Incorporating Diversity: Meaning, Levels of Research, and Implications for Theory

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Abstract
Incorporating diverse experiences into gerontological theory, research, and practice is necessary for understanding the lives of all old people, and not only ‘special groups.’ I begin by explaining how incorporating diversity exposes the power relations constitutive of lived experiences. Using examples from retirement research, I demonstrate that starting with the voices of those with less power renders a more complete view of social reality. Further, a wider understanding of aging in the United States mandates that we move to the international-comparative level. This enables us to more closely scrutinize the often unquestioned structural and ideological processes that construct divergent aging experiences as well as to conceptualize alternatives. I conclude, then, by noting that a more inclusive approach forces us to see all aging experiences not as determined but rather as fluid, dialectical, contextual — and changeable through human actions.

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