Document Type
Article
Publication Date
4-1-2011
Journal / Book Title
Journal of Women & Aging
Abstract
In this article, we examine varied attitudes and practices toward volunteering in later life, as shared by a group of 40 retired women. We categorize women based on their engagement in retirement and label the categories according to societal expectations as follows: traditional volunteers as "good," nonvolunteers as "bad," and caregiving volunteers as "unrecognized." Using critical gerontology and a feminist framework, we juxtapose the lived experiences of retired women with a prevailing discourse on successful aging and civic engagement. We advocate for societal recognition of caregiving as a valuable form of volunteering, as well as the need to respect multiple ways in which older women experience and find meaning in later life.
DOI
10.1080/08952841.2011.561138
MSU Digital Commons Citation
Nesteruk, Olena and Price, Christine A., "Retired Women and Volunteering: The Good, the Bad, and the Unrecognized" (2011). Department of Family Science and Human Development Scholarship and Creative Works. 141.
https://digitalcommons.montclair.edu/familysci-facpubs/141
Published Citation
Nesteruk, O., & Price, C. A. (2011). Retired women and volunteering: The good, the bad, and the unrecognized. Journal of Women & Aging, 23(2), 99-112.