Places, social relations, and activities in the arenas of everyday life among older adults with psychiatric disability – an interview study

Artikel i vetenskaplig tidskrift, 2009

ABSTRACT Background Knowledge about the daily life of older adults with psychiatric disability is extremely limited, especially from the standpoint of the individual. Hence, the overall aim of this study was to describe and analyze the ways in which older adults with psychiatric disability experience places, social relations, and activities in different arenas of their everyday lives. Method Twelve older adults (>55 years) with psychiatric disability were interviewed either once or twice, using different interview techniques. The first set of interviews were semi-structured and the second were in-depth interviews guided by a site-map. The interview texts were analyzed with qualitative content analysis, proceeding from open to focused coding in several steps. Results Although the respondents spent most of their time in their own homes, some also spent a lot of time in day care centers and other similar places. The time spent in places in the public arena varied a great deal. The interviewees’ experiences of the places, relationships, and activities in the different arenas of their everyday lives were concerned with freedom and coercion, internal and external structure, and relationships and support. Key words Qualitative study, freedom, coercion, external and internal structure, support.