Abstract
Despite the fundamental role given to the sustainability of intergenerational programming regarding their demonstrated impact on an aging society, only a few studies have undertaken an exploration of the qualitative core dimensions of sustainable intergenerational programs. This article addresses how the sustainability of educational intergenerational programs relates to why and how intergenerational program managers in the Portuguese area of Porto may have developed different attitudes and beliefs around adequate implementation of the programs. Drawing on qualitative interview data of a four-case fieldwork study conducted in Porto, Portugal, the study examines autonomy, empowerment, and intergenerational relationships as dimensions other than time duration behind program sustainability. Attention to the managers’ narratives on how intergenerational programs are implemented can help to explain why some dimensions are more highlighted than others. A qualitative analysis of intergenerational program sustainability, it is argued, offers considerable findings which provide opportunities to its implementation and intersection with managers’ beliefs. Findings suggest a need to de-emphasize both time duration and managers’ persona as the key for sustainability. We recommend intergenerational program sustainability as an area for future theorizing through providing a conceptualizing framework that might go beyond the normative focus on its duration and into the relational nature of these programs.
Highlights
This article addresses how the sustainability of educational intergenerational programs (IP) relates to why and how IP managers in the Portuguese area of Porto may have developed different attitudes and beliefs around implementation of IP
This article has examined how autonomy, empowerment, and intergenerational relationships are embedded in educational IP as dimensions for sustainability
The four case studies continued after an initial pilot year and that was felt by their managers to be a success in terms of sustainability
Summary
This article addresses how the sustainability of educational intergenerational programs (IP) relates to why and how IP managers in the Portuguese area of Porto may have developed different attitudes and beliefs around implementation of IP. In the context of this paper, sustainability is not approached at the macrolevel but at the programmatic level, i.e., in the sphere of social program planning and implementation. Various other benefits are associated with good quality intergenerational contact as provided in IP [7,8]. The appraisal of this development is positive [11] and the associated goods have been recognized widely in the literature [12], especially those to do with older people’s well-being and a more successful and active aging process
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