Using a grounded theory perspective, this article focuses on experiences of participation in relation to home among very old people who are living alone. Eight people selected from the larger ENABLE-AGE Project were interviewed. Data analysis identified the core category as “home as the locus and origin for participation” with two main categories (“performance-oriented participation” and “togetherness-oriented participation”). The findings indicate that the home is the origin for participation both out of the home and within the home. However, as older people's health declines, the home becomes the explicit locus for participation. Participation successively changes from taking part in more physically demanding activities out of the home to participation by means of watching others from within the home (i.e., by being a spectator). In appreciating self-defined goals for a meaningful life, thus enabling the experience of participation in very old age (age 80 to 89 years), this study contributes to the knowledge about relationships between participation and home in very old age.
AllanG., & CrowG. (Eds.). (1989). Home and family: Creating the domestic sphere. London: The Macmillan Press.
2.
SvidénAndersson G., & BorellL. (1998). Experience of being occupied: Some elderly people's positive experiences of occupations at community-based activity centers. Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy, 5, 133–139.
3.
AtchleyR. C. (1998). Activity adaptations to the development of functional limitations and results for subjective well-being in later adulthood: A qualitative analysis of longitudinal panel data over a 16-year period. Journal of Aging, 12, 19–38.
4.
BaltesM. M.MaasI.WilmsH. U.BorcheltM., & LittleT. (1999). Everyday competence in old and very old age: Theoretical considerations and empirical findings. In BaltesP. B. & MayerK. U. (Eds.), The Berlin Aging Study: Aging from 70 to 100 (pp. 384–402). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
5.
BorellL.AsabaE.RosenbergL.SchultM. L., & TownsendE. (2006). Exploring experiences of “participation” among individuals living with chronic pain. Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy, 13, 76–85.
6.
Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists. (Ed.). (2002). Enabling occupation: An occupational therapy perspective. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Author.
7.
CardolM.De JongB. A., & WardC. D. (2002). On autonomy and participation in rehabilitation. Disability and Rehabilitation, 24, 970–974.
8.
CharmazK. (2003). Grounded theory. In SmithJ. A. (Ed.), Qualitative psychology: A practical guide to research methods. London: SAGE Publications.
9.
CharmazK. (2006). Constructing grounded theory: A practical guide through qualitative analysis. London: SAGE Publications.
10.
DaviesS.EllisL., & LakerS. (2000). Promoting autonomy and independence for older people within nursing practice: An observational study. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 9, 127–136.
11.
FängeA.IwarssonS., & PerssonÅ. (2002). Accessibility to the public environment as perceived by teenagers with functional limitations in a south Swedish town centre. Disability and Rehabilitation, 24, 318–326.
12.
FemiaE. E.ZaritS. H., & JohanssonB. (2001). The disablement process in very late life: A study of the oldest-old in Sweden. Journal of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Science, 56B, 12–23.
13.
GlaserB., & StraussA. L. (1967). The discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. New York: Aldine.
14.
GreenS., & CooperB. A. (2000). Occupation as a quality of life constituent: A nursing home perspective. British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 63, 17–24.
15.
GrundyE. (2003). The epidemiology of aging. In TallisR. C. & FillitH. M. (Eds.), Brocklehurst's textbook of geriatric medicine and gerontology (pp. 3–20). Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone.
16.
HaakM.FängeA.IwarssonS., & IvanoffS. D. (2007). Home as a signification of independence and autonomy: Experiences among very old Swedish people. Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy, 14, 16–24.
17.
HilleråsP. K.JormA. F.HerlitzA., & WinbladB. (1999). Activity patterns in very old people: A survey of cognitively intact subjects aged 90 years or older. Age and Ageing, 28, 147–152.
18.
IwarssonS. (2003). Assessing fit between older people and their home environments. In WahlH.-W.ScheidtR., & WindleyP. (Eds.), Annual Review of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 23: Aging in context: Sociophysical environments (pp. 85–109). New York: Springer.
19.
IwarssonS.SixsmithJ.OswaldF.WahlH.-W.NygrenC.SixsmithA. (2005). The ENABLE-AGE Project: Multidimensional methodology for European housing research. In VestbroD. U.HurolY., & WilkinsonN. (Eds.), Methodologies in housing research (pp. 70–90). Gateshead, Great Britain: Urban International Press.
20.
IwarssonS., & SlaugB. (2001). Housing Enabler: An instrument for assessing and analysing accessibility problems in housing. Nävlinge and Staffanstorp, Sweden: Veten & Skapen HB, Slaug Data Management.
21.
KielhofnerG. (2002). A model of human occupation: Theory and application (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins.
