Abstract
This chapter examines the way in which theorizing can enrich our understanding of welfare with specific reference to the range of perspectives which have emerged over the past several decades. Indeed, the chapter is concerned with locating and scrutinizing the accelerating theoretical developments in social aging and moves to reviewing their key concerns. The different social theories and philosophies which have materialized exemplify an interpretation of the consequences welfare policy has for vulnerable people.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Arber, S., & Ginn, J. (1991a). Connecting gender and ageing. OUP.
Arber, S., & Ginn, J. (1991b). Gender and later life: A sociological analysis of resources and constraints. Sage.
Arber, S., & Ginn, J. (Eds.). (1995). Connecting gender and ageing: A sociological approach. OUP.
Bauman, Z. (1992). Imitations of postmodernity. Routledge.
Bengtsen, V., & Schaie, R. (1999). Handbook of theories in ageing. Springer.
Bengtson, V. L., Giarrusso, R., Silverstein, M., & Wang, H. (2000). Families and intergenerational relationships in ageing societies. Hallym International Journal of Ageing, 2(1), 3–10.
Biggs, S. (1999). The mature imagination. OUP.
Biggs, S., & Powell, J. L. (1999). Surveillance and elder abuse: The rationalities and technologies of community care. Journal of Contemporary Health, 4(1), 43–49.
Biggs, S., & Powell, J. (2000). Surveillance and elder abuse: The rationalities and technologies of community care. Journal of Contemporary Health, 4(1), 43–49.
Biggs, S., & Powell, J. L. (2001). A Foucauldian analysis of old age and the power of social welfare. Journal of Aging & Social Policy, 12(2), 93–111.
Blaikie, A. (1999). Ageing and popular culture. OUP.
Bury, M. (1995). Ageing, gender and sociological theory. In S. Arber & J. Ginn (Eds.), Connecting gender and ageing: A sociological approach. OUP.
Bytheway, W. (1995). Ageism. OUP.
Chudacoff, H. (1989). How care are you? Princeton University Press.
Cumming, E., & Henry, W. (1961). Growing care: The process of disengagement. Basic Books.
Estes, C. (1979). The ageing enterprise. Jossey Bass.
Estes, C., Swan, J., & Gerard, L. (1982). Dominant and competing paradigms in ageing: Towards a political economy of ageing. Ageing and Society, 12, 151–164.
Estes, C., Biggs, S., & Phillipson, C. (2003). Social theory, social policy and ageing. Open University Press.
Featherstone, M., & Hepworth, M. (1993a). Images of ageing. In J. Bond, P. Coleman, & S. Peace (Eds.), Ageing in society. Sage.
Featherstone, M., & Hepworth, M. (1993b). Images of positive ageing. In M. Featherstone & A. Wernick (Eds.), Images of ageing. Routledge.
Featherstone, M., & Wernick, A. (1995). Images of ageing. Routledge.
Foucault, M. (1972). The archaeology of knowledge. Tavistock.
Foucault, M. (1977). Discipline and punish. Allen Lane.
Frank, A. (1998). Stories of illness as care of the self: A postmodern dialogue. Health, 2(3), 329–348.
Giddens, A. (1993). Sociology. Polity Press.
Gilleard, C., & Higgs, P. (2001). Cultures of aging. Prentice Hall.
Gubrium, J. F. (1992). Out of control: Family therapy and domestic disorder. Sage.
Jones, C. (1983). State social work and the working class. Macmillan.
Kastenbaum, R. (1993). Encrusted elders. In T. Cole (Ed.), Voices & visions of ageing. Springer.
Katz, S. (1996). Disciplining old age: The formation of gerontological knowledge. University of Virginia Press.
Moody, H. (1998). Ageing, concepts and controversies. Pie Forge Press.
Morris, P. W. G. (1997). The management of projects. Thomas Telford.
Neugarten, D. (Ed.). (1996). The meanings of age. University of Chicago Press.
Phillipson, C. (1982). Capitalism and the construction of old age. Macmillan.
Phillipson, C. (1988). Challenging dependency: Towards a new social work with older people. In M. Langan & P. Lee (Eds.), Radical social work today. Unwin Hyman.
Phillipson, C. (1998). Reconstructing old age: New agendas in social theory and practice. Sage.
Phillipson, C. (2008). The frailty of care ageing. In M. Davies (Ed.), The Blackwell companion to social work (3rd ed.). Blackwell Publishing.
Powell, J. (1999). The importance of a ‘critical’ sociology of care ageing. Social Science Chapter Publisher, 3, 1.
Powell, J. L. (2001a). Theorizing gerontology: The case of old age, professional power and social policy in the United Kingdom. Journal of Aging & Identity, 6(3), 117–135.
Powell, J. L. (2001b). The NHS and Community Care Act (1990) in the UK: A critical review. Sincronia: Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 5(3), 1–10.
Powell, J. L., & Biggs, S. (2000). Managing old age: The disciplinary web of power, surveillance and normalisation. Journal of Aging and Identity, 5(1), 3–13.
Powell, J., & Biggs, S. (2001, Winter). Rethinking structure and agency: Bio-ethics, ageing and technologies of the self. Sincronia.
Powell, J. L., & Cook, I. (2000). A tiger behind and coming up fast: Governmentality and the politics of populational control. Journal of Aging and Identity, 5(2), 79–91.
Thompson, P. (1999). The role of grandparents when parents part or die: Some reflections on the mythical decline of the extended family. Ageing and Society, 19(4), 471–503.
Townsend, P. (1981). The structured dependency of the elderly: A creation of social policy in the twentieth century. Ageing and Society, 1(1), 5–28.
Turner, B. (1989). Ageing, status politics and sociological theory. British Journal of Sociology, 40, 588–606.
Wahidin, A., & Powell, J. (2001). The loss of ageing identity: Social theory, care ageing and the power of special hospitals. Journal of Ageing & Identity, 6(1), 31–49.
Walker, A. (1981). Towards a political economy of ageing. Ageing & Society, 1(2), 23–44.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2024 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Powell, J.L. (2024). Introduction—The Importance of Critical Theorizing. In: Aging, Aging Populations and Welfare. International Perspectives on Aging, vol 40. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-56399-7_1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-56399-7_1
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-031-56398-0
Online ISBN: 978-3-031-56399-7
eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)