From Financial to Identity: Meanings Assigned to Work by Older People in the COVID-19 Context
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5294/aqui.2025.25.4.1Keywords:
Work, older adult, social perception, social representation, personal satisfaction, COVID-19Abstract
Introduction: Promoting active aging is essential to ensuring quality of life and autonomy for older people. Work, as a key dimension in this process, contributes to socialization, strengthening identity, and maintaining the physical and mental health of this population. Objective: To understand social representations of work among older people during the social isolation imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials and Methods: This is a qualitative study conducted with 50 active or retired older people linked to an aging institute at a Brazilian federal university. People aged 60 years or older, with preserved cognition and availability to participate, were included. Data collection, which ended due to theoretical saturation, used semi-structured interviews with the free word association technique, using the term “work” as an inducer. The textual corpus was processed by Iramuteq software, adopting similarity analysis, and interpreted in light of the Social Representation Theory. Three researchers participated in the analysis and discussion of the data; however, the findings were not validated with the participants. Results: Four categories emerged: Economic-Functional; Subjective and Emotional; Relational and Socialization; and Cognitive and Personal Development. The results indicate multiple dimensions assigned to work by older people, going beyond the economic dimension. Conclusions: The findings reinforce the role of work as a structuring component of active aging and point to the need to formulate policies and practices that promote the social inclusion and appreciation of this population.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Maria das Graças Duarte Miguel, Adriana Meira Tiburtino Nepomuceno, Josiane Maria Oliveira de Souza, Maria Lúcia do Carmo Cruz Robazzi, Antônia Leda Oliveira Silva, Maria Adelaide Silva Paredes Moreira
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