Suchergebnisse

In this paper we investigate the perspectives individuals take on their future at a particular chronological age, the late 70s. We seek to provide insights into the diverse ways that older people incorporate narratives about possible future selves into their decision making and planning for the future, and how this supports wellbeing. This paper is based on detailed analysis of qualitative biographical interviews conducted with 33 men and women who were all born in Scotland in 1936.These individuals were chosen because they formed part of a longitudinal cohort study called the '6-day sample study' that was initiated in Scotland in 1947. The material we draw on enables us to examine individuals' biographical narratives as recounted in a research interview alongside insights into individual capacities and wellbeing derived from more structured quantitative questionnaires. We are interested in the presentation of the ageing self in an ethnographic interview, and how these presentations may complement or conflict with insights from the structured quantitative data collected in the study.

This article details the development and potential uses of a qualitative sub-study within a quantitative, longitudinal study of a Scottish cohort born in 1936 (the 6-Day Sample). Analysing narratives and other biographical interview material, we explore the potential of mixed methods research designs to improve the study of successful ageing, a widely used but contested concept. While acknowledging the critiques of successful ageing, we suggest that the concept can be improved by the adoption of mixed method research strategies that address key criticisms, in particular the lack of attention to older people's own voices. Including those voices in our study alongside researcher-defined outcome measures, we explore the reasons underlying some older people's 'spiky profiles', i.e. positive outcomes in some domains and negative outcomes in others. We also investigate the potential benefits and challenges of taking a qualitative approach to the most well known process-focused model of successful ageing: Selection, Optimisation and Compensation (SOC). We conclude that a narratively informed mixed methods research design offers the potential for more comprehensive and nuanced approach to successful ageing.