Guzman, Viveka and Foley, Ronan and Doyle, Frank and Pertl, Maria (2023) ‘Somewhere old, somewhere new, somewhere green’: An exploration of health enabling places from the perspective of people ageing‐in‐place in Ireland during COVID‐19. Area. ISSN 0004-0894

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Abstract

Drawing on conceptual and empirical work in geographies of ageing and environmental gerontology, this study's aim is to explore the generation and maintenance of enabling places from the perspective of older community dwellers in the context of COVID-19. Findings are drawn from a qualitative thematic analysis of written submissions (n = 17), narrative interviews (n = 44) and go-along inter-views (n = 5) with people ageing-in- place in Irish communities during the pan-demic. The mean age of participants was 74.9 (SD = 7; range 65–96), 53% were female, 46% lived alone, and 86% lived in areas with high urban influence. Our results indicate that the COVID-19 public health restrictions curtailed participants' usual activities and influenced how they related to their homes, and a variety of public spaces where they had previously pursued valued activities. Transitions in their everyday geographies led to a wide array of affective and embodied experiences, and participants described diverse material and social emplaced-resources as enabling or hindering their health and well-being during COVID-19. Our core findings are summarised across three themes: (1) somewhere old, relates to emplacement in familiar places and the role of familiarity with place resources; (2)somewhere new, comprises the emergence of digital spaces and possible path-ways to build place in sideness; and (3) somewhere green, describes the negotiation and (re)turn to natural and outdoor environments during the pandemic. Results from this study contribute to identify the pathways through which enabling places for diverse older people may be generated and/or maintained, and provide evidence to support the development of enabling environments during times of social upheaval and beyond.

Item Type:	Article
Keywords:	ageing-in-place; COVID-19; enabling places; geographies of ageing; Ireland; qualitative analysis;
Academic Unit:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Geography
Item ID:	18725
Identification Number:	https://doi.org/10.1111/area.12898
Depositing User:	Dr. Ronan Foley
Date Deposited:	11 Jul 2024 11:30
Journal or Publication Title:	Area
Publisher:	Wiley
Refereed:	Yes
URI:	Publisher
Use Licence:	This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here

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