Introduction

Extended healthy life expectancy across many Western countries has contributed to the period after retirement being increasingly viewed as a time of health and activity. International organisations, including the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations (UN), advocate ‘active ageing’ as a solution to the policy challenges associated with demographic ageing (Walker and Maltby, 2012), as have many national governments, including Ireland's (Department of Health, 2013). The activities recommended by those who advocate ‘active ageing’ include participation in voluntary work, retirement-related associations and interest/hobby-related clubs, as well as continued participation in the labour market. This emphasis has continued during the economic recession, both in Ireland and in other jurisdictions.

While, at first glance, the promotion of active ageing appears to be an unproblematically positive development, there are aspects of it that need to be critically interrogated. For example, whose responsibility is it to encourage, promote and resource active ageing, especially in a time of austerity? Are there groups of people who are currently excluded from active ageing, and, if so, what should be done about it? It has been suggested that governments may use the rhetoric of ‘active ageing’ to avail of the labour of older people themselves (many of whom may already be overburdened) to carry out unpaid work that should be the responsibility of the state (Minkler and Holstein, 2008). If ‘active ageing’ is beneficial, should governments be allocating resources to ensure that suitable programmes are provided and that all groups of older people have the resources to participate in these activities (Boudiny, 2013)? Finally, while continued participation in the labour market may be indicative of active ageing, it may also be a necessity for some older people, both in Ireland and in other countries, given the significant decrease in the value of pensions during the current economic downturn (Minkler and Holstein, 2008; Duvvury et al, 2012), an issue that will be returned to in Chapter Five.

In addition to a relatively established body of international research on the ways in which social participation and volunteering among older people impact on the lives of older adults and the wider community, there has been a small but expanding body of recent work in Ireland (Morrow-Howell et al, 2009; O’Dwyer and Timonen, 2009; Morrow-Howell, 2010; Barrett et al, 2011).