Insights into older women’s leisure: Voices from urban South Wales

Abstract

Whilst older women outnumber men (particularly in the ‘oldest old’ phase of life), little research exists within the field of leisure studies on the significance and meaning of leisure for this group. Thus, in an attempt to provide insight into the leisure of older women, this paper presents the findings of a series of semi-structured interviews with a group of women aged 75 five and over. The results contradict many of the perceptions of older people in this age group as passive, infrequent participants in leisure but instead present a picture of these women as leading busy, fulfilled lives, engaged in much purposeful and highly satisfying leisure activity. In doing so, the paper challenges society's often ageist and negative portrayals of older people's lives, particularly in the ‘oldest old’ phase of life.