Maintaining identity and relationships when using mobility aids

TY - JOUR

T1 - Maintaining identity and relationships when using mobility aids

AU - Rogers, Allyson

AU - Musselwhite, Charles

N1 - Funding Information: This paper summarises aspects of a PhD research project funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) as a doctoral fellowship under the remit of ‘Age and Dementia Friendly Wales’ and was conducted at Swansea University . Funding Information: This paper summarises aspects of a PhD research project funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) as a doctoral fellowship under the remit of ‘Age and Dementia Friendly Wales’ and was conducted at Swansea University.Ethical approval granted at Swansea University, Centre for Health and Human Sciences ethics panel, (August 03, 2017). Publisher Copyright: © 2022 Elsevier Ltd

PY - 2023/1/1

Y1 - 2023/1/1

N2 - IntroductionAgeing issues are being discussed within transport and mobility fields more frequently as both the number and share of the world population is ageing. Older people are more likely to have mobility and accessibility difficulties, so the wider relationships between mobility and ageing, particularly the consequences on health and well-being, are important to study.MethodologyUsing an ethnographic grounded theory approach, this research combined observation, sound recording, interviewing and discussion as methods of collecting data to understand the lived experience of older people who use mobility aids. Older mobility aid users (n = 11) and their family members or carers (n = 6) were recruited to provide in-depth knowledge of mobility aid use from an experiential perspective. Using constant comparative analysis, mobility aid use by older people in the built environment has been described and analysed.ResultsThe resulting themes identify an interconnecting array of physical, psychological, social and emotional barriers to participation and inclusion. Themes of identity, relationships and infrastructure with its interlinking systems emerge from the data leading to a model identifying a ‘Feedback loop of obstacles to mobility aid use by older people’.ConclusionUse of a mobility aid impacts upon identity and relationships, which are intrinsically linked and further exacerbated by infrastructural and systemic issues. Mobility aids assist and enable mobility, however, the obstacles faced when using mobility aids result in necessitating additional effort to maintain identity and relationships whilst maintaining mobility in the built environment.

AB - IntroductionAgeing issues are being discussed within transport and mobility fields more frequently as both the number and share of the world population is ageing. Older people are more likely to have mobility and accessibility difficulties, so the wider relationships between mobility and ageing, particularly the consequences on health and well-being, are important to study.MethodologyUsing an ethnographic grounded theory approach, this research combined observation, sound recording, interviewing and discussion as methods of collecting data to understand the lived experience of older people who use mobility aids. Older mobility aid users (n = 11) and their family members or carers (n = 6) were recruited to provide in-depth knowledge of mobility aid use from an experiential perspective. Using constant comparative analysis, mobility aid use by older people in the built environment has been described and analysed.ResultsThe resulting themes identify an interconnecting array of physical, psychological, social and emotional barriers to participation and inclusion. Themes of identity, relationships and infrastructure with its interlinking systems emerge from the data leading to a model identifying a ‘Feedback loop of obstacles to mobility aid use by older people’.ConclusionUse of a mobility aid impacts upon identity and relationships, which are intrinsically linked and further exacerbated by infrastructural and systemic issues. Mobility aids assist and enable mobility, however, the obstacles faced when using mobility aids result in necessitating additional effort to maintain identity and relationships whilst maintaining mobility in the built environment.

KW - Ageing

KW - Gerontology

KW - Go-along interviews

KW - Identity

KW - Infrastructure

KW - Mobilities

KW - Mobility aids

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85144881842&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.jth.2022.101545

DO - 10.1016/j.jth.2022.101545

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85144881842

VL - 28

JO - Journal of Transport & Health

JF - Journal of Transport & Health

SN - 2214-1405

IS - 1

M1 - 101545

ER -