Advantages and Disadvantages of an Old Age - Essay Example

Abstract

The older adults can be resourceful and problematic in the society, depending on the perspective from which people view others. This paper sought to pinpoint the merits that humanity can draw from the seniors. Additionally, the demerits that come along with having the older adults in the society are identified. To achieve the underlying aim of the paper, that is, determining the advantages and disadvantages of older people in the community, a qualitative analysis is used in which the views and thought of various researchers are analyzed. The motivation behind the choice of older persons is because they are the epitome of policy-making in most organizations. The findings show that low adaptability to advancing technology is a common phenomenon among this group of people. The main conclusions of this paper include the discovery that the older adults are pillars of leadership in various organizations, they give perfect experience in their careers, and exhibit a high level of professionalism in their works. On the other hand, it is found that elderly adults are prone to health-related problems.

Old age: Advantages and Disadvantages

The advantages and disadvantages of the elderly in society have not been given much-needed attention in the past. Some people perceive older people as being a great asset without looking at the negative side of their existence in the society. Aside from that, other individuals look at them as an enormous burden and a disadvantage to the economic growth. However, having the elderly people in the society is like having “two sides of a coin.” Such people play a crucial role in various sectors and hence, they cannot be disregarded in the society. Equally, the management of the seniors is much demanding, and it may be viewed as a disadvantage of having older adults in the society. In this regard, this paper is tailored towards presenting the advantages and disadvantages of the presence of seniors in the community. A significant focus will be on the role older people play in policy-making and on associated health issues.

The policy-making process has always required experienced leadership. Experience is one of the positive aspects that older people possess over the younger generation. Management of political environments has taken a different turn in society as Gerston (2014) states. The younger generation may have the knowledge required for policy-making but lack the necessary experience. The older people, as Gerston (2014) mentions, contribute mainly to the topic due to their combination of experience both in theoretical knowledge as well as due to practical application of the information.

The elderly remains to be the custodians of modern day history. Being in such condition gives them an upper hand in the civil, political, and economic society. Most governments rely on the evidence-based information that they get from the older adults in the community. The older people have to keep abreast with technological changes by enrolling in vocational schools. According to Gerston (2014), there is a need for the elderly to be educated so that they can preserve their productivity in society.

With the advancing technology and companies’ growth, there is a high likelihood of mixed generations in workplaces. Advancement in technology is what Boehm and Kunze (2015) explore in their book, “Age diversity and age climate in the workplace.” The authors cite some factors that help in stating the advantages of a workplace setup as well as its disadvantages. A close analysis by the authors about the way the elderly interact with the youths in an organization pointed out the fact that they were consulted on various issues. Besides, their knowledge on policy formation was attributed to working experience for slightly more extended periods of time (Boehm & Kunze, 2015).

Notably, there is a slow adaptation of the elderly to technological changes in the community. Although such individuals have a delayed response, they may negatively affect the development of company policies and other organizational changes. Furthermore, physical and psychological reactions to the technical aspect of the company are quite problematic for the elderly. The slow response to technology has been associated with the fact that older people are prone to loving simplicity. Therefore, technology proves to be a more advanced topic that many older adults are resistant to it (Boehm & Kunze, 2015).

Aging and health have also been reported to be a significant issue for older people. The World Health Organization released a report in 2015 on their findings of health and old age. The report outlined various stages of aging and health issues that are associated with each. Additionally, it also enumerates frameworks followed by the government in the making of health policies affecting the elderly. The report points out that many older adults live under the care of the youth and only a few are left alone. It highlighted how public health action policies have taken into account the diversity of people and aging. Such essential and crucial factors can be taken into consideration in the development of health policy targeting the well-being of the elderly in society. According to the World Health Organization (2015), older people are also vulnerable to diseases and have slow rates of recovery.

Van Dyke, Teychenne, McNaughton, De Bourdeaudhuij, and Salmon (2015) conducted a research aiming at establishing the relationship between physical activity and general development of the older adults. The study concentrated on the healthcare strategies that are in place and how they affect the well-being of the elderly. The effects of healthy eating and exercise are taken into account as well. A section of the population of older people demonstrated that most of their physical fitness activities are done during their leisure times. Moreover, their active movement is indicated as contributing to the physical fitness of the elderly (Van Dyke et al., 2015).

The authors aim to bring to the attention that healthy eating and physical fitness can be used to promote mental health among the elderly. Physical fitness works to prevent diseases that encompass cardio complications and problems such as obesity. Physical slowness is observed among the elderly who do not set aside their time to engage in physical exercises. Healthy eating habits can also help with evading problems such as weaker immunity, as well as deteriorated hearing and vision. The authors have highlighted the plight of the elderly in the society that relates to their overall health. The highlighted issues significantly contribute to the study topic on the health concerns that are associated with the age and what measures should be put in place to provide intervention (Van Dyke et al., 2015).

In his book, Age relations and family ties over the life course, Connidis (2014) argues the existence of differences in macro and micro levels of analyzing family ties. He further states that the activities that happen within a family have a way of contributing to its relations with older adults. He focuses on discussing the role of family ties in the course of development of the elderly. He further highlights that right family ties usually have a positive impact on the lives of the older adults. According to Connidis (2014), the health and happiness of the old benefit from good family ties. Additionally, Connidis states that the elderly are in a position to get help from family members whenever they interact as they are likely to subscribe to physical therapy and fitness as well as a proper diet. Such long-term effects include meeting the nutritional as well as psychological needs of the elderly.

