LGBQ-Specific Elderly Housing as a “Sparkling Sanctuary”: Boundary Work on LGBQ Identity and Community in Relationship to Potential LGBQ-Specific Elderly Housing in Sweden

ABSTRACT

This study explored how boundaries in relationship to community and identity were created and negotiated among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer (LGBQ) people within the framework of picturing LGBQ-specific elderly housing as a housing alternative in older age, by applying focus group methodology. “An island as a sparkling sanctuary” was identified as a metaphor for how symbolic resources defining the LGBQ community can be manifested in LGBQ-specific qualities of elderly housing. The boundary work underlying this manifestation included elaborations on the dilemma between exclusiveness and normality. The findings illustrate further how symbolic resources and collective identities were developed through dialectic interplay between internal and external definitions. Further, the findings show how boundary work generated shared feelings of similarity and group membership. The associated symbolic and social resources not only served to deal with difficult situations but also to manifest LGBQ identity and sense of community as a “gold medal.”

KEYWORDS:

• LGBQ
• boundaries
• sexual identity
• norm
• diversity
• aging
• focus group

Acknowledgments

The authors want to thank the participants who generously shared their thoughts and experiences and in the focus groups. The authors also thank Per Aase, who played a fundamental role for this study to come about.

Funding

This research was funded by grants from the Swedish Institute for Assistive Technology (SIAT).

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded by grants from the Swedish Institute for Assistive Technology (SIAT).