Blog - Department of Sociology, Social Policy and Criminology

A girl with surgery preparation lines drawn on her face.

Hags and short-lived queens

Can we overcome generational antagonisms between women?

An ageing couple sat on a bench overlooking mountains.

What is the meaning of old age?

As a small child spending my holidays in the company of an 80-year-old grandmother, this was my version of the question: 'What is the meaning of life?'

Two people sat in front of the water with one fading away.

Existential crisis

How long COVID patients helped us understand what it’s like to lose your sense of identity and purpose in life.

Clinical, Sociological and Cultural Dimensions of Frailty: A Dialogue

A group photo of Centre for Ageing and the Life Course members.

Clinical, sociological and cultural dimensions of frailty: A dialogue

This three-day symposium, hosted by the Brocher Foundation, Switzerland, brought together scholars in ageing from a number of disciplinary perspectives, including medicine, social science, arts and humanities, to discuss the contested concept of frailty.

Simone de Beauvoir - Old Age - Book Cover.

The ageing of Simone de Beauvoir

For most of her life, Simone de Beauvoir feared and loathed the idea of ageing so much that she could see no good in it at all.

Flakey paint on a wall portraying ageing.

Fear of ageing is really a fear of the unknown - and modern society is making things worse

For the first time in human history, we have entered an era in which reaching old age is taken for granted.

The importance of individual stories in understanding health and social care: A personal viewpoint

The 'story' is an important instrument in qualitative research about long term conditions.

Changing expressions of filial piety and forms of intergenerational solidarity in neoliberal India

There are mixed views about care homes for older people (commonly referred to as 'old age homes') in India.

An indian family taking care of one another.

Daughters as later-life caregivers: A cultural shift in later-life care in India

Later-life care in India is mostly the responsibility of adult sons and their spouses. Although legally daughters are also obligated to look after their older parents, nonetheless, culturally the expectation is from the son and his spouse.

A person stood alone on a beach at sunset.

Burden of loneliness is not older people’s alone

The devastating impact of loneliness in later life became evident to me when, some years ago, I met an octogenarian and his daughter in Kolkata during my research.

Liam Payne: the death of a favourite celebrity can be painful – but collective grief can help

One of my earliest memories is from 1980, when John Lennon was tragically assassinated. I vividly recall my mother’s reaction upon hearing the news – she put down the phone, overwhelmed with grief.

A man sat in the forest staring into the distance.

Cottontail review: how a man's journey through grief mirrors our search for peace

Cottontail (コットンテール), a newly released Japanese film, tells the touching and relatable story of Kenzaburo (Ken), a man in his late middle age grieving the loss of his wife, Akiko, after a long illness.