Overview

In its brief but vigorous history, gerontology has spawned a broadening range of specializations. One of the newest of such specializations is narrative gerontology, so named for its emphasis on the biographical, or inside, dimensions of the experience of aging.Telling stories about our world, our relationships, and ourselves is fundamental to how we make meaning. Everything from our history to our religion and our memories to our emotions is linked to the tales we tell ourselves, and others, about where we have come from and where we are going. They are central to who we are. The biographical side of human life is every bit as critical to fathom as the biological side, if we seek a more balanced, positive, and optimistic perspective on what aging is about; if we would honor the dignity and complexity, the humanity and uniqueness of the lives of older persons, no matter what their health or economic standing. In this respect, a narrative approach is particularly suited to the exploration of such topics as meaning, spirituality, and wisdom, and the connections they share.This volume reflects a selection of new directions and insights, and constitutes a general broadening and deepening of narrative gerontology, exploring its implications for theory and research in the field of aging, and for the quality of life of older adults themselves. Such deepening indicates a greater refinement of thought, method, and intervention. The evolution of narrative gerontology is also evidenced by a significant increase in the number of faculty and graduate students engaged in research in this area, as well as by increasing collaboration among researchers, practitioners, and administrators in applying narrative insights to contexts such as long term care - indeed, healthcare in general. These initiatives have given rise to the phrase, narrative care as core care .

Full Product Details

Author:   Gary M. Kenyon ,  Ernst Bohlmeijer ,  William Lowell Randall
Publisher:   Oxford University Press Inc
Imprint:   Oxford University Press Inc
Dimensions:   Width: 16.50cm , Height: 2.70cm , Length: 24.10cm
Weight:   0.738kg
ISBN:  

9780195397956

ISBN 10:   0195397959
Pages:   424
Publication Date:   20 December 2010
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand  
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Table of Contents

Preface Gary Kenyon, William Randall, and Ernst Bohlmeijer Acknowledgements Contributors Foreword James E. Birren Part 1: Issues 1. Narrative Foreclosure in Later Life: Possibilities and Limits Mark Freeman 2. Memory, Metaphor, and Meaning: Reading for Wisdom in the Stories of Our Lives William L. Randall 3. Narrative Events and Biographical Construction in Old Age Jaber F. Gubrium 4. Inventing Yourself: How Older Adults Deal with the Pressure of Late-Modern Identity Construction Frits de Lange 5. Minding the Wisdom of the Ages: Narrative Approaches in Pastoral Care with Older Adults R. Ruard Ganzevoort 6. In Waves of Time, Space, and Self: The Dwelling-Place of Age in Virginia Woolf's The Waves Rishi Goyal and Rita Charon 7. The Narrative Frame in Discourse on Aging: Understanding Facts and Values Behind Public Policy Phillip G. Clark Part 2: Investigations 8. The Power of Stories Left Untold: Narratives of Nazi Followers Stephan Marks 9. Young Bodies, Old Bodies, and Stories of the Athletic Self Cassandra Phoenix 10. The Raging Grannies: Narrative Construction of Gender and Aging Linda Caissie 11. Narrative and Gender Differences: How Men and Women Interpret Their Lives Patricia O'Neill, James E. Birren, and Cheryl Svensson 12. Telling Stories: How Do Expressions of Self Differ in a Writing Group Versus a Reminiscence Group? Kate de Medeiros 13. Mneme and Anamnesis: The Contribution of Involuntary Reminiscences to the Construction of a Narrative Self in Older Age Philippe Cappeliez and Jeffrey Dean Webster 14. Achieving Narrative Coherence Following Traumatic War Experience: The Role of Social Support Karen Burnell, Peter Coleman, and Nigel Hunt 15. Using Self-Defining Memories in Couples Therapy with Older Adults Jefferson A. Singer and Beata Labunko Messier Part 3: Interventions 16. On Suffering, Loss, and The Journey To Life: Tai Chi as Narrative Care Gary M. Kenyon 17. Older Adults in Search of New Stories: Measuring the Effects of Life Review on Coherence and Integration in Autobiographical Narratives Thijs Tromp 18. Reminiscence Interventions: Bringing Narrative Gerontology into Practice Ernst Bohlmeijer and Gerben Westerhof 19. Life Review Using Autobiographical Retrieval: A Protocol for Training Depressed Residential Home Inhabitants in Recalling Specific Personal Memories Bas Steunenberg & Ernst Bohlmeijer 20. Green and Grey : an Educational Program to Enhance Contact Between Younger and Older Adults by Means of Lifestories Gerben J. Westerhof 21. Implementation of Narrative Care in the Netherlands: Coordinating Management, Institutional, and Personal Narratives Gerdienke M. Ubels 22. Asking the Right Questions: Enabling Dementing Persons to Speak for Themselves Marie-Elise van den Brandt 23. The Ripple Effect: A Story of the Transformational Nature of Narrative Care Daphne Noonan Afterword 24. Towards a Narrative Turn in Health Care Ernst Bohlmeijer, Gary Kenyon, William Randall

