Debbie Laliberte Rudman

Shaping the active, autonomous and responsible modern retiree: an analysis of discursive technologies and their links with neo-liberal political rationality

Retirement is undergoing structural and discursive transformations that have implications for the individual and social experience and management of later life. Although discourses about retirement do not determine how individuals will prepare for and act as ‘retirees’, they provide morally-laden messages that shape peoples possibilities for being and acting. Using Canadian newspaper articles published in 1999 and 2000, and drawing upon the governmentality perspective, this study explores the interconnections between neo-liberal political rationality and discursive constructions of ‘retiree’ subjectivities. The analysis demonstrates the ways in which certain subjectivities, and their associated technologies and practices of the self that are consistent with neo-liberal political rationality, are being shaped as ideal for ‘retirees’. The paper critically examines this process and its implications, and argues that the personal ‘freedom’ promised with the idealised life practices is ultimately illusory, because they oblige older people to resist or defy ageing through relentless projects of self-reflection and improvement, self-marketing, risk management, lifestyle maximisation and body optimisation. The implications of the neo-liberal discourse about old age and ‘retirees’ for future social policies and older peoples services are critically examined.

Occupational terminology: Occupational possibilities

This occupational terminology interactive dialogue outlines a construct that I have been developing since my doctoral work. Writing this paper has provided me with an opportunity to reflect on how the construct of ‘occupational possibilities’ has evolved, and how it provides a particular lens to examine transactions between structure and agency in the shaping of occupation at individual and collective levels. As such, this construct fits within the growing body of work in occupational science exploring theoretical and methodological approaches to addressing the ‘situated’ nature of occupation; that is, how occupation is shaped, embedded and negotiated within, as well as how it contributes to the shaping of, social systems and structures (Cutchin, Aldrich, Luc Ballaird, & Coppola, 2008; Dickie, Cutchin, & Humphry, 2006; Hocking, 2000; Phelan & Kinsella, 2009). Within this paper, after providing a description of the construct of occupational possibilities, I address its theoretical underpinnings within the governmentality perspective and raise questions and examples to illustrate its potential usefulness to further understanding of occupation as a situated phenomenon.

The performances and places of identity: Conceptualizing intersections of occupation, identity and place in the process of migration

Both occupation and place are recognised as having reciprocal relationships to identity, in that each can be drawn upon to develop and convey who one is and in turn, engagement with both occupation and place are shaped by identity. When people migrate, however, their occupations and sense of place shift. It is therefore vital to consider the intersections of occupation, place and identity when studying migration from an occupational perspective. This article draws together Goffmans work related to the performative aspects of identity and Bourdieus notion of habitus, to propose the idea of ‘doing identity’ in relation to place. It argues that this concept will enhance conceptualisation and study of the inter‐relationships between occupation, place and identity, and suggests research exploring how identity is situated by habitus and performed in social interaction through occupation.

Enacting the Critical Potential of Occupational Science: Problematizing the ‘Individualizing of Occupation’

Over the past decade, many occupational science scholars have emphasized the critical potential of occupational science; that is, its capacity to generate knowledge to inform practices that work against occupational inequities. Within this lecture, previously articulated concerns regarding the ‘individualizing of occupation’ within occupational science are politicized, by placing them within the broader ‘individualizing of the social’ that is associated with neoliberalism and related socio-political transformations. This broader ‘individualizing of the social’, which has involved configuring various social problematics as individual concerns and responsibilities within an array of social policies, discourses and practices, obscures the economic, political and other social factors that shape inequities in possibilities for work, retirement, education, leisure and other occupations. Working against such inequities requires problematizing the ‘individualizing of occupation’, within and outside of occupationa...Over the past decade, many occupational science scholars have emphasized the critical potential of occupational science; that is, its capacity to generate knowledge to inform practices that work against occupational inequities. Within this lecture, previously articulated concerns regarding the ‘individualizing of occupation’ within occupational science are politicized, by placing them within the broader ‘individualizing of the social’ that is associated with neoliberalism and related socio-political transformations. This broader ‘individualizing of the social’, which has involved configuring various social problematics as individual concerns and responsibilities within an array of social policies, discourses and practices, obscures the economic, political and other social factors that shape inequities in possibilities for work, retirement, education, leisure and other occupations. Working against such inequities requires problematizing the ‘individualizing of occupation’, within and outside of occupational science, and situating occupation within economic, political and other types of social forces. Drawing upon on-going research addressing the contemporary re-construction of retirement and later life work, I argue that critically examining how occupational possibilities are constructed in ways that align with broader socio-political forces, as well as how they are actively negotiated by individuals and collectives, provides a valuable way forward in enacting the critical potential of occupational science.

