Doctoral Dissertation Research: Interdependent Livelihood Strategies Among the Elderly in Northern Region, Ghana

博士论文研究：加纳北部地区老年人相互依存的生计策略

• 批准号: 1103184
• 负责人: Susan Roberts
• 金额: $ 1.2万
• 依托单位: University of Kentucky Research Foundation
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2011
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2011-07-01 至 2013-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1103184&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Doctoral; Dissertation; Research; Interdependent; Livelihood

The ways in which differently aged persons participate in livelihoods is not well understood. The elderly are often cast as dependent, yet many make significant contributions to the food security and social support of their families and communities. Despite this, international development projects and the empirical research on which they are based, including those focused on livelihood studies, are predominantly youth-oriented and focus on the material exchanges of young and middle-aged persons that supply income and subsistence to households. This research project builds on previous research within gerontology, geographies of age, feminist geographies and geographies of care to re-conceptualize the way in which the social construction of age has implications for livelihood strategies. By employing a variety of methods, including comprehensive household surveys, individual life histories interviews, focus groups, participant observation and participatory mapping, this research will document the social relationships through which livelihood strategies are practiced by elderly persons in a rural community in Northern Ghana. Findings from this research will demonstrate that diverse livelihood strategies are not just found and fostered within the activities of individuals, but also in the politics of inter-generational relationships within households. This project expects to demonstrate that the elderly face particular opportunities and limitations as a result of the socio-spatial relations associated with later life, rendering their livelihood strategies distinct from those practiced by younger persons.This project will help inform development-oriented livelihood studies which have tended to focus on programs for young and middle-aged adults and have underplayed the importance of the role of the elderly in household livelihood strategies. This research connects with the growing awareness of the rights and needs of older persons in developing countries where the neglect of the elderly continues, despite international policies, including the United Nation's International Plan of Action on Ageing ratified in the early 21st century. Result of this work will contribute both empirically and theoretically to the goals of feminist geography and the importance of gendered perspectives in development studies.

不同年龄段的人参与生计的方式还不是很清楚。老年人往往被认为是受人依赖的，但许多人为其家庭和社区的粮食安全和社会支持做出了重大贡献。尽管如此，国际发展项目及其所依据的实证研究，包括那些侧重于生计研究的项目，主要面向青年，侧重于为家庭提供收入和维持生计的中青年之间的物质交流。这一研究项目建立在老年学、年龄地理学、女权主义地理学和护理地理的先前研究的基础上，以重新概念化年龄的社会结构对生计战略的影响。通过采用各种方法，包括全面的家庭调查、个人生活史访谈、焦点小组、参与者观察和参与性地图绘制，本研究将记录加纳北部农村社区老年人实施生计战略的社会关系。这项研究的结果将表明，不同的谋生战略不仅在个人活动中发现和培育，而且在家庭内代际关系的政治中也是如此。该项目旨在证明，由于与晚年生活相关的社会-空间关系，老年人面临着特殊的机会和限制，使他们的生计战略有别于年轻人的生计战略。该项目将有助于为发展导向的生计研究提供信息，这些研究往往侧重于中青年方案，而低估了老年人在家庭生计战略中的重要性。这项研究与发展中国家日益认识到老年人的权利和需要有关，在这些国家，尽管有国际政策，包括21世纪初批准的《联合国老龄问题国际行动计划》，但对老年人的忽视依然存在。这项工作的结果将在经验和理论上对女权主义地理学的目标和性别观点在发展研究中的重要性作出贡献。