Aging enacted in practice: How unloved objects thrive in the shadows of care

Area of Science:

• Science and Technology Studies (STS)
• Sociology of Aging
• Organizational Studies

Background:

• Aging is often perceived as a stable, inevitable process.
• Company practices surrounding aging are not always explicit or intentional.
• Existing research often overlooks the subtle ways aging is managed within organizations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To empirically investigate how the concept and experience of aging are constructed and maintained within a company.
• To explore the role of "shadow work" and neglected practices in stabilizing aging.
• To apply Science and Technology Studies (STS) care literature to understand aging in organizational contexts.

Main Methods:

• Ethnographic fieldwork conducted at SMCare, a care technology company.
• Analysis of company practices, both in place and over time.
• Qualitative examination of how aging is enacted through various organizational activities.

Main Results:

• The stability of aging within the company is not achieved through direct care or affection.
• Aging becomes stabilized through its "re-enactment" in the "shadows" of other, more prominent care practices.
• Unloved or disliked aspects of aging gain durability by being incidentally incorporated into other organizational routines.

Conclusions:

• Organizational stability of aging emerges from indirect, often overlooked practices.
• STS care perspectives reveal how marginalized concepts like aging gain form in organizational "blind spots".
• Understanding these "shadow" dynamics is crucial for a comprehensive view of aging in the workplace.