Ageing, Learning and Development: Sociocultural and Psychoanalytical Perspectives on Growing Older

This book examines the modalities of learning and development of older persons. It calls upon theoretical perspectives that conceptualise people both in their unicity and in their cultural and historical inscriptions - here, mainly, sociocultural psychology and psychoanalysis. With the extension of life expectancy, what is colloquially called ＂old age＂ designates a period that usually goes from retirement age (around 65) until 70, 85 or over 100 years of age. The diversity and length of trajectories of ageing mean that we cannot consider ＂the old person＂ in an isolated, static and undifferentiated way. This book accounts for the fact that people growing older keep developing, in their unique manner, in their social, cultural, material, and symbolic environment, itself changing. This book is original as it brings together two perspectives that draw from both French and Anglo-Saxon tradition and are usually considered separately. This combination proves fruitful in avoiding both social and individual reductionism and to account for the complexity of the aging process. The approach adopted in this book is quite new in this field and, by bringing groundbreaking theoretical contributions, it explores new methodological strategies, and indicates possible routes for applied research and interventions. This book is intended for researchers working in the field of ageing, scholars, healthcare professionals, policy makers and social workers.

Tania Zittoun is Professor in sociocultural psychology at the University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland. She studies learning and development in the lifecourse, and has long focused on the role of symbolic resources in transitions. Her theoretical work draws on semiotic cultural psychology, psychoanalysis, and the social sciences. She is Associate Editor of Culture & Psychology, and has recently published a monograph titled The pleasure of thinking (2023).

Fabienne Gfeller is a postdoctoral researcher in sociocultural psychology at the University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland. Her interest lies in the understanding of individual trajectories in relation with complex social and societal issues, with a focus on positioning processes, imagination and embodiment. Her research objects include the practice of aikido, changes in foodways related to products of animal origin and housing modes for older people.