The Challenge of Assessing and Measuring Social Inclusion and Exclusion in Later Life

Thursday, November 3, 2022

12:00 PM – 1:30 PM ET

Location: 245 CC

CE: 1.5

Chair(s)

Charles Waldegrave, MA (Waikato, NZ), MA (Cambridge, UK)

Coordinator
Social Policy Research Unit
Family Centre Social Policy Research Unit
Lower Hutt, Wellington, New Zealand

Discussant(s)

Marja Aartsen, PhD, FGSA

Research professor
NOVA - Ageing and Housing studies
OsloMet Oslo Metropolitan University
Oslo, Akershus, Norway

Individual Symposium Abstract First Author(s)

Charles Waldegrave, MA (Waikato, NZ), MA (Cambridge, UK)

Coordinator
Social Policy Research Unit
Family Centre Social Policy Research Unit
Lower Hutt, Wellington, New Zealand
Michal Myck, PhD

Director
Labor Economics
Centre for Economic Analysis, CenEA
Szczecin, Zachodniopomorskie, Poland
George Pavlidis, PhD

Assistant Professor
Culture and Society
Linkoping University
Linkoping, Ostergotlands Lan, Sweden

Social exclusion is a serious problem that can lead to diminished well-being, health problems, premature death and increased societal costs. Depending on the definition used, 10 to 30% of the older adults experience social exclusion, and many have been confronted with prolonged isolation during the pandemic. Constructing measures for social inclusion and exclusion is a challenging yet important endeavor, and various approaches exist. For example, EU-policy makers define social exclusion mainly in terms of poverty and lack of labor market participation However, a too narrow definition of social exclusion leaves large groups of people unattended leading to sub-optimal understandings of social exclusion and ineffective interventions. This symposium brings together scholars from different cultures. The first paper discusses newly developed social and well-being scales, that more adequately address cultural notions of exclusion and discrimination experienced by older Māori (indigenous New Zealanders). Based on unique data from time-diaries kept by older women from several European countries and the U.S, the second speaker discusses how increased time spend alone is key factor behind widows’ reduced well-being. The last study finds a northwest to southeast gradient in objective exclusionary states, with the rates in southeast Europe to be pronounced among older women.

Learning Objectives:

After attending this symposium, participants will be able to understand that: (1) current measures of social inclusion and exclusion in later life are culture and gender specific.
After attending this symposium, participants will be able to understand that social exclusion is driven by micro and macro level factors
After attending this symposium, participants will be able to understand that time spent alone is key in understanding diminished well-being in older widowed people.

Presentations:

12:00 PM – 1:30 PM ET

Co-Creating with Older People Culturally Sensitive Inclusion/Exclusion Measures
Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Charles Waldegrave, MA (Waikato, NZ), MA (Cambridge, UK) – Family Centre Social Policy Research Unit
12:00 PM – 1:30 PM ET

Home Alone: Widows' Well-Being and Time
Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Michal Myck, PhD – Centre for Economic Analysis, CenEA
12:00 PM – 1:30 PM ET

Gendered Pathways and Outcomes of Exclusion from Social Relations in Older Age
Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: George Pavlidis, PhD – Linkoping University