Reviews

Storying Later Life is an intriguing, challenging and complex read... This book is unique in its exploration of the theoretical underpinning, the evidence base and the practical applications that this narrative 'take' on the ageing process can bring to individuals, groups and services for older people... The chapters are diverse and thought provoking and bring many related and varied themes of narrative gerontology together as a coherent approach to new and positive ways of working with older people in health and social care. Ageing & Society

This brilliant collection of articles on aging reflects a new and enlightened approach to the study of the human life course. Aging can only be understood in terms of what individuals make of their lives as lived-which, in turn, is deeply influenced by what the broader culture in which they live makes of the life course. This newer, broader view of the aging process is revolutionizing gerontology, but even more important, it is greatly enriching how ordinary people view the challenges of life as they grow older. The book is gripping in its challenge, required reading for those concerned with the realization of individual life histories. Jerome Bruner Research Professor of Psychology, New York University Senior Research Fellow, New York University School of Law New ideas and new directions animate this latest collection in narrative gerontology. Storying Later Life deals realistically with the dark as well as the light sides of narrative - the times when we cannot or will not story our lives, as well as the times when we tell stories that are pleasurable and healing. The editors' concern for the broader uses of narrative beyond individual concerns, particularly the necessity of narrative care at a time when medicine is increasingly mechanistic and impersonal, gives this collection moral weight as well as social significance. I highly recommend it. Ruth E. Ray Professor of English, Wayne State University

Storying Later Life is an intriguing, challenging and complex read... This book is unique in its exploration of the theoretical underpinning, the evidence base and the practical applications that this narrative 'take' on the ageing process can bring to individuals, groups and services for older people... The chapters are diverse and thought provoking and bring many related and varied themes of narrative gerontology together as a coherent approach to new and positive ways of working with older people in health and social care. * Ageing & Society *

Author Information

Gary Kenyon, Ph.D. is founding Chair and Professor, Gerontology Department, St. Thomas University, New Brunswick, Canada. He is listed in Who's Who in Canada and the United States and is a frequent visiting scholar in Europe. Dr. Kenyon is a co-creator of Narrative Gerontology and the concept of Narrative Care. William L. Randall, EdD, is Associate Professor in the Department of Gerontology at St. Thomas University, where he also serves as Director of the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research on Narrative. He is author or co-author of numerous publications on narrative gerontology and biographical aging. He is also principal organizer of the 2002, 2004, and 2010 international-interdisciplinary conferences entitled Narrative Matters. Ernst Bohlmeijer, Ph.D. is Associate Professor Mental Health Promotion at the University of Twente. He is one of the leading international researchers on reminiscence and life-review. He has a special interest in narrative-based and acceptance-based care. He published over 70 articles and book chapters on these topics.

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