Thesis (M.G.S.)--Miami University, Dept. of Sociology and Gerontology, 2008. / Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 47-49).

Objective: This thesis examines the timing of having the first child in relation to when Swedish men and women leave the parental home. The aim is to explain if any childbearing trends can be detected based on whether one leaves the parental home at a younger or older relative age than the current age norms. The timing of having the first child might be affected by either a speed up/slow down effect (one continues to experience other stages of adulthood faster or slower relative to people of the same age) or an age-norm effect (one tries to counter-act deviation from the home-leaving norm by speeding up or delaying childbearing to align with people of the same age).   Method and Data: Event history analysis is applied using a multivariate piece-wise constant hazard model. The data comes from Swedish register data based on records of the entire Swedish population between 1 January 1953 and 31 December 2012.   Results: The results indicate that Swedish women who leave the parental home younger than the norm run a greater risk of having their first child sooner after leaving the parental home relative to women of the same age. Swedish men who leave the parental home younger than the norm, on the other hand, run a greater risk of having the first child later after leaving the parental home relative to men of the same age. Swedish men who leave the parental home later than the norm run a greater risk of having their first child sooner after leaving the parental home relative to men of the same age while the opposite is true for women. However, the effects of timing of leaving the parental home are relatively small, which can be explained by the very long and stable mean durations found. The peak durations of intensities, i.e. number of years between leaving the parental home and having the first child, for men and women can be found after 10–12 years. The peak durations of intensities are remarkably similar between the genders.   Conclusion: Swedish women who leave the parental home earlier than the norm are more likely to experience a speed-up effect in terms of childbearing and a slow down effect when leaving the parental home later than the norm. Thus, women stick to breaking the normative timing of the life course events once they have started. Swedish men, on the other hand, are more likely to try and catch up with age norms and instead postpone having the first child when leaving the parental home earlier than the norm and speed up having a child when leaving the parental home later than the norm. Men are thus more likely to time having children with men of the same age. / Stockholm University SIMSAM Node for Demographic Research

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Ålderns och åldrandets betydelser för människor som under lång tid har levt med fysiska funktionsnedsättningar har hittills fått begränsad uppmärksamhet såväl i forskning som i andra sammanhang. Samtidigt pekar såväl åldersgränser i det offentliga stödsystemet som tidigare forskning mot att ålder och åldrande kan få speciella innebörder för människor som lever med funktionshinder. Syftet med den här avhandlingen är att tolka innebörder av åldersnormer och upplevd ålder för människor som i dagens Sverige befinner sig i de kronologiska åldrarna kring 65 med fysiska funktionsnedsättningar som funnits med under minst 30 år. Med åldersnormer avses ”enhetliga uppfattningar om de ’typiska’ åldrar då man innehar vissa roller under livsloppet”. Subjektiv ålder syftar på ”hur gammal man känner sig”. Åldrarna kring 65 har valt därför att det är en del av livsloppet då ålder, åldrande och åldersnormer kan förväntas få särskilt stor betydelse. En intervjustudie med 20 personer i åldrarna 56-72 har genomförts. Planeringen, genomförandet och analysen av intervjuerna har utgått från ett livsloppsperspektiv. Tolkningen av de intervjuades utsagor visar bland annat hur människor kan anamma ”äldrenormer” som ofta beskrivs som negativa i andra sammanhang på ett sätt som resulterar i något för individen positivt. Till skillnad från befintliga teorier om hälso- och funktionstillståndets betydelse för människors subjektiva ålder pekar studien också mot att det kan finnas en rad olika möjligheter att känna sig ung eller ”inte gammal” med funktionsnedsättningar och sjukdomar. Mot bakgrund av intervjupersonernas beskrivningar av sina dagliga liv framstår det därtill inte som orimligt att en ålderspensionär med omfattande funktionsnedsättningar med hjälp av ett individuellt anpassat stöd och hjälpmedel kan tillägna sig ett modernt och fritidsaktivt pensionärsideal på ett sätt som får som konsekvens att hon utformar sitt liv på ett ”tredje-ålder-likt” sätt. Ålder och åldrande framträder emellertid inte som betydelsefullt för alla aspekter av de intervjuades liv med funktionshinder. Särskilt inte för hur vissa förändringar av det egna funktionstillståndet upplevs. / The significance of age and ageing for people who have experienced a physical impairment under a long period of time is an area that has received little attention in both policies related to disability and the elderly as well as in social scientific research on disability and social gerontology. At the same time, age limits related to public support for disabled people, as well as related theories and empirical studies indicate that age and ageing can have specific meanings for people living with impairments. The aim of this thesis is to interpret the significance of age norms and subjective age for people in today’s Sweden who are approximately 65 years old with physical impairments that have existed for at least 30 years. Age norms refer to commonly accepted interpretations of what is associated with a certain age or phase of life, while subjective age refers to ”how old one feels”. The years around 65 have been chosen because they stand out as a time in life when age, ageing and age norms are expected to take on a particularly palpable meaning. An interview-study of 20 persons between 56-72 years of age was conducted. A life course perspective was used, both as a theoretical departure and as a methodological tool. Among other things, the interpretation of the interviews reveals how people can acquire and apply age norms that are often described as negative in other contexts in a way that results in something positive for the individual. In contrast to existing theories that emphasize the centrality of good health to be able to ”feel young”, the study at hand also indicates that those with a medically-defined chronic illness or physical impairment may experience age in a number of ways, without this necessarily involving their diagnosis or impairment. Furthermore, the interview subjects’ descriptions of their daily lives suggest that it is not unreasonable to surmise that a pensioner with impairments in today’s Swedish society can achieve a modern and leisurely ”third age” pensioner ideal. But age and ageing do not emerge as important to all aspects of life. This is particularly the case with respect to experiences of various changes in one’s own physical condition.

The purpose of this study has been to explore the importance of internalized age stereotypes and age norms for older workers' self-image. By examining the use of norms and stereotypes when they talk about their working life and plan for life after retirement, the study aims to expand the understanding of self-image formation and the influence of internalized age stereotypes on retirement planning. The study was conducted using a qualitative method with semi-structured interviews. The theoretical framework guiding this research incorporates social identity theory and self-categorization theory to understand how self-image takes shape throughsocial interactions and societal structures. Concepts from social psychology underscore the importance of self-reflection in identity formation. Stereotype embodiment theory specifically focuses on the impact of ageist stereotypes. The results of our study show that internalized ageist beliefs influence the participants’ thoughts, feelings and behaviors. These beliefs affect their self-image and interpretation of the world around them. Self-image is continuously formed throughout life, not only at work or during leisure time. Our theoretical standpoint is confirmed by the empirical data, showing that how individuals perceive themselves is significantly influenced by how they are perceived by others. However, this varies with their basic self-esteem. The less significance age has for personal identity, the lower the susceptibility to societal ageist attitudes. Our study shows that age identification is stronger among women. The influence on an age-related self-image on retirement plans is relatively low. The plans are based on what the participants want and dream about – choices dictated by their personality, interests, feelings and values. Age is a part of the whole, without being decisive for post-retirement plans. However, the age-related aspect can be seen in the fact that several participants experience stress about not being able to accomplish everything they desire in life. This stress does not motivate continued work but rather encourages them to retire as soon as they have the opportunity from both a work and economic perspective.