Meaning and Aging: Humanist Perspectives

    Research output: Book/ReportBook editingAcademic

    Abstract

    The main objective of this book is to add, from a humanist perspective, new interdisciplinary insights and research results to the current academic debate on aging. The collection aims to enhance and complement the predominantly biomedical and sociological debates and provide a more comprehensive and highly topical view on aging and old age. By purveying a meaning-in-life perspective to the current debate we want to enrich and to deepen the research on aging, thus aspiring to an ideal of meaningful aging. The starting point of this book is a humanistic meaning frame for addressing basic needs of a meaningful existence, such as having goals in life, a sense of self-worth, connectedness with others, moral justification, a certain degree of understanding (comprehensibility), direction and influence with a view to cohesion in life, and not in the least place: (living) pleasure or excitement. Taken together, the essays show that experiencing a meaningful life contributes to one’s mentalresilience, conceived as the ability to realize a humane individuality (autonomy) in thinking and acting in situations of adversity and vulnerability, particularly those faced by older people.
    Original languageEnglish
    PublisherPalgrave Macmillan
    Number of pages152
    ISBN (Electronic)978-3-031-55806-1
    ISBN (Print)978-3-031-55805-4
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 28 Apr 2024

    Publication series

    NameStudies in Humanism and Atheism
    PublisherPalgrave MacMillan
    ISSN (Print)2634-6656
    ISSN (Electronic)2634-6664

    Keywords

    • Aging
    • Meaning-in-LIfe
    • Meaning Frame
    • Humanism
    • Gerontology

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