Civic Engagement
The Lifelong Learning Institute is a crossroads for older adults to become engaged in volunteer opportunities in Broward County and other communities. LLI members are connected with service organizations that are able to make use of their lifetimes of experience.
New types of volunteer activities are always being developed. The LLI is the recipient of a 2006-2007 Nova Southeastern University grant to study models of volunteerism in older adult communities. Below is a short description of the current study.
Leaving a Legacy: Redefining Volunteerism for Older Adults in Broward County
Recipient of an NSU/CCB Quality of Life
Faculty Community-Based Applied Research Grant Award 2006-2007
Jacquelyn Dwoskin, Ph.D., L.C.S.W. Program Professor of Gerontology
Fischler School of Education and Human Services, Nova Southeastern University
and
Edward Aqua, D. Eng., Director, Lifelong Learning Institute
Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences, Nova Southeastern University
Abstract
As in all other stages of personal development, aging encompasses special tasks, specifically the desire to leave a legacy and the ability to put one’s life story into a meaningful whole (Erikson, Erikson, Kivnick, 1986). The age wave that will make Broward County one of the ten counties in the US to have the highest number of older adults (US Census Bureau, 2000), challenges us to develop models that will support the health and well-being of this growing population. Linking a sense of purpose to higher levels of health and well-being amongst older adults is well documented (Koenig, 1988, 1994; Moody, 2000; Morrow-Howell, Hinterlong, Rozario,& Tang, 2003). An important aspect of the sense of purpose lies in feeling socially engaged and connected to one’s community (Thoits, Hewitt, 2001).
This study proposes the creation of a new model for volunteerism by enhancing the capabilities of a group of older adults through a course in active leadership training. This course will explore concepts of aging; active leadership training, and the creation and implementation of a community service project. The goal is to create a personal pathway in which an older adult can utilize his/her time and life experience in a more meaningful, generative, and integrative way, one that contributes to the quality of life of others in Broward County.
The fundamental concept in crafting the membership of this research team has been the collaborative concept, drawing upon the demonstrated commitment of community organizations that will be able to enhance their own civic engagement through the implementation of the new tools for change created and researched in this project. The community organization Leadership Broward will provide guidance to some of the leadership training, and venues in which the older adults will contribute their time and service. The Lifelong Learning Institute, LLI and the community organization Senior Volunteer Services will generate the volunteer pool from which the study participants will be drawn.
Beyond the usual models of volunteering, this model will engage the older adults as teams who will fully collaborate with the partner agencies in creating their involvement.
A pre- and post-test will be administered utilizing the Loyola Generativity Scale (LGS). This scale is based on Erik Erikson’s psychosocial stage of development: generativity vs. despair (Erikson, 1968), which draws on the human potential for altruistic and creative concern for the next generation.
