Abstract:
Aging emerged as a vital area of concern at the present times. In urbanized cities,
there is a growing number of institutions for the aged. The number of elderly
placed under institutional care continues to increase. In this light, this study
attempted to describe the phenomenon of social aging among institutionalized
elderly. Specifically, it aimed to describe the institutional living conditions of the
elderly; identify perceived changes in their social roles, personal interactions, and
social status; determine the factors that affect the perceived changes; and
determine the elder’s coping strategies and probe into their adjustment
mechanisms.
This study used a descriptive type of research design and utilized descriptive
statistics, using the frequency tables and graphs.
The study was conducted in Luwalhati ng Maynila, an institution for the aged
located in Marikina City. The main respondents included the elderly in the
institution with ages sixty and above, both male and female. The results of this
study were obtained through in-depth interviews with ten selected elderly
respondents and four caregivers/staff. The research used three sets of structured
interview guides to allow continuous flow of communication between the
researcher and respondents. The results obtained in this study conveyed that institutional elderly experience
“block treatment,” rigidity of routine, and institutional constraints in their daily
living. Results also revealed that the elderly experience a higher degree of role
loss because of institutional and physical constraints. Their social interaction was
narrowed down to three kinds of interactions: resident-resident, resident-staff, and
resident-visitors interaction. Thus, institutional confinement further strengthened
the lack of communication between the elderly and the mainstream society. On
the other hand, the elderly’s social status declined because of their limited access
to society’s valued “power resources” such as money and other material
possessions. Although their access to these resources decreased, respondents
claimed that they still maintain a relatively high level of self-esteem and self-
worth.
