Self-Reliance and Comfort in Old Age: Productive Ageing Among People with Disabilities in Rural China

Abstract

The so-called rational discourse of present-day society values individuals for their ability to see, speak and act. But this prioritisation of voice and bodily agency neglects the subjectivity of disabled people, especially the disabled elderly, and how they address their existential dilemma. Based on in-depth interviews and a survey of 260 disabled older adults in NT Township, Shanxi Province, China, this study explores ‘productive ageing’ among them. Drawing on the experience of rural older adults with disabilities, five aspects of productive ageing were identified and examined: economic productivity, caring for the family, volunteering, lifelong learning and community work. The results demonstrate that, given the current official discourse on elderly care, senior adults with disabilities see themselves as needing to become self-reliant by making themselves productive despite their age. They do this by acting within a personal social support network aimed at providing security and comfort in their old age.

Keywords:

• Older Adults with Disabilities
• Rural China
• Productive Activity
• Self-Reliance
• Comfortable Old Age

Acknowledgements

The study was funded by the National Social Science Fund of China (15BSH010) and Beijing Food Safety Policy & Strategy Research Base. We would like to thank the local Civil Administration Bureaus and participants for their support and participation in the study.

Notes

1 All research activities were approved by the Ethics Committee of China Agricultural University. All participants read a statement that explained the purpose of the survey and gave written informed content before participation in the study. None of the personal information of those involved in the survey is available to people outside the study team.

2 This study has several limitations. The first limitation pertains to the disability certificate, which is a document certifying that an individual's disability level has been evaluated. In this study, an individual was considered to have a disability if they possessed a disability certificate. However, in some regions, the application process for disability certificates is flawed; some people without disabilities may have a disability certificate, and some people with disabilities may not have a certificate. Disability assessment thus constitutes a limitation of the present study. Second, where disabled elderly people were unable to articulate their thoughts, experiences and views, the researchers relied on their children or carer to interpret these; however, these proxies may not have fully or accurately expressed their parents’ thoughts, experiences or views.

3 In order to protect the privacy of participants and avoid possible adverse effects on the local government, the names of the county and town are anonymised in this article.

4 Pensions usually consist of three parts: individual contributions, village collective subsidies and government subsidies. The specific contribution payment amount is different for each province in China. For farmers in Shanxi Province, the annual payment levels are divided into ten different levels: 200, 300, 500, 700, 1000, 1500, 2000, 3000, 4000 and 5000 yuan per person. The payment level determines the level of pension received, for example, a monthly pension of 100 yuan is based on the standard annual contribution of 200 yuan.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Social Science Fund of China [grant number 15BSH010].