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The Emerging Political Consciousness of the Aged: A Generational Interpretation 1
Author(s) -
Ragan Pauline K.,
Dowd James J.
Publication year - 1974
Publication title -
journal of social issues
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.618
H-Index - 122
eISSN - 1540-4560
pISSN - 0022-4537
DOI - 10.1111/j.1540-4560.1974.tb00731.x
Subject(s) - consciousness , politics , ideology , political consciousness , social movement , psychology , movement (music) , sociology , social consciousness , political science , political economy , social psychology , aesthetics , law , neuroscience , philosophy
Generational analyses have tended to focus on youth movements and ideologies, in keeping with the Mannheim emphasis on new generations. Age‐group political consciousness among the elderly may be an emergent feature of the current political scene; thus, it is useful to examine the generational aspects of a political movement among the elderly as well. This paper presents a model of the factors contributing to the development of socio‐political movements. It appears that an aged social movement will not develop unless age‐group political consciousness among the elderly is manifest. The prospects of the emergence of that political consciousness and a social movement of the aged are discussed, with attention to precursors of these political expressions in the current generation of older people.