Balance in life as a prerequisite for community-dwelling older adults’ sense of health and well-being after retirement: an interview-based studyShow others and affiliations
2021 (English)In: International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being, ISSN 1748-2623, E-ISSN 1748-2631, Vol. 16, no 1, article id 1984376Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
Purpose: This study aimed to describe community-dwelling older adults’ perceptions of health and well-being in life after retirement. Methods: This study is part of a larger project using a mixed-methods design to address lifestyles’ influence on community-dwelling older adults’ health. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with 18 older adults in age 70 to 95 years. Data were analysed according to a phenomenographic approach. Results: The results encompass four categories describing variations in community-dwelling older adults’ perceptions of health and well-being after retirement: feeling well despite illness and disease, interacting with and being useful for oneself and others, independently embracing opportunities and engaging in life, and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Conclusions: The absence of illness and disease is not a clear prerequisite for a sense of health and well-being. To promote and preserve health and well-being after retirement, older adults strived for—and coached themselves to uphold—a balance in life, focusing on not burdening others. This life orientation after retirement must be acknowledged by society at large, especially from an ageist perspective, and in health and social care to preserve and promote health and well-being.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Taylor & Francis, 2021. Vol. 16, no 1, article id 1984376
Keywords [en]
community, Health, life balance, lifestyle, older adults, phenomenography, qualitative, retirement, well-being
National Category
Nursing Geriatrics
Research subject
Wellbeing in long-term health problems (WeLHP); Family-Centred Health
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:his:diva-20663DOI: 10.1080/17482631.2021.1984376ISI: 000706099300001PubMedID: 34633914Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85116918944OAI: oai:DiVA.org:his-20663DiVA, id: diva2:1604767
Note
CC BY 4.0
© 2021 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
CONTACT Irene Eriksson irene.eriksson@his.se School of Health Sciences, Box 408, University of Skövde, SE- 541 28 Skövde, Sweden
2021-10-212021-10-212022-04-11Bibliographically approved