Aging agents: social gerontologists' imputations to old people

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the argument that scholars' imputations of agency serve modern professional/institutional purposes other than the refinement of testable theories.

Design/methodology/approach

Data include articles from twenty‐first century issues of four gerontological journals. Content analysis involved coding articles for imputations of agency, constructivist analysis thereof, and the parties to whom authors directed their imputations.

Findings

Most authors rehearse theories of “structuration” and call for more imputations of agency to old people. They do this without imputing agency to privileged groups or to policy makers; and without settling theoretical question of how much agency people have or how scientists could demonstrate that. One article in ten provides constructivist critique.

Research limitations/implications

Patterns in imputations of agency in other scholarly realms (such as books) may support another interpretation.

Practical implications

Scholars should treat their imputations of agency as political activities and not refinements of testable theories. They position professional scholars as advocates for an oppressed group.

Originality/value

This paper provides a sociological context for interpreting routine imputations of agency in social scientific and humanist scholarship.

Citation

King, N. and Calasanti, T. (2009), "Aging agents: social gerontologists' imputations to old people", International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, Vol. 29 No. 1/2, pp. 38-48. https://doi.org/10.1108/01443330910934709