22.
KielhofnerG. (2004). Conceptual foundations of occupational therapy (3rd ed.). Philadelphia: F. A. Davis.
23.
KoukouliS.VlachonikolisI. G., & PhilalithisA. (2002). Socio-demographic factors and self-reported functional status: The significance of social support. BMC Health Services Research, 2, 20.
24.
LawM. (2002). Participation in the occupations of everyday life. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 56, 640–649.
25.
LiljaM., & BorellL. (1997). Elderly people's daily activities and need for mobility support. Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences, 11, 73–80.
26.
MasonJ. (1989). Reconstructing the public and the private: The home and marriage in later life. In AllanG. & CrowG., Home and family: Creating the domestic sphere. London: The McMillan Press.
27.
PolgarMiller J., & LandryJ. E. (2004). Occupations as means for individual and group participation in life. In ChristiansenC. H. & TownsendE. A. (Eds.), Introduction to occupation: The art and science of living (pp. 197–220). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
28.
NelsonD. L. (1997). Why the profession of occupational therapy will flourish in the 21st century. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 51, 11–24.
29.
NygrenC.JohannisonA., & IwarssonS. (2004). ENABLE-AGE, Survey study, national report, Sweden. Retrieved May 9, 2006, from http://www.enableage.arb.lu.se.
30.
OswaldF.WahlH. W.MartinM., & MollenkopfH. (2003). Toward measuring proactivity in person-environment transactions in late adulthood: The housing-related control beliefs questionnaire. Journal of Housing for the Elderly, 17, 135–152.
PolitD. F., & BeckC. T. (2004). Nursing research: Principles and methods. Philadelphia: Williams & Wilkins.
33.
Regeringens Proposition. (1999/2000:79). From patient to citizen: A national action plan for disability policy [in Swedish]. Stockholm: Socialdepartementet.
34.
RichardsH., & EmslieC. (2000). The ‘doctor’ or the ‘girl from the University’? Considering the influence of professional roles on qualitative interviewing. Family Practice, 17, 71–75.
35.
RowlesG. D. (1981). The surveillance zone as meaningful space for the aged. The Gerontologist, 23, 304–311.
36.
RudmanD. L.CookJ. V., & PolatajkoH. (1997). Understanding the potential of occupation: A qualitative exploration of seniors' perspective on activity. The American Journal Occupational Therapy, 51, 640–650.
37.
SchultzR., & HeckhausenJ. (1997). Emotion and control: A lifespan perspective. Annual Review of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 17, 185–205.
38.
SixsmithJ., & BonehamM. (2003). Older men's participation in community life: Notions of social capital, health and empowerment. Ageing International, 28, 101–131.
39.
SonnU., & ÅsbergK. H. (1991). Assessment of activities of daily living in the elderly: A study of a population of 76-year-olds in Gothenburg, Sweden. Scandinavian Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine, 23, 193–202.
40.
SörensenL. V.AxelsenU., & AvlundK. (2002). Social participation and functional ability from age 75 to age 80. Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy, 9, 71–78.
41.
StraussA., & CorbinJ. (1990). Basics of qualitative research: Grounded theory procedures and techniques. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.
42.
TseT., & HowieL. (2005). Adult day groups: Addressing older people's needs for activity and companionship. Australasian Journal on Ageing, 24, 134–140.
43.
United Nations. (1993). Standard rules on the equalization of opportunities for persons with disabilities. New York: Author.
44.
ValdemarssonM.JernrydE., & IwarssonS. (2005). Preferences and frequencies of visits to public facilities in old age: A pilot study in a Swedish town centre. Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 40, 15–28.
45.
Van't LevenN., & JonssonH. (2002). Doing and being in the atmosphere of doing: Environmental influences on occupational performance in a nursing home. Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy, 9, 148–155.
46.
WilcockA. A. (1993). A theory of the human need for occupation. Journal of Occupational Science, 1, 17–24.
47.
WilcockA. A. (1998a). An occupational perspective on health. Thorofare, NJ: SLACK Incorporated.
48.
WilcockA. A. (1998b). Reflections on doing, being, and becoming. Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy, 65, 248–256.
49.
World Health Organization. (1991). Sundsvall statement on supportive environments. Geneva, Switzerland: Author.
50.
World Health Organization. (2001). International classification of functioning, disability and health. Geneva, Switzerland: Author.
51.
World Health Organization. (2002). Active ageing: A policy framework. Retrieved May 9, 2006, from http://www.who.se.
52.
ZemkeR., & ClarkF. (1996). Occupational science: The evolving discipline. Philadelphia: F. A. Davis.
