The socialisation of aged bodies: A case study of a state-managed care home in Goa

Abstract

This paper examines the socialization of residents in a state managed care home in Goa. It focusses on how self, bodies and place are constructed and reconstructed by residents of a North Goa Care Home (NGCH). The paper will attempt to evince the above by highlighting five socialization processes encountered by the residents in this home. These include: adjustment of the body, assessment of the body, emphasis on the body, management of the body and relation to the body. Adjustment of the body occurs within the changed physical and social environment upon entering the home; assessment of the body follows within the assessments by the staff during admission which focus on the new resident’s body as dysfunctional and limited; emphasis on the body refers to the home’s focus on body care as well as the residents’ focus on their own ageing and ‘unpredictable bodies’; management of the body focusses on the impact of routines, regulations and procedures on the residents’ body; and finally relation to the body describes the residents’ relations to the boundaries of relationships within the home. This paper thus helps to capture how residents internalise institutional socialisation processes, and the sources of tension and conflict that need to be kept under control in order to ensure the smooth running of the home.