Skip Navigation
Skip to contents

J Korean Acad Nurs : Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing

OPEN ACCESS

Articles

Page Path
HOME > J Korean Acad Nurs > Volume 38(5); 2008 > Article
Original Article
The Life of Elderly Women Living Alone
Chunmi Kim1, Moon Hee Ko2, Moon Jeong Kim3, Joohyun Kim4, Hee Ja Kim5, Jin Ha Moon1, Kyoung Seon Baek6, Haeng-Mi Son7, SangEun Oh8, YoungAe Lee9, Jung-Sook Choi10
Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing 2008;38(5):739-747.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4040/jkan.2008.38.5.739
Published online: October 12, 2008

1Associate Professor, Department of Nursing, Yeojoo Institute of Technology, Yeoju, Korea

2Associate Professor, Department of Nursing, Chodang University, Muan, Korea

3Clinical Lecturer, College of Nursing, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea

4Professor, Department of Nursing, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, Korea

5Professor, Department of Nursing, Chungju Natioanl University, Chungju, Korea

6Professor, Department of Nursing, Jinju Health College, Jinju, Korea

7Associate Professor, Department of Nursing, Ulsan University, Ulsan, Korea

8Professor, College of Nursing, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Korea

9Professor, Department of Nursing, Wonkwang Health Science College, Iksan, Korea

10Professor, Department of Nursing, Kangnung National University, Wonju, Korea

1Associate Professor, Department of Nursing, Yeojoo Institute of Technology, Yeoju, Korea

2Associate Professor, Department of Nursing, Chodang University, Muan, Korea

3Clinical Lecturer, College of Nursing, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea

4Professor, Department of Nursing, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, Korea

5Professor, Department of Nursing, Chungju Natioanl University, Chungju, Korea

6Professor, Department of Nursing, Jinju Health College, Jinju, Korea

7Associate Professor, Department of Nursing, Ulsan University, Ulsan, Korea

8Professor, College of Nursing, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Korea

9Professor, Department of Nursing, Wonkwang Health Science College, Iksan, Korea

10Professor, Department of Nursing, Kangnung National University, Wonju, Korea

Address reprint requests to : Kim, Chunmi Department of Nursing, Yeojoo Institute of Technology, 454-5 Gyo-ri, Yeoju-eup, Yeoju-gun 469-705, Korea Tel: 82-31-880-5373 Fax: 82-31-885-7041 E-mail: cmchoi@chollian.net
• Received: February 2, 2008   • Revised: February 5, 2008   • Accepted: October 8, 2008

