Men in retirement : community engagement and identity

For many men paid work is an important part of their self identity. The removal of this source of identity, through retirement or retrenchment, therefore represents a potential crisis. It is the author's contention that some retired men find new sources of meaning through their involvement in community or volunteer organisations. This paper will seek evidence for this proposition; through a review of the literature around men and retirement, with an emphasis on the importance of engagement in community activities for men's health and wellbeing. The results of this literature review will be compared to other research looking at men's experience of retirement, with a view to determining the barriers older men report around community engagement, in particular barriers to men's participation in existing groups and programs specifically established to meet older people's social needs. A better understanding of older men's social needs and expectations is needed in order to reduce these barriers. Recommendations will be presented in order to make such organisations more relevant to older men. In recent years a number of social programs have emerged which explicitly seek to engage older men, such as Older Men: New Ideas and the growing men's shed movement. These activities will be considered as examples of organisations that have successfully connected with retired men, through creating meaningful engagement which supports and reaffirms positive male self-identity. These findings will be used to inform ongoing research into older men's experience of retirement and community involvement, through in-depth interviews and utilising narrative analysis.