Relationships and self-confidence are issues that are affected by old age. In a journal of clinical and diagnostic composed by Mushtaq, Shoib, Shah, and Mushtaq (2014), the elderly are more likely to engage in less productive activities due to their isolation from the active society. The authors further highlight the fact that old age is associated with reduced health that is accompanied with tissue disintegration. The elderly link the health conditions with the compressed social activities. Many authors have agreed with the findings of Mushtaq et al. (2014) and suggested that involvement in social activities is a way of reducing stress in old age that could lead to depression. Moreover, there exists a connection between loneliness and depression, which has been found as countered by involvement in social and physical activities. Therefore, family ties contribute positively to the lives of the elderly in the society and improve their health.

Neurobiological effects have also been noted in such individuals. The environment to which a person is subjected to does not solely determine learning. The royal society publication points out that the brain is a changing organ that is ready to learn. However, the ability to grasp concepts is observed to deteriorate drastically as old age knocks. Mushtaq et al. (2014) indicate that learning skills can happen within a short time. Practicing the craft makes an individual skillful. Although the elderly may lack practice, they are subjected to have learned skills that can lead to their significant slowness in adapting to the technological changes in many organizations. Notably, resilience is an adaptive response that the body uses to counter stress and adversity. According to Mushtaq et al. (2014), resilience is built through lifelong education and it can even extend to old age. Therefore, the elderly have a chance of staying resilient even at their age and manage stress efficiently. Experience acquired during the youthful age affects the acquisition of knowledge and mastery of the act of exercising self-control.

Ventola (2014) emphasizes the need for the elderly to learn the technological advancements that can improve their health. Sensitization should be done on the matters that involve applications that encompass medical health. Some of the applications known to link medical personnel and patients should be made available and patients trained in their use. Ventola (2014) contributes to the issues concerning health care to patients on the topic of offering insights for patients and the way the elderly can benefit from such programs.

Giacalone et al. (2016) point out the connection between health and eating habits and the way they affect the elderly. The supply of the body with nutritional elements bridges the link between dieting and healthy living. As such, the care should be attributed to older people. He further states that healthy eating habits ensure that there are significant changes in the capabilities of the body fighting diseases and strengthening muscles (Giacalone et al., 2016). Even though crises and trauma causing events are dreaded by the elderly, various reasons have been highlighted explaining why there are higher chances of having post-traumatic stress disorders to such individuals. Furthermore, developmental processes are bound to impact on the occurrence and the responses of the malady. Trauma and crisis causing events have led to the increase of this disease in the elderly. Changes in the role and functional losses have been identified to be the leading causes of the trauma in seniors. However, it is apparent that some of the stress coping mechanisms used at a younger age such as taking alcohol may no longer work in older generations.

The cumulative advantage or disadvantage theory considers age as a temporary phenomenon. The approach explores inter-individual tendencies to diverge in different aspects of life. Aside from that, age and health are essential factors in the elderly. Divergence has been observed to occur in older and younger people. Besides, the cumulative advantage is a theory that associated with different populations and not individuals. The approach identifies a group of members like the elderly and the challenges they face in other aspects of life. Additionally, the theory has highlighted the fact that the systemic feature of aging has been provided through several analyses that have been put in place on matters concerning the inequality and health issues of the elderly. According to Dannefer (2003), it is evident that aging of individuals and their advantages in the society begin to diminish as they lack focus on their problematic nature.

All in all, it is clear that senior individuals form an essential part of society. Different advantages and disadvantages have been associated with old age, but not limited to issues related to health, career, and community. Furthermore, the elderly make essential figures in the policy-making process in most organizations. Gerston emphasized in his book that the knowledge and practical experience possessed by older people make them remain relevant in such operation of various institutions. Besides, policies form crucial organizational part without which organizations would collapse, although older people act as the custodians of this information. The advancement in technology is what many authors have cited as being a significant challenge that faces a workplace having a mixture of older and younger people as their workers. Most older adults are resistant to technological advancement because of their learning curves. Neurobiology has also dictated the deterioration in the learning curve of the elderly. Neurobiology has proved to be a crucial aspect that determines old age and their respective behaviors. The neurobiological evidence should inform the different health and educational policies for both young and elderly.

Additionally, there is a need for stronger links between the research communities to understand the future implications of neurobiology. The training that is offered in school pertaining employment of old age should include the concepts of neurobiology and resilience. Aside from that, there is a need for neurobiology to inform adaptive learning technology. Neuroscience may also be useful to both teachers and older people in the society. As such, the professional world should embrace the fact that its workers are aging cumulatively. Adult education to workers on stress management is a decisive part that should be considered as well. Socially, the elderly could stand a disadvantaged place in the community, and it is vital to provide them with the physiological therapy sessions that they may need to stay physically fit. Moreover, there is a need to ensure that the elderly receive love and care. Strong family bonds have proved as a stepping-stone to being a happy person. Embracing the maintenance of stable family ties by the society should be a topic that is highly regarded.

In the future, there will be a need for more researchers to venture into the way the elderly can be helped in society so that they can improve on their adaptability. Embracement of technology should be an essential research area in the future. For instance, neuroscience, which is a rarely researched topic, has proven to be significant. Policymaking processes should also find alternatives rather than waiting for those of old age to provide guidelines. Diversified research methods are recommended for better results and worthwhile discussions.