THE ELDERLY IN RURAL
SOCIETY: EVERY FOURTH
ELDER is the name of a 1985
book edited by Raymond T. Cow
ard and Gary R. Lee (Springer
Publishing Company, New York).
Coward and Lee state that
research results on rural elderly
Americans confront us with a dis
heartening set of realities. In con
trast to the popular images of the
“good life,” with Grandmom and
Grandpop rocking away on the
large porch of their freshly painted
farmhouse, surrounded by their
land, grandchildren and the assur
ance of a prosperous future, we
now know that:
- The average income of the
rural elderly is consistently lower
than that of their urban
counterparts.
- A much higher proportion of
rural than urban elderly have
incomes below the poverty level.
- The rural elderly occupy a
disproportionate share of the
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The Elderly In Rural Society
nation’s substandard and dilapi
dated housing.
- The rural elderly have a larger
number of health problems, which
are more severe compared with
those of the urban elderly, result
ing in a larger number who retire
for health reasons.
- There is a higher percentage
of “heavy drinkers” among rural
as compared with urban elderly.
- M6ntal health services are
underutilized by the rural elderly.
These services must be meshed
effectively with other on-going
services and informal helping net
works, such as senior citizen cen
ters and nutrition sites.
- The rural elderly need more
transportation, but it is less acces
sible to them.
- According to research to date,
kin relationships are apparently
not significantly stronger in rural
society.
Other researchers who contri
buted to the Coward and Lee book
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make important points that are
pertinent to Extension staff and
advisory groups seeking to
address the needs of the rural
elderly and their families:
- lire needs of the rural elderly
are getting more legislative atten
tion. This group was not getting its
share of the federal budget at the
same time that research showed
that the rural elderly have more
unmet basic human needs. It was
found that many federal programs
were initiated from an outmoded
data base. The quantity and diver
sity of rural social services have
been increasing, but a gap
remains, compared with urban
areas.
- Social class implications need
to be considered, lest we tend to
“homogenize” rural elders into
one group. They are individuals
who differ considerably from each
other. Those with higher incomes
and better education have better
health.
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- More elderly people remain or
retire to rural locations. Those
who “migrate in are better edu
cated and more affluent than those
who have “aged in place.” Reti
rees who move to nonmetropoli
tan areas tend to select locations
that have been favorite vacation
areas.
- There is no difference in mari
tal satisfaction or adjustment
according to residential location.
There is apparently greater con
servatism and more traditional
ism. Younger generations usually
live closer to the husband’s
family.
- Farm men have been found to
spend less time interacting with
other household members, includ
ing spouses, than rural men of
other occupations. This contra
dicts the stereotype of farm fami
lies being more family-oriented.
- Rural beliefs and values inhi
bit use of mental health services.
Themes of fatalism, subjugation
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to nature, orientation to concrete
places and things, and emphasis
on personal kinship ties are com
mon. Values held by many rural
elderly emphasize cultural stabili
ty, gradual change, and accep
tance that ways of past living will
endure into the future. Profession
als who hold other views may
myoptically initiate delivery prog
rams which are destined to fail.
The independence of the rural
elderly may make them less likely
to perceive the presence of per
sonal and psychological problems.
Rural professionals must be sensi
tive, gain acceptance, and estab
lish personal credentials before
professional credentials will be
accepted. They need to be “street
wise” to the rural ecology.
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