A potential conflict between grandparenthood and the third age lifestyle in the Finnish countryside
Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: Some recent studies on grandparenthood have pointed to a potential conflict between grandparenthood and the ideals of the third age. Retired people are increasingly expected to live up to the ideals of active aging, and many grandparents may wish to demonstrate their agency by getting engaged in various leisure activities, which may reduce their possibilities and motivation to spend time with their grandchildren. We looked at this potential conflict from the perspective of people living in the countryside, where distances to both cultural and other services, and grandchildren, may both be long. We analyzed our interviewees' discursive constructions of their grandparenthood and independent life in the third age as well as the ways in which they negotiated the moral dilemma between the two. The data consisted of 14 telephone interviews with grandparents, aged 66–85, living relatively far from population centers. All interviewees underscored the importance of grandchildren and their willingness to spend time with them, and there were few direct references to the conflict between a committed grandparenthood and a third age lifestyle. However, the interviewees did express ideas related to maintaining certain limits in their grandparenthood to secure their own private lives. A potential conflict between a committed grandparenthood and the third age lifestyle appeared in such situations when grandparents needed to make real choices about how they spend their time, which was mediated by the geographical distances between the generations. The interviewees aimed at balancing between being devoted grandparents and maintaining independence. A familist discourse emphasizing the role of the nuclear family was commonly used to justify keeping a distance between them and the middle generation and grandchildren. The interviews echoed the third age ideals mainly in terms of independence and free time rather than consumption and leisure activities, the availability of which was limited in the countryside. • Research has pointed to an emerging conflict between grandparenthood and active aging. • We studied the emergence of the conflict in interviews with rural grandparents. • The interviewees balanced between their devoted grandparenthood and independence. • Geographic distance between generations was a mediating factor in the conflict. • Future research should approach this potential conflict in urban environments.
Source: Journal of Aging Studies
Authors: Ilkka Pietilä, Hanna Ojala
Institutions: University of Helsinki, Tampere University, University of Tampere
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,240
OpenAlex ID: W4402737632