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Neoliberalism and Resilience Among Older Yoruba People in a Semiurban Community, South West Nigeria

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Cross-Cultural and Cross-Disciplinary Perspectives in Social Gerontology

Abstract

Growing older in some communities in Africa is becoming more challenging and worrisome. The situation is compounded by an increase in neoliberal based reforms and the absence of state-funded pension schemes that could cushion the everyday challenges that comes with old age. By adopting an interactionist perspective, this chapter examines the consequences of neoliberal social policies by focusing on experiences of ageism and adoption of resilience among Older Yoruba People in a Semiurban Community, South West Nigeria. Using a purposive sampling approach, 37 elderly Yoruba men and women from two post-conflict communities participated in semi-structured face-to-face interviews. The findings revealed resilience as essential to surviving elderly abuse, marginalization and neglect in old age. Among this social category of older Yoruba people, resilience is functional to achieving healthy aging experiences. This is coming up within a cultural context devoid of formal social support in meeting aging needs and challenges. In confronting some of the daily challenges, the participants narrated their adoption of resilience in coping with different life situations. Ageism did not emerge as a major issue at a personal level but perceived as an increasing problem for other elderly in their communities. However, some of the narratives confirmed different dimensions of ageism as participants’ recounted abuse and dwindling quality in intergenerational relations. Hence, prompt identification and promotion of resilience across the diverse social categories of the elderly might be instrumental in negotiating aging experiences and coping with the inherent challenges of liberalization and chatting clear directions in later life within a social context.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Obafemi Awolowo University, lle-Ife, Nigeria

    Ojo Melvin Agunbiade

  2. Department of Sociology, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Ojo Melvin Agunbiade

  3. Department of Demography and Social Statistics, Obafemi Awolowo University, lle-Ife, Nigeria

    Akanni Ibukun Akinyemi

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  1. Ojo Melvin Agunbiade
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  2. Akanni Ibukun Akinyemi
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Correspondence to Ojo Melvin Agunbiade .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Humanities & Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Humanities & Social Sciences, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India

    Tannistha Samanta

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Agunbiade, O.M., Akinyemi, A.I. (2017). Neoliberalism and Resilience Among Older Yoruba People in a Semiurban Community, South West Nigeria. In: Samanta, T. (eds) Cross-Cultural and Cross-Disciplinary Perspectives in Social Gerontology . Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-1654-7_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-1654-7_5

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