With little research documenting elderly medication users’ beliefs and attitudes towards medication, the purpose of this study is to document how seniors experience medication use within the context of their daily lives. The study population was comprised of female and male seniors aged 65 and over who were recruited from the Parksville – Qualicum Beach and Nanaimo communities of eastern Vancouver Island, British Columbia. The findings of this research suggest that for seniors, medication use is a complex and emotionally charged experience. It is an experience filled with contradictions, in which seniors are forced to negotiate between diverse realms of information concerning medications, from the directives they receive from health care professionals, to the signals they receive from their bodies. It is an experience in which powerful conceptions of medications as prolongers of life often trump an individual’s overwhelming desire to stop taking those medications. This research is intended to expand our understandings of the perceptions, attitudes, and beliefs that inform Canadian seniors’ medication use practices. Furthermore, findings from this thesis will contribute to a collaborative investigation of seniors’ experiences with medication designed to address the increasing number of adverse drug reactions experienced by the elderly. / Graduate

With amateur athleticism on the rise in Canada, older Masters athletes have been promoted as exemplars of “successful aging” in governmental population health campaigns that encourage all seniors to be physically active. This study investigates the life experiences of a group of ‘successfully aging’ Masters athletes to better situate their circumstances against the backdrop of a discourse of health responsibilization enacted by the state in its efforts to improve the health of aging citizens. Data were obtained from 15 in-depth interviews with Masters athletes age 60 and over. The findings revealed Masters athletes to have had exceptional life-long involvement in athleticism with intense physical training debuting early in adult life with several participants having been high-ranking amateur athletes prior to their involvement in Masters athleticism. Belonging for the most part to a high socioeconomic status, these participants were able to afford the costs associated with participation in high calibre athletic training and events. While these athletes might be held as exemplars of successful aging, they did not perceive themselves as such nor are their lifestyles and athletic achievements typical of the older seniors population that is targeted by state funded population health promotion efforts. This study offers insight into the socially constructed nature of successful aging under neoliberalism. It highlights a trend whereby health and aging are responsibilized as successful personal endeavours rather than as the outcomes of determinants largely outside the control of any one individual. / Graduate / 0340 / 0615 / mcgowanb@uvic.ca

This study seeks to establish a working definition of contributions, related to older adults, from the perspective of stakeholder groups (elders, caregivers to elders, practitioners, and policy makers). A secondary content analysis was conducted on 4 group interviews of stakeholder groups. Findings supported the conceptual framework of the Welfare Diamond, whereby elders make contributions to various sectors that constitute society. Further, stakeholders identified invisible contributions, as well as the darker side of making contributions, as important elements of contribution. Findings help to establish an inclusive definition of contribution and to highlight where more research may be needed. / Aging

Thesis (M. A.)--University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Title proper from title frame. Also available in printed format.

Thesis (M. A.)--University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Title proper from title frame. Also available in printed format.

Thesis (M. Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Also available in print.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 318-340). Also available in print.

Thesis--University of Florida. / Description based on print version record. Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 77-80).

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Illinois State University, 1972. / Title from title page screen, viewed Sept. 29, 2004. Dissertation Committee: Elwood Egelston (chair), Richard L. Desmond, Richard E. Hulet, Wilbur R. Venerable, D. Gene Watson. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 136-141) and abstract. Also available in print.

Thesis (PhD(Curriculum Studies))-University of Pretoria, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references.