Aging & Social Change: Ninth Interdisciplinary Conference

Abstract

Over the last decades, European welfare states are facing demographic, social, economic, and political challenges in realising the welfare rights of senior citizens. In that vein, the idea that the welfare state can no longer continue to be the principal provider of welfare services and resources gains ground, which is reflected in the current climate of austerity measures, the restructuring of public spending and the continuous and painstakingly rationing of resources. Also social services for the elderly are increasingly organised according to a cost-efficient manner, and this is recently manifested through the implementation of a consumer-oriented and managerial culture in public services. Critical scholars have argued, however, that these new public management philosophies lead to an erosion and even negation of the right to human flourishing of senior citizens. Therefore, in this paper, we explore how a citizenship climate in public service delivery for senior citizens can be reclaimed, created, and established. Based on qualitative research in residential care settings for elderly people, we discuss three interrelated aspects of the creation of a citizenship climate: (1) lifeworld-oriented practices, (2) differentiated manifestations of interdependency in professional culture, (3) community-oriented practices.