Judith A. Davey

Older people and transport: coping without a car

Much of the literature on ageing and transport has been concerned with older drivers, which underlines the importance of private transport in their everyday lives, but little has been written about how a lack of transport impacts on quality of life. A survey was commissioned by the Office for Senior Citizens of the New Zealand government, and face-to-face semi-structured interviews were conducted in 2004 with 28 couples and 43 single people (14 men and 29 women). The sample was identified through Volunteer Community Co-ordinators (VCCs) and drawn from metropolitan, urban, small-town and rural areas. The average age of the men was 84.5 years and of the women 81.4 years, and all had been without private transport for at least six months. The interviews sought the experiences and opinions of older people who were ‘coping without a car’, and asked how this affected their lifestyle and quality of life, and how they met their transport needs. The findings reveal variations by gender, health status and personal outlook, including views on independence and reciprocity. While ‘serious’ transport requirements may be provided for by alternative means, the ‘discretionary’ trips that contribute significantly to the quality of life may be lost when private transport is unavailable. The findings have implications for local and national policy and planning, extend well beyond the sphere of transport, and illuminate processes of social exclusion among older people.

Active Ageing and education in mid and later life

Demographic change means not only that there will be a larger number of very old people in the future, but also that the median age of the population is moving upwards. At the same time, technological, economic and political change has destabilised labour markets. In the face of growing unemployment, and influenced by early retirement policies in some countries, labour market attachment for people in mid and later life, especially men, has been falling. Increasing costs of supporting ‘non-productive’ mid-lifers and looming skill and labour shortages have now led to the promotion of Active Ageing policies. Education for people in mid and later life is central to this approach. A study of almost 1,000 students aged 40 years and over at the Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, reveals patterns of educational involvement, motives and outcomes, and shows the extent of up-skilling which is taking place. This example illustrates prospects for and challenges to the role of education as part of an Active Ageing approach.

Independence, Well‐being, and Social Participation in an Aging Population

Abstract:  In 2005 the Health, Work, and Retirement (HWR) Longitudinal Study was established at Massey University in order to identify the later‐midlife factors that lay the basis for community participation, independence, and health in later life. Information was collected via postal questionnaire on physical and mental health, psychosocial factors, work and retirement attitudes, and socioeconomic and demographic indicators of a sample of 6662 community‐dwelling adults aged 55–70 years. This report provides an overview of these results, and highlights the impact that the transition from work to retirement has on the health and retirement adjustment of older people with respect to independence, well‐being, and social participation.

Against the Odds: Pathways of Early School Leavers into University Education: Evidence from England and New Zealand.

Adults who left school early are generally under-represented as participants in education later in life. However, some ‘buck the trend’ and this article examines the experiences and motivations of early school leavers in New Zealand and the UK, using information from two studies of adults on university-level courses. The findings from both these settings reveal remarkable similarities in a number of ways. The analysis shows that internal motivation is important, as are contextual factors, both cohort-based and relating to personal circumstances at specific life course stages. On the basis of an analysis of qualitative interview material, a typology is developed of different early school leavers, which links circumstances around school leaving with the processes of re-entry to education. The complexity of factors at work is discussed with reference to age, cohort and gender, using a life course perspective. It is suggested that a focus on those who ‘succeed’ against the odds constitutes a fruitful way forward in developing our understanding of what motivates adults to study.

Special needs versus the ‘level playing-field’: Recent developments in housing policy for indigenous people in New Zealand

Abstract In this paper we outline the development of the Papakainga Housing Scheme, which has been predominantly applied in rural regions of the North Island of New Zealand. The objective of this policy which was introduced in 1985 has been to remove legal impediments that have prevented Maori people building dwellings on collectively owned ancestral land. By 1992, a total of 901 loans had been approved, but the future of the programme is uncertain. We consider that the outcomes of this housing policy are, at best, ambiguous. The policy fits well with Maori concepts of land and home, and facilitates a return to tribal areas. However, designing special programmes for particular groups is as odds with current state policies that promote the ‘level playing-field’. In addition, the scheme will not achieve its full potential without the promotion of employment and other social services to create sustainable rural communities.

Opportunity or Outrage? Redundancy and Educational Involvement in Mid-life

Studies of older adults entering higher education say little about redundancy as a trigger factor or of the outcomes of education in such circumstances. Ideas on the importance of previous workplace and educational experience, motivational factors and the influence of gender are explored using information from a study of 21 adults aged 40-59 at Victoria University in Wellington, New Zealand. This focuses on the circumstances of redundancy, its immediate effects and how it led to university study. Longer-term outcomes relate to study, work and personal issues. Looking back, most of the interviewees saw that their experience of redundancy had been an opportunity for change and their study experiences had been beneficial, but not always in terms of workforce advancement.

Maori Grandfathers in Aotearoa (New Zealand)

Maori society in Aotearoa, the Maori name for New Zealand, is organized on the basis of tribes and extended families (whanau). Where whanau continue to be strong, they exhibit shared parenting and strong relationships between grandchildren and grandparents. Traditional grandparenting roles can be harder to maintain in the modern context, with the influences of urbanization, migration and reduced co-residence. Nevertheless, Maori grandfathers speak proudly of their tribal heritage and ancestry. They emphasize their roles of protecting and passing on traditional knowledge and maintaining intergenerational continuity. Where necessary, grandparents may take over the raising of grandchildren considered to be at risk. The New Zealand Children, Young Persons and their Families Act (1989) was strongly influenced by traditional Maori concepts of whanau and collective responsibility for children.