Belonging to the old and unsuccessfully aged: language practices in a home in Maastricht, The Netherlands

Journal article

Older people who live in a nursing home do not take the experience of belonging for granted. Until now little research has been done on the role that language practices can play in the experience of belonging in a nursing home. During conversations between nursing staff and residents, the former often adjust their language practices, producing cultural narratives on ageing to which residents in nursing homes are often exposed in the process of achieving belonging. However, older people do not necessarily identify with these narratives, which affect whether residents experience belonging. This article explores the adjustments in language practices made by nursing staff and shows how they reinforce the cultural narratives on ageing. The results demonstrate that these altered language practices reinforce cultural narratives on ageing, and that adjustments are made towards what is perceived to be a homogenous group of older people, thereby overlooking the individuality and capacities of residents.

Authors: Makkinga, J

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Anthropological Society of Oxford
• Journal: Journal of the Anthropological Society of Oxford Online
• Volume: 9
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 83-101
• Publication date: 2017-01-01
• DOI: 10.5287/ora-zrzk6zgok
• ISSN: 2040-1876
• Language: English
• Keywords: JASO