초록
Increased consensus among gerontologists exist on the need to pay greater attention to the reciprocal relationship between the social and spatial in order to understand the construction of aged identity and everyday lives of old people. With urbanization, spaces are increasingly age-graded and as a consequence, urban elders are socially isolated from the community. In this study, we examine the social interaction patterns in various places specifically designated for the elderly, such as the Senior Center, Senior Welfare Center, and Hall for the Aged in Seoul. Main purpose of this study is to understand everyday life experiences of space the elderly people residing in the city go through. Data were gathered through qualitative, case study method. Results show that such spaces were important sites for social interaction for urban elderly who lacked social spaces after retirement and active parenting role. Also, it was shown that each place presents different contexts for social interactions and certain components of social class differences existed. Heterogeneity within the participants of each place was also observed. Quite strong stereotypes about certain places were also observed among the urban elders. Based on these results, importance of developing a 'community perspective' in the study of old age is discussed.
