Cross-cultural conceptualizations of ageing in Australia

Abstract

In this paper, the framework of Cultural Linguistics is employed to examine how older people from two different ethnic backgrounds in Australia conceptualize ageing and their own experience of ageing. The paper employs a qualitative method for the instantiations of interviews from two focus groups of Australian women. The results indicated that women of Anglo-Celtic background had a more self-oriented perception of ageing, aged care and self, while women of Chinese background had a more relational outlook. However, the evidence indicated that changes were taking place in both traditions despite a certain degree of continuity.