Everyday Life in the Suburbs of Berlin: Consequences for the Social Participation of Aged Men and Women

Abstract

Against the background of demographic change, mobility issues are becoming crucial. Especially for the elderly, daily outdoor activities are essential for participation in social life. This article addresses the question of what extent older people, especially women, are threatened by limited social participation in Berlin’s suburbia. The mobility of older women (70+) is characterized by the least number of trips, the shortest distances, and more than 50% walking trips. Besides, many older women are dissatisfied with their residential area. Given the lack of essential facilities, older women have to be considered as disadvantaged in terms of limited social participation.

KEYWORDS:

• elderly
• gender
• social participation
• suburbia
• travel behavior

Notes

1. With the help of the variable “Raumstrukturtyp nach Raumordnungsbericht 2005” the communities were able to be differentiated as a function of the center’s accessibility and population density. In this way the agglomeration area can be divided into the following three types of space: “central area,” “intermediate space,” and “peripheral space.” In this context, the suburban area is represented by the “intermediate space.” This space type can be characterized as the area around the central area with lower population density (BMVBS, 2010c).

2. We expressly thank Dr. Thorsten Weist for making the interview data from his research project “Post-Suburban Daily Mobility in the Hinterland of Berlin” available to us for secondary analysis.