Copyright © 2008 Korean Society of Nursing Science

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

  • 20 Views
  • 0 Download
  • 4 Scopus
prev next
  • Purpose
    This study aimed to uncover the fundamental nature of living alone in female elderly.
  • Methods
    The phenomenological research approach developed by van Manen was adopted.
  • Results
    The theme was ‘taking a firm stand alone on the edges of life’. The composition elements of living alone experienced by elderly women were as follows: 1) Corporeality: participants perceived their bodies by their health status. Unhealthy participants were suffering with diseases and dependant on other persons, while healthy participants were free from family responsibility and kept on moving. 2) Spatiality: participants felt both freedom and loneliness while they stayed home. 3) Relationality: participants felt pity and yearning for their bereaved husband and sometimes talked to his picture. According to their children’s filial piety, participants were pleased or displeased. However, they incessantly devoted themselves to their children. 4) Temporality: participants considered the rest of their life as extra-time which was proceeding to death, and tried to keep themselves busy before they died.
  • Conclusion
    A nurse should understand the multifarious aspects of elderly women’s life, and then intervene to consolidate their strengths for self-supporting the final years of life.
  • Butler, R. 1975.Why service? Growing old America. New York, NY: Harpersand Row.
  • Cox E. O., Parsons R.J. 1994.Empowerment-oriented social work practice with the elderly. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole Publish-ingCompany.
  • Davis M. A., Neuhause J. M., Mortis D. J., Mark R.S. 1992;Living arrangements and survival among middle aged and older adults in the NHANES I epidemiologic follow up study. Ameri-canJournal of Public Health. 82:401–406.Article
  • Guba E. G., Lincoln Y.S. 1985.Effective evaluation. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
  • Hall J. M., Stevens P.E. 1991;Rigor in feminist research. Advanced in Nursing Science. 13:16–29.Article
  • Im C. H., Jung O.B. 1988;Supporting attitude type of the married eldest son and his wife living separately, from his parents - intergenerational solidarity. Journal of Korean Home Economics Association. 26:163–173.
  • Jeon E. Y., Kim K.B. 2006;A study of factors that influence the promotion of healthy behavior in the elderly according to types of residency. Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing. 36:475–483.ArticlePubMedPDF
  • Joo S. S., Yoon S.R. 1993;A comparative study on the general health between the couple and single aged. Journal of Korean Gerontological Society. 13:55–62.
  • Jung S.D. 2005.The strength model. Paju: Jibmundang.
  • Kim J. H., Jung Y.M. 2002;A study on the health status and quality of life in living alone elderly. Journal of Korean Gerontological Nursing. 4:16–26.
  • Kim M.H. 2003;Analysis on image of the elderly in “Ohmynews” as internet newspaper. Journal of Gerontology. 23:13–30.
  • Kim S. M., Lee Y. J., Kim S.Y. 2003;Attributes considered important for a good death among elderly and adults. Journal of Korean Gerontological Society. 23:95–110.
  • Kim T. H., Jun K.Y. 1997;A study on the conjugal support, the share of household activities and marital adjustment in old age. Journal of Korean Gerontological Society. 17:167–182.
  • Kim T. H., Kim S.J. 1996;A study on the solitary between the elderly and their three generations and depression of the elderly. Journal of Korean Gerontological Society. 16:110–129.
  • Korea National Statistical Office. 2006;Population projections for Korea: 2005-2050. Retrieved October 2, 2008, from. http://kosis.nso.go.kr/Magazine/PJ/PJ0101.pdf
  • Lee J.S. 2005.Qualitative study on the attitude & perception of the living alone aged towards death. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Dongkuk University; Gyeongju.
  • Lee M.S. 2003;Factors influencing health care needs of solitude elderly. Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing. 33:812–819.ArticlePubMedPDF
  • Ministry of Health and Welfare. 2005;The 2004 survey on the living profile and welfare service needs of older persons: Results and policy implications. Retrieved October 2, 2008, from. http://www.mw.go.kr/user.tdf
  • Park Y.H. 1994.Home care need of the elderly in a county. Unpub-lishedmaster’s thesis. Seoul National University; Seoul.
  • Sim M.S. 2004.Health experience of low income elderly living alone from the perspective of Newman’s praxis methodology. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Chonnam University; Gwangju.
  • Song M. S., Hah Y. S., Yu S. J., Park Y.H. 2004.Gerontological nursing. Seoul: Seoul National University Press.
  • Steinbach, U. 1992;Social networks, institutionalization and mortality among elderly people in the United States. Journal of Gerontology. 47:S183–S190.ArticlePubMed
  • van Maanen H.M. 2006;Being old does not mean being sick: Perspectives on conditions of health as perceived by British and American elderly. Journal of Advanced Nursing. 53:54–64.ArticlePubMed
  • van Manen, M. 1997.Researching lived Experience. New York, NY: SunnyPress.
  • van Manen, M. 1998;Modalities of body experience in illness and health. Qualitative Health Research. 8:7–24.ArticlePDF
  • Worobey J., Angel R.J. 1990;Functional capacity and living arrangement of unmarried elderly persons. Journal of Gerontology. 45:S95–S101.ArticlePubMed
  • Yang J.H. 2005;The experience of life experiences among patients with chronic low back and extremity pain. Journal of Korean Acade-myof Nursing. 35:955–966.ArticlePDF

Figure & Data

REFERENCES

    Citations

    Citations to this article as recorded by  

      • Cite
        CITE
        export Copy Download
        Close
        Download Citation
        Download a citation file in RIS format that can be imported by all major citation management software, including EndNote, ProCite, RefWorks, and Reference Manager.

        Format:
        • RIS — For EndNote, ProCite, RefWorks, and most other reference management software
        • BibTeX — For JabRef, BibDesk, and other BibTeX-specific software
        Include:
        • Citation for the content below
        The Life of Elderly Women Living Alone
        J Korean Acad Nurs. 2008;38(5):739-747.   Published online October 12, 2008
        Close
      • XML DownloadXML Download
      We recommend
      The Life of Elderly Women Living Alone
      The Life of Elderly Women Living Alone

      J Korean Acad Nurs : Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
      Close layer
      TOP