Social Inclusion of the Elderly as an Indicator of the Quality of Life
The article analyzes the quality of life of elderly people aged over 55 years in Bulgaria concerning their social inclusion in society; the analysis is based on a representative social survey of people aged 55+ entitled “Study on the Quality of Life of People Aged 55+ in Bulgaria”, conducted in 202...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | Bulgarian |
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South-West University "Neofit Rilski", Department of Sociology, Academic seminar "Media and Education"
2023-04-01
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| Series: | Проблеми на постмодерността |
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| Online Access: | https://pmpjournal.org/index.php/pmp/article/view/335 |
| _version_ | 1797842290382733312 |
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| author | Albena Nakova |
| author_facet | Albena Nakova |
| author_sort | Albena Nakova |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
The article analyzes the quality of life of elderly people aged over 55 years in Bulgaria concerning their social inclusion in society; the analysis is based on a representative social survey of people aged 55+ entitled “Study on the Quality of Life of People Aged 55+ in Bulgaria”, conducted in 2022 by the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. One thousand thirty respondents were surveyed. In the article, the quality of life of elderly people in terms of their social inclusion is studied through objective and subjective indicators. The survey results indisputably show that, by objective indicators of social inclusion of elderly people, the degree of social engagement of people aged 55+ in Bulgaria is not exceptionally high; such engagement consists, above all, of frequent social contact with close relatives, friends and neighbors, and assisting relatives, friends, and neighbors. The levels of social inclusion fall sharply regarding formalized social participation in volunteer activities for various organizations or even attendance at cultural events and interest clubs. However, we find that in terms of subjective assessments, the level of social engagement of elderly people corresponds fully to their needs and expectations for a whole and meaningful life, which thus makes satisfaction with the degree of social inclusion as a subjective indicator of the quality of social life, a factor that links the two levels of quality of life – individual and social. Thus, although objective indicators of social inclusion of elderly people in our country do not always indicate high levels of social engagement, subjective satisfaction with social inclusion points to a quality of life at the social level that fulfills the conditions for social cohesion and integration of elderly people in the life of society.
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| first_indexed | 2024-04-09T16:45:30Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-31077b1250fa4a1bb51c2e8ff6a81a61 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1314-3700 |
| language | Bulgarian |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-09T16:45:30Z |
| publishDate | 2023-04-01 |
| publisher | South-West University "Neofit Rilski", Department of Sociology, Academic seminar "Media and Education" |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Проблеми на постмодерността |
| spelling | doaj.art-31077b1250fa4a1bb51c2e8ff6a81a612023-04-22T17:20:14ZbulSouth-West University "Neofit Rilski", Department of Sociology, Academic seminar "Media and Education"Проблеми на постмодерността1314-37002023-04-0113110.46324/PMP2301008Social Inclusion of the Elderly as an Indicator of the Quality of LifeAlbena Nakova0Institute of Philosophy and Sociology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences The article analyzes the quality of life of elderly people aged over 55 years in Bulgaria concerning their social inclusion in society; the analysis is based on a representative social survey of people aged 55+ entitled “Study on the Quality of Life of People Aged 55+ in Bulgaria”, conducted in 2022 by the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. One thousand thirty respondents were surveyed. In the article, the quality of life of elderly people in terms of their social inclusion is studied through objective and subjective indicators. The survey results indisputably show that, by objective indicators of social inclusion of elderly people, the degree of social engagement of people aged 55+ in Bulgaria is not exceptionally high; such engagement consists, above all, of frequent social contact with close relatives, friends and neighbors, and assisting relatives, friends, and neighbors. The levels of social inclusion fall sharply regarding formalized social participation in volunteer activities for various organizations or even attendance at cultural events and interest clubs. However, we find that in terms of subjective assessments, the level of social engagement of elderly people corresponds fully to their needs and expectations for a whole and meaningful life, which thus makes satisfaction with the degree of social inclusion as a subjective indicator of the quality of social life, a factor that links the two levels of quality of life – individual and social. Thus, although objective indicators of social inclusion of elderly people in our country do not always indicate high levels of social engagement, subjective satisfaction with social inclusion points to a quality of life at the social level that fulfills the conditions for social cohesion and integration of elderly people in the life of society. https://pmpjournal.org/index.php/pmp/article/view/335quality of lifeelderly people aged 55 social inclusionobjective and subjective indicators of quality of life |
| spellingShingle | Albena Nakova Social Inclusion of the Elderly as an Indicator of the Quality of Life Проблеми на постмодерността quality of life elderly people aged 55 social inclusion objective and subjective indicators of quality of life |
| title | Social Inclusion of the Elderly as an Indicator of the Quality of Life |
| title_full | Social Inclusion of the Elderly as an Indicator of the Quality of Life |
| title_fullStr | Social Inclusion of the Elderly as an Indicator of the Quality of Life |
| title_full_unstemmed | Social Inclusion of the Elderly as an Indicator of the Quality of Life |
| title_short | Social Inclusion of the Elderly as an Indicator of the Quality of Life |
| title_sort | social inclusion of the elderly as an indicator of the quality of life |
| topic | quality of life elderly people aged 55 social inclusion objective and subjective indicators of quality of life |
| url | https://pmpjournal.org/index.php/pmp/article/view/335 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT albenanakova socialinclusionoftheelderlyasanindicatorofthequalityoflife |