Embargo
Item embargoed until 2099-01-01Document type
ArticleVersion
Accepted versionPublication date
All rights reserved
Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/218024
For the sake of myself, my colleagues and my community: Exploring the benefits of political participation in later life
Journal Title
Director/Tutor
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Related resource
Abstract
Most studies on the benefits of late life civic engagement have focused exclusively on formal volunteering. Older adults’ political participation is much more overlooked. The current paper explores the benefits of long-term participation in political organizations as described by actively engaged Spanish older people. We used an adaptation of McAdams’ life-story interview with 40 participants from three types of political organizations who occupy a responsible position within the organization. We identified three main themes in participants’ answers: personal benefits, relational benefits, and community benefits. Overall, our results showed that the benefits arising from long-term political participation go far beyond the well-studied individual benefits that research on late-life volunteering has typically identified, and spread to relational and community areas. Social work practitioners should consider these benefits when they implement plans and programmes to promote healthy, active ways of aging, fostering age-friendly communities or reducing old-age social exclusion.
Subject (English)
Citation
Citation
SERRAT FERNÁNDEZ, Rodrigo, et al. For the sake of myself, my colleagues and my community: Exploring the benefits of political participation in later life. Journal of Gerontological Social Work. 2023. Vol. 66, num. 7, pags. 908-923. ISSN 1540-4048. [consulted: 8 of June of 2026]. Available at: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/218024