Psychiatry Research Communications (Mar 2023)
Irish Men's sheds serving as therapeutic landscapes for older men
Abstract
Therapeutic landscapes are defined as environments that promote the health and wellbeing of their members. Although the term originated in the field of geography, it has been popularized in other disciplines, including the social sciences. The purpose of this paper was to explore how Irish Men's Sheds functioned as therapeutic landscapes. Theoretical thematic analysis was used to analyze the narratives of older Irish Men's Sheds members to identify examples of Gesler's (1993) therapeutic landscape model. The model includes both inner/meaning components of natural setting, built environment, sense of place, symbolic landscape, and everyday activities as well as outer/societal components of beliefs and philosophies, social relations and/or inequality and territoriality. A total of 37 narratives were included in the analysis. Findings demonstrated the most support for the social relations/inequalities component of therapeutic landscapes within the narratives. Evidence for an additional therapeutic landscape component was also noted (e.g., lifelong learning) and its potential for inclusion in the therapeutic landscape literature is noted. Literature on therapeutic landscapes has often focused on theoretical perspectives. However, this research expands the discussion by applying therapeutic landscape criteria to specific environments and provides additional insight into how older adults engage with therapeutic spaces.
