要意义。
