Facilitating resident community in nursing homes: a slippery slope? An analysis on collectivistic and individualistic approaches

Abstract

Residents in nursing homes are old and frail and are dependent on constant care, medical, or otherwise, by trained professionals. But they are also social beings, secluded in an institutional setting which is both total and foreign. In this setting, most of the residents most of the time must relate to other residents: other residents are the nursing home residents’ peers, companions, and perhaps even significant others. In this article, we will discuss how resident communities in nursing homes are influenced by the approaches of nursing home staff. Two nursing homes have been included in this article—one from Canada and one from Norway. Participant observation was conducted at these two nursing homes, predominantly focusing on everyday-life activities. The cases from Norway and Canada are illustrative of two very different general approaches to residents: one collectivistic and one individualistic. These general approaches produce different contexts for the formation and content of resident communities, greatly affecting nursing home residents. The significance of these approaches to resident community is profound and also somewhat unanticipated; the approaches of staff provide residents with different opportunities and limitations and also yield unintended consequences for the social life of residents. The two different general approaches are, we suggest, “cultural expressions,” conditioned by more than official preferences and recommendations. The difference between the institutions is, in other words, anchored in ideas and ideologies that are not explicitly addressed.