Stephen McKinney
School of Education, University of Glasgow
The world’s population is aging and this is becoming pronounced in parts of the English-speaking world, such as the United Kingdom, Australia and North America. It is also affecting societies in East and South East Asia. Migration patterns of the last forty years have led to a new ethnic, linguistic and religious diversification in different parts of the world. More recent migration patterns in the last ten to twenty years have created super-diversity in cities such as London. As the different waves of migrants begin to age, new challenges emerge in the effort to support a culturally diverse aging population. These challenges include bilingual support, religious support, culturally responsive care and even end of life care. These are the challenges that are currently faced by governments, service providers and community organizations.
This paper explores the key issues of engaging with and providing support and, when required, care to members of an aging population who are culturally diverse. The paper argues that some of the key ideas and research from the field of Multiculturalism Studies will provide valuable insight into how to engage with the different cultures of an aging population.
(Presented in the 2018 Chulalongkorn Asian Heritage Forum : Culture of Longevity, 15-16 August 2018, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Bangkok, organized by Institute of Thai Studies, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Population Studies, Chulalongkorn University)