531 research outputs found
Belonging to the old and unsuccessfully aged: language practices in a home in Maastricht, The Netherlands
Older people who live in a nursing home do not take the experience of belonging for granted.
Until now little research has been done on the role that language practices can play in the
experience of belonging in a nursing home. During conversations between nursing staff and
residents, the former often adjust their language practices, producing cultural narratives on
ageing to which residents in nursing homes are often exposed in the process of achieving
belonging. However, older people do not necessarily identify with these narratives, which
affect whether residents experience belonging. This article explores the adjustments in
language practices made by nursing staff and shows how they reinforce the cultural narratives
on ageing. The results demonstrate that these altered language practices reinforce cultural
narratives on ageing, and that adjustments are made towards what is perceived to be a
homogenous group of older people, thereby overlooking the individuality and capacities of
residents
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