The perspectives program: creating “connections beyond the years”

ABSTRACT

The Perspectives program is a unique collaborative undertaking where communication design students and people living in long-term care homes co-create ‘zines’ featuring the life stories of individuals living in care. A research project was undertaken to explore the effectiveness of the program as perceived by the people living in care, the staff who work with them, and design students. This was a qualitative study, using mixed qualitative methods. Two care homes in the Vancouver area participated, and 30 people living in care, 32 students, and 6 care home staff were involved. Data collection methods involved observation of Perspectives sessions, interviews with residents and staff, and student surveys. Four core themes resulted from the qualitative thematic analysis: The reciprocity of intergenerational exchange, the value of storytelling in building connections, the impact of connecting relationally, and the need for meaningful and empowering activities. Overall, the Perspectives program demonstrates the value of intergenerational engagement and connection, as well as the benefit of providing empowering activities for people living in care homes. The close relationships formed amongst the participants of different ages throughout the Perspective sessions highlights the importance of creating spaces where collaborative activities may occur, and where both young adult students and people living in care can be involved and connect together in the world around them.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The data supporting the findings are available on request from the corresponding author.

Research ethics board (REB)

Approval UBC Behavioural REB #: H18–01781 ECU REB #: 100246.

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Notes

1. ‘Zine:’ short for magazine or fanzine; a self-published compilation of text and images, created in limited quantities, and often reproduced through photocopying or other cost-effective methods. Zines are usually produced for noncommercial purposes by individuals who have an interest in a particular topic and have the intention of sharing that interest with other.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Ian Gillespie Design and Dynamic Media Research Grant (grant # 100216); and the Centre for Aging and Brain Health Innovation Spark Grant (grant # 100227).