Geragogic support for status passages in old age : Challenge and opportunity of anew care for older people

Abstract

With the continuous increase in the average age, the temporal perspective for the phase of old age is also significantly expanding. This results in an individual need for reorientation for the aging person with respect to ameaningful shaping of this long period of time, which as aprogressive process leads to the end of life. In the context of the status passages to the third, fourth and fifth ages, there is aspecial relevance for this; however, the so-called care for older people (§71 Social Security Code, SGBXII) has so far largely ignored these important aspects. Rethinking in aneeds-oriented way, the facilitation of the necessary reorientation of life in old age through learning and education must therefore be given greater consideration. The article gives anecessary update of the existing care for older persons, which takes greater account of aneeds-oriented design of asociety of long life. Furthermore, the role and significance of the necessary educational processes in the sense of geragogy are outlined and also how they can contribute to successful aging. With reference to current research work and publications on the topic, the possibilities of geragogic support as achallenge and opportunity for new care for older persons are worked out. The learning and educational processes of the aging person can be aimed at various concerns, if nothing else differentiated according to the challenges associated with the social age categories, i.e., the third, fourth or fifth age; however, learning and educational processes also address very different dimensions, each focusing on the question of how older people can tackle and cope with such necessary adaptation and change processes.