A SOCIALIST-FEMINIST APPROACH TO AGING - EMBRACING DIVERSITY

In seeking to enhance the quality of life in the later years, gerontologists have been hampered by not attending to the diversity of experiences among the elderly. In this article, we put forward a theoretical perspective, socialist feminism, that can examine aging in an inclusive manner. Socialist-feminism, with its focus on the historically and socially constructed nature of gender, class, and racial/ethnic relations, constitutes an approach wherein diversity can be embraced and understood through an examination of similar and different aging experiences. In elaborating a socialist-feminist approach, we focus primarily on gender relations, explaining some key concepts which we feel are critical in redirecting gerontological theory, research, and practice.