Gibt es ein Leben nach der Arbeit? Zur diskursiven Konstruktion und sozialen Akzeptanz des „aktiven Alters“

This paper relates the changing discourse on ‘old age’ in politics and the media of the past three decades to the everyday narratives of retired (‘young old’) people as documented in qualitative interviews with retirees. While the public image of old age is increasingly centered on highlighting the productive potential of the elderly, the ‘young old’ themselves show a certain reservation with regard to perceived societal expectations of being productive after having left employment. Based on the findings of an empirical study, the paper sketches the historical dynamics of public discourse on ‘active ageing’ as well as the diversity of the ‘young old’ in terms of ageing actively. It shows that the political objectives of recognizing old age in terms (and on the condition) of its productivity is not being adopted and accepted, as least so far, by elderly people themselves.