The document discusses the differences in aging approaches between Sweden and Thailand, highlighting how western societies and Sweden favor independence for older adults, often placing them in retirement homes with government support. In contrast, Thailand emphasizes collectivistic cultural norms, where aging individuals typically live with family and maintain decision-making roles. This comparison illustrates the impact of cultural values on elder care and population demographics.

1. 8/9/2019 Thread: Discussion - Week 10 – DPSY-6215-2/PSYC-6215-2/...
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RE: Discussion - Week 10
8 days ago
Orlanda Haynes
Post and identify each of the countries you selected. Then, explain two similarities
and two differences in how the countries approach aging. Be specific and provide
examples.
Within the context of biology, the process of ageing is simple (Kirkwood, 2011).
However, individual experiences depend, in part, on one's country of residence (North, &
Fiske, 2015; Granbom, 2014; Pietilä Rosendahl, Söderman, & Mazaheri, 2016). For
example, in Western society ageing is valued less (e.g., 55 years and over) than young to
mid-adulthood (e.g., 20 to 45 years) (Van Den Heuvel, 2012). As such,
multigenerational family structures are less common. In most instances, ageing parents
or grandparents reside in retirement communities and nursing homes although some
seek in-home support services including regular caregivers, hospice, and meal-on-
wheels (Van Den Heuvel, 2012).
Likewise, Sweden's senior population share most of these experiences. In that, most
ageing adults age 55 years or older live independent of families' support; municipalities
(e.g., government agencies) provide in-home healthcare services including placement in
nursing or residential care facilities as well as financial services (Davey, Malmberg, &
Sundström, 2014; Pietilä et al., 2016). Sweden is the largest country (in Northern
Europe) and the fifth largest by land mass ( Davey, et al., 2014). In contrast, the country
of Thailand is at the centre of the Southeast Asian Indochinese peninsula; it includes 76
provinces and an estimated population of over 68 million people ( Draper, &
Kamnuansilpa, 2016). When compared to Western and Sweden's societies, it is not only
vastly different in size but also vastly different in its approach to ageing.
Most citizens within its large provinces, for example, share collectivistic cultural beliefs
about ageing adults' values (Granbom, 2014; Pietilä et al., 2016). That is, they praise and
respect the process mostly by practicing multigenerational family structures, by not
encouraging ageing family members to live outside family homes or to seek government
housing or financial support, by incorporating these cultural beliefs into religious
practice, and by allowing elders in each house-hole to make most social and
socioeconomic decisions (Draper, & Kamnuansilpa, 2016).
References
Davey, A., Malmberg, B., & Sundström, G. (2014). Aging in Sweden: Local variation,
local control. The Gerontologist, 54 (4), 525–532. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/gnt124
Draper, J., & Kamnuansilpa, Peerasit (2016). "The Thai Lao Question: The
Reappearance of Thailand's Ethnic Lao Community and Related Policy

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Questions". Asian Ethnicity. 19:,81–105. doi:10.1080/14631369.2016.1258300
Granbom, M. (2014). Relocation and residential reasoning in very old age – housing,
health and everyday life (doctoral dissertation). Lund University. Retrieved from:
http://portal.research.lu.se/portal/en/ publications/relocation-and-residential-reasoning-
in-very-old-age-housing-health-and-everyday-life(4466daa6-b367-4eea-98dd-
f7ad855fce8a).html
Kirkwood T. B. (2011). Systems biology of ageing and longevity. Philosophical
transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences, 366(1561),
64–70. doi:10.1098/rstb.2010.0275
North, M. S., & Fiske, S. T. (2015). Modern attitudes toward older adults in the aging
world: A cross-cultural meta-analysis.Psychological Bulletin, 141(5), 993–1021.
doi:10.1037/a0039469
Pietilä Rosendahl, S., Söderman, M., & Mazaheri, M. (2016). Immigrant with dementia
in Swedish residential care: An exploratory study of the experiences of their family
members and nursing staff.BMC Geriatrics, 16(18), 1–12. doi:10.1186/s12877-016-
0200-y
Van Den Heuvel, W. (2012). Discrimination against older people. Reviews in Clinical
Gerontology, 22, 293–300. doi:10.1017/S095925981200010X