The meaning of institutionalisation to older Africans: a case study of a Zimbabwean old people’s home

Institutionalisation is foreign to older persons in Africa. It invokes negative feelings on those institutionalised. These negative feelings include those of guilt, neglect and abandonment by relatives, regret and powerlessness. While institutionalisation cannot be avoided especially for destitute i...

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Main Author: Hungwe, Chipo
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Electronic Journal of Applied Psychology 2016
Subjects:
Online Access:http://sensoria.swinburne.edu.au/index.php/sensoria/article/view/219/240
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author Hungwe, Chipo
author_facet Hungwe, Chipo
author_sort Hungwe, Chipo
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description Institutionalisation is foreign to older persons in Africa. It invokes negative feelings on those institutionalised. These negative feelings include those of guilt, neglect and abandonment by relatives, regret and powerlessness. While institutionalisation cannot be avoided especially for destitute individuals, it has depersonification effects, some of which can be avoided if staff at the institution can be more accommodative and some rules changed/repealed to allow the older persons to live respectable existences. The intentional and sometimes calculated exercise of power by staff in determining all the activities of the older persons feeds on to older people‟s feelings of powerlessness. However, since the older persons cannot live without the institution they have to gratefully accept their situation dealing with each day as it comes, waiting for death.
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spelling ir-11408-12592022-06-27T13:49:06Z The meaning of institutionalisation to older Africans: a case study of a Zimbabwean old people’s home Hungwe, Chipo Institutionalisation; Death; Bitterness; Restriction; Immortality; Food; Companionship; Home Institutionalisation is foreign to older persons in Africa. It invokes negative feelings on those institutionalised. These negative feelings include those of guilt, neglect and abandonment by relatives, regret and powerlessness. While institutionalisation cannot be avoided especially for destitute individuals, it has depersonification effects, some of which can be avoided if staff at the institution can be more accommodative and some rules changed/repealed to allow the older persons to live respectable existences. The intentional and sometimes calculated exercise of power by staff in determining all the activities of the older persons feeds on to older people‟s feelings of powerlessness. However, since the older persons cannot live without the institution they have to gratefully accept their situation dealing with each day as it comes, waiting for death. 2016-05-08T12:26:11Z 2016-05-08T12:26:11Z 2011 Article http://sensoria.swinburne.edu.au/index.php/sensoria/article/view/219/240 en Electronic Journal of Applied Psychology;Vol. 7, No. 1; p. 37-42 open Electronic Journal of Applied Psychology
spellingShingle Institutionalisation; Death; Bitterness; Restriction; Immortality;
Food; Companionship; Home
Hungwe, Chipo
The meaning of institutionalisation to older Africans: a case study of a Zimbabwean old people’s home
title The meaning of institutionalisation to older Africans: a case study of a Zimbabwean old people’s home
title_full The meaning of institutionalisation to older Africans: a case study of a Zimbabwean old people’s home
title_fullStr The meaning of institutionalisation to older Africans: a case study of a Zimbabwean old people’s home
title_full_unstemmed The meaning of institutionalisation to older Africans: a case study of a Zimbabwean old people’s home
title_short The meaning of institutionalisation to older Africans: a case study of a Zimbabwean old people’s home
title_sort meaning of institutionalisation to older africans: a case study of a zimbabwean old people’s home
topic Institutionalisation; Death; Bitterness; Restriction; Immortality;
Food; Companionship; Home
url http://sensoria.swinburne.edu.au/index.php/sensoria/article/view/219/240
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