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The meaning of stigma: identity construction in two old-age institutions.
- Source :
- Ageing & Society; May2006, Vol. 26 Issue 3, p355-371, 17p, 1 Chart
- Publication Year :
- 2006
-
Abstract
- People in advanced old age with frailties and those who are resident in old-age institutions manage their identities within the constraints of stigmatised settings. This paper compares the processes of identity construction in an old-age home and in a sheltered housing project for older people in Israel. Applying a symbolic-interactionist perspective that sees old-age institutions as social arenas for the reconstruction of identity, the paper first distinguishes the residents' constructions of stigma and deviance. While the old-age home residents collectively turned their stigma into a source of positive labelling, the sheltered housing residents drew advantages from their previous roles and statuses. Gossip is shown to play a critical role in reproducing stigma, particularly in the old-age home. These findings are used to demonstrate the variability and potential for adaptation among the residents-who are often stereotyped as homogeneous and passive. The paper concludes with a discussion of the literal and metaphorical languages used by older people, and of stigma as a positive instrument that can introduce content into the definition of the self. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Subjects :
- OLD age
GOSSIP
IDENTITY (Psychology)
HOUSING
RESIDENTS
SOCIAL status
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 0144686X
- Volume :
- 26
- Issue :
- 3
- Database :
- Complementary Index
- Journal :
- Ageing & Society
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 21030877
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1017/S0144686X0500454X