title: Connecting Socially Isolated Older Rural Adults with Older Volunteers through Expressive Arts.
abstract: Employing a participatory arts-based research approach, we examined an innovative program from rural Ontario, Canada, designed to address social isolation among older people. Older socially isolated adults were matched to trained volunteers, where in dyads, the eight pairs created expressive art in their home setting over the course of 10 home visits. With thematic and narrative inquiry, we analysed the experiences and perceptions of the program leader, older participants, and older volunteers via their artistic creations, weekly logs, evaluations, and field notes. The findings reveal a successful intervention that positively influenced the well-being of older adult participants and older volunteers, especially in regards to relationships, personal development, and creating meaning as well as extending the intervention's impact beyond the program's duration. We also discuss opportunities for similar programs to inform policy and enable positive community-based health and social service responses to rural social isolation.
authors.affiliation: Trent-Fleming School of Nursing,Trent University.
authors.forename: Ann
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2892-4574
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: MacLeod
authors.affiliation: Department of Geography,Trent University.
authors.forename: Mark W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Skinner
authors.affiliation: Registered Expressive Arts Consultant/Educator,Ontario.
authors.forename: Fay
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Wilkinson
authors.affiliation: Past-Director,U-Links Centre for Community-Based Research,Ontario.
authors.forename: Heather
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Reid
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001154:Art; D005260:Female; D006299:Health Services for the Aged; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009864:Ontario; D011788:Quality of Life; D012424:Rural Population; D012934:Social Isolation / Q000523:psychology; D014838:Volunteers
keywords: aging; arts-based research; bénévoles plus âgés; expressive arts; isolement social; older volunteers; participatif; participatory; recherche basée sur les arts; social isolation; vieillissement en milieu rural; vieillissment