“Successful aging through the eyes of Yup’ik Eskimos” An ethnographic look at Successful Aging in Bristol Bay, Alaska Jordan Lewis, MSW Ph.D. student University of Alaska Fairbanks Resilience and Adaptation Program Department of Psychology Fairbanks, Alaska
Background • Elders are critical to the social and cultural values of villages. • There is very little research on ethnic minority elders and how they subjectively define a successful older age. • The lack of a minority definition lumps them together with a generic definition by Rowe & Kahn and most likely portrays them as aging less successful than their non­minority counterparts.
What is Successful Aging? • There is not a well­accepted definition or model of successful aging that has stood the test of time. • The leading researchers, Rowe & Kahn (1987),* define successful aging as consisting of the following criteria: – – – – Low risk of disease Low risk of disease­related disability High mental and physical function Active engagement in life – This definition takes into account that there is a distinction among primary (normal) aging, secondary (impaired), and optimal (successful) aging. • According to Thomas A. Glass (2003), successful aging is something beyond health and longevity; it is rooted in the broader definition of the “good life” in late life. *Rowe, John W. & Robert L. Kahn (1987). Human aging: Usual and Successful. Science, 237, 143­149.
What is Successful Aging? cont’d • Successful aging is what older adults value in the quality of their life and their death. • According to Dilip V. Jeste (2005), there are difficulties in studying successful aging; there is no agreement on the nomenclature, let alone the definition and criteria for this entity. • Also known as: healthy aging, productive aging, effective aging, aging well, robust aging, and positive aging.
Voices of the elders • “Having accessibility to doctors and clinics for any medical need that you might have that could be attained so you’re not jumping from here to there, or you have to go without.” • “It has to do with their spirit and their genes. A lot to do with their lifestyle and depends on what ailments they have had.” • “Live a simple life. Live off the land and be a hard worker. Don’t forget where you come from and who you are.”
Research Proposal • This research study explores the concept of successful aging from a Yup’ik Eskimo perspective and what it means to age well in Bristol Bay. • This research study will also determine the role elders play in the sustainability of their respective communities and how this impacts their views of aging.
Research questions 1. How do Alaska Natives define successful aging? 2. What role do Alaska Native elders play in the sustainability of their villages? sustainability of their villages?
Methodology and data collection • A qualitative non­experimental research design • Data will be gathered through individual interviews of community residents over the age of 55. • Interviews will consist of a demographic data sheet, open and closed­ended questions (20), and follow­up questions (3). • After completion of interviews in each community, a focus group will be held with participants to discuss the questions asked of the participants, the format, their applicability to their own lives and community, and how the interview process could be improved.
Study Significance – Why do this research? • Most successful aging literature focuses on non­minority populations. • There is a lack of understanding of why, and how, elders age successfully and no definition exists that adequately describes a successful aging process among minority populations. • As the Alaska Native population continues to grow older, it will be important to address the issues facing our Native elders and determine what they need to age successfully.
Current research needs • Further research is needed to determine whether these findings hold true for other groups of elderly people (e.g., ethnic and minority populations). • Only a few studies have questioned the older adults themselves regarding the essential elements of successful aging. • This research study will attempt to address these issues, present a culturally­appropriate definition of successful aging through the eyes of Alaska Natives, and determine the role elders play in their community.
Future research questions 1. How do the roles of elders change as the leadership roles change in their community? 2. What effect does the village governance structure have on how elders view themselves in their community? 3. Does the community and its members have a positive or negative impact on an elder’s definition of successful aging?
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