Ressignificação existencial do pretérito e longevidade humana
Carregando...
Data
2009-06-01
Autores
Patricio, Karina Pavão [UNESP]
Hoshino, Katsumasa [UNESP]
Ribeiro, Helena
Título da Revista
ISSN da Revista
Título de Volume
Editor
Universidade de São Paulo (USP), Faculdade de Saúde Pública
Associação Paulista de Saúde Pública
Associação Paulista de Saúde Pública
Resumo
Existem, atualmente, mais de 300 hipóteses relativas à caracterização, função e mecanismos do envelhecimento, possivelmente devido ao aumento de idosos no mundo. Embora se avente uma função social à velhice humana, as transformações da sociedade impuseram uma cultura de descarte, incluindo pessoas como os idosos. Tal exclusão, que se associa à tristeza, depressão e morte desse grupo, é contraditória ao aumento do tempo de vida dos idosos constatado atualmente. O presente trabalho tentou determinar os aspectos ambientais envolvidos na longevidade usando uma técnica de metodologia qualitativa denominada grounded theory (ou teoria fundamentada nos dados) em dados fornecidos por ex-ferroviários longevos. Constatou-se que as representações dos ex-ferroviários confluem para a categoria central: desolação pelo aniquilamento da vida e do ambiente, no presente, devido à continuada negligência do Estado e da Sociedade na promoção e preservação das coisas boas para a vida que havia no passado. Observou-se ainda que, paralelamente à hipervalorização genérica das coisas do passado, há constatação recente de que suas existências fizeram parte da epopeia que promoveu o desenvolvimento econômico e social do interior paulista e possibilitou uma ressignificação existencial do passado, sugerindo ser um potente mecanismo de defesa que culmina em longevidade. Tal achado se insere na hipótese de que a função da longevidade seria a de preservar um contingente social com conhecimentos de um modo de vida que deu certo por ser socialmente vantajoso.
Nowadays there are more than 300 hypotheses to explain ageing characteristics, function and mechanisms, possibly due to the large and increasing number of old people in the world. Though having a social function attributed to elders, transformations - under way currently in society - have imposed a discard culture, including old people. This is an authentic exclusion that is frequently associated with sadness, depression and death in its group, contradicting the alleged idea that older people increase life-time (as has been observed in recent years). This manuscript has the aim of determining environmental aspects involved with longevity; it thus uses grounded theory, a technique of qualitative research method, operating on data provided by elderly former railroad workers. It was observed that former railroad worker's social representations convey to a central category: desolation from perceiving life and environmental annihilation due to continuous State and Society negligence to promote and preserve good things - that existed in the past. We can also observe that, in a parallel way, by hyper valorizing past things, they recognize their existence as part of an epic process that promoted the São Paulo state countryside economic and social development, with an existential meaning to the past, which suggests to be a strong defense mechanism that contributes to longevity. This finding can be included in the hypothesis that the function of longevity would be to preserve a social contingent with knowledge about a way of life that was successful because it was socially advantageous.
Nowadays there are more than 300 hypotheses to explain ageing characteristics, function and mechanisms, possibly due to the large and increasing number of old people in the world. Though having a social function attributed to elders, transformations - under way currently in society - have imposed a discard culture, including old people. This is an authentic exclusion that is frequently associated with sadness, depression and death in its group, contradicting the alleged idea that older people increase life-time (as has been observed in recent years). This manuscript has the aim of determining environmental aspects involved with longevity; it thus uses grounded theory, a technique of qualitative research method, operating on data provided by elderly former railroad workers. It was observed that former railroad worker's social representations convey to a central category: desolation from perceiving life and environmental annihilation due to continuous State and Society negligence to promote and preserve good things - that existed in the past. We can also observe that, in a parallel way, by hyper valorizing past things, they recognize their existence as part of an epic process that promoted the São Paulo state countryside economic and social development, with an existential meaning to the past, which suggests to be a strong defense mechanism that contributes to longevity. This finding can be included in the hypothesis that the function of longevity would be to preserve a social contingent with knowledge about a way of life that was successful because it was socially advantageous.
Descrição
Palavras-chave
Longevidade, Significado existencial, Ferroviários, Grounded theory, Teorias do envelhecimento, Longevity, Existential Meaning, Railroad Workers, Grounded Theory, Theories of Ageing
Como citar
Saúde e Sociedade. Faculdade de Saúde Pública, Universidade de São Paulo.Associação Paulista de Saúde Pública., v. 18, n. 2, p. 273-283, 2009.