Work in Retirement: The Persistence of an American Collective Representation

Investigates the notion of “work” as a cultural category in the U.S. through the study of senior citizens, a stratum of people who have progressed beyond the work stage. Conducted primarily at a senior citizen center with about 1100 members over the age of 55, the research is both diachronic and synchronic. The former consists of library research and the study of the senior center archives in its 25-year history. The latter mainly consists of participant observation in all the activities offered by the center, and interviewing the elderly.
While existing studies of senior centers portray their function as social and recreational, this study argues that the cultural significance of these centers lies in their function as a substitute for work. The more the activities resemble work, the more they are welcomed by the members. Preliminary Discussion, an Introduction; Work, the Central Element of American Culture; Ethnographic Data and the Senior Center; ” Work,” Continuation of Work after Retirement; Beyond the Senior Center; and Symbolic Analysis, a Holistic Perspective.