Occupational involvement of older gay men

Abstract

ABSTRACT Introduction Older people often face discrimination and stigma across different societies. Older gay men may confront a dual stigma, being targeted for their age and sexual orientation. Such stigmatization frequently and unjustly subjects this group to prevailing social expectations, affecting their occupational involvement. Objective: To investigate the occupational involvement of older gay men. Method: This exploratory, qualitative study involved eight participants aged between 61 and 69 years. Participants were recruited using the snowball sampling technique. Narratives were gathered using a semi-structured script, and the resulting data were assessed through thematic analysis. Findings: Analysis of the participants’ narratives revealed five dominant themes concerning the relationship between aging as a gay individual and involvement in occupation: self-care; mobility; support networks; the interplay of repression, resistance, and expression of sexuality; and life planning. Conclusion: The process of aging for gay men is intricately linked to their occupations, both in past and present contexts, as well as their aspirations for the future. Notably, these occupations and aspirations encompass practices related to maintaining a youthful appearance, urban accessibility, the forging of homosexual identities, nurturing emotional and social connections, confronting repression and violence, and reflecting on the historical and personal challenges presented by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.