A vision for occupational science: Reflecting on our disciplinary culture

This paper highlights and discusses key questions for the continued development of occupational science, contending that reflexivity and dialogue addressing these questions are essential to achieve complex understandings of occupation. The questions, which relate to disciplinary identity, the relation between science and practice, relevance, interdisciplinarity and internationalization, evolved from dialogue amongst the authors who collectively worked towards a shared vision for occupational science in the context of a doctoral course. This paper does not seek to build consensus around this vision, but rather identifies issues vital to consider as occupational science continues to evolve. Disciplinary culture is proposed to be a useful starting point for dialogue, as this encompasses the values, assumptions and beliefs that shape what we seek to know about occupation and how we seek to know. The paper also calls for further consideration of pluralism in relation to occupational science.

A Critical Interpretive Synthesis of the Uptake of Critical Perspectives in Occupational Science

An emancipatory agenda is emerging within occupational science, building on the work of scholars who have advocated for a more critical, reflexive and socially responsive discipline. Although several analyses of the disciplines genesis and underpinning paradigms have been presented and there has been an increasing use of critical approaches in recent publications, little is known about how critical perspectives have been taken up in the occupational science literature. This study presents a critical interpretive synthesis, a methodology that enables synthesis of large amounts of diverse qualitative data and facilitates critical engagement with the assumptions that shape and inform a body of research. The study included articles published between 1996 and 2013 in the Journal of Occupational Science that implicitly or explicitly took up critical perspectives. It was conducted in relation to questions regarding: (a) how “critical” has been defined in this literature and (b) how critical perspectives are being utilized to inform occupational science. In addition to describing three “turns” in how critical perspectives have and are being employed, this article discusses the implications of these results in relation to the aim of developing as a socially responsive discipline.

Moving Beyond ‘Aging In Place’ to Understand Migration and Aging: Place Making and the Centrality Of Occupation

‘Aging in place’ has become a key conceptual framework for understanding and addressing place within the aging process. However, aging in place has been critiqued for not sufficiently providing tools to understand relations or transactions between aging and place, and for not matching the diversity of contemporary society in which people are moving between and across nations more than ever before. In this article, the authors draw from concepts of place and migration that are becoming increasingly visible in occupational science. The concept of ‘aging in place’ is critically examined as an example of an ideal where the understanding of place is insufficiently dynamic in a context of migration. The authors suggest that the concept of place making can instead be a useful tool to understand how occupation can be drawn upon to negotiate relationships that connect people to different places around the world, how the negotiated relations are embedded within the occupations that fill daily lives, and how this process is contextualized and enacted in relation to resources and capabilities.

Conceptual Insights for Expanding Thinking Regarding the Situated Nature of Occupation

In concert with transactionalism, we argue in this chapter that occupational science must pay greater attention to the complex ways that occupation is situated within contexts. Working from previous critiques that Dewey did not adequately attend to the ways that power relations impact on various actors’ possibilities for action, we present two theoretical lenses that can be drawn upon to consider how social power relations shape transactions and, in turn, how occupations are always politically, socially, culturally and historically situated. In particular, we delineate concepts from two bodies of critically located social theories, specifically, governmentality studies and Bourdieu’s theory of practice, and subsequently apply them to examine the situated nature of occupation in relation to the contemporary governing of retirement and the negotiation of integration following international migration. Both of these theoretical lenses emphasize the productive nature of power and how its enactment differentially shapes what people and collectives come to take for granted regarding what they themselves and others should do. We argue that these lenses can be applied, in concert with transactionalism, to develop complex understandings of the situated nature of occupation and contribute to social change aimed at creating more equitable possibilities for occupation.

Illustrating the Importance of Critical Epistemology to Realize the Promise of Occupational Justice

This article argues that it is vital to embrace critical reflexivity to interrogate the epistemological beliefs and principles guiding occupation-based scholarship to move away from frameworks that are incongruent with calls for occupational justice. For this purpose, we describe an epistemic tension between the stated intentions to demonstrate that occupation-based work can be a means to create a more just society and the epistemological beliefs that have historically dominated occupation-based scholarship. To exemplify the potential implications of this tension, a critical analysis of Creswell’s social justice/transformative design is presented, illustrating that work that expresses a commitment to social justice while relying on positivist/postpositivist assumptions often risks perpetuating injustices through neglecting their sociopolitical construction. Drawing upon critical social theory, we highlight how engagement with critical epistemological assumptions can facilitate addressing the sociopolitical “roots” of occupational injustices and highlight directions for social transformation

Struggling to Maintain Occupation While Dealing With Risk: The Experiences of Older Adults With Low Vision

The primary aim of this descriptive phenomenological study was to describe the core aspects of living with low vision in later life among older adults (aged 70 years and older) who had not accessed rehabilitation services for low vision. Thirty-four older adults from urban and rural areas participated in a semi-structured qualitative interview and a telephone follow-up. Drawing on an occupational science perspective and using Giorgi and Giorgis (2003) method of analysis, the essence of the experience of living with low vision was identified as struggling to maintain valued and necessary occupations while dealing with risk. Additional themes included enhanced sense of risk, striving for independence, and shrinking physical and social life spaces. Findings are interpreted in relation to occupational adaptation and environmental influences on occupation, and implications for the role of occupational therapists are discussed.