Mala Kapur Shankardass - Older Women and Well-Being: A Global Perspective

This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

The registered company address is: 152 Beach Road, #21-01/04 Gateway East, Singapore 189721, Singapore

The making of this book begins with watching many older women around who show many different characteristics reflecting sorrows, happiness, resilience, courage, strength as well as weakness in dealing with life in their own ways. The responses seen to concerns related to their well-being from different socio-cultural contexts in my opinion called for certain scholarship to discuss these aspects stemming from individual, societal, or administrative levels. This book brought together experts working on this topic from different parts of the world, and I am grateful to each one of them for their significant and meaningful contribution. The work of different scholars has made this volume rich in substance and content, and I am extremely appreciative of each one of them for making this possible.

I would also like to thank two young budding researchers Aryaman Chand and Khushi Chandani who helped with bibliography search for literature on older women and interactions with whom provided the necessary enthusiasm for taking this project forward. Their timely, well-organized, and properly executed help was encouraging and much needed to give shape to my thoughts about concerns and responses toward the well-being of older women.

This section would not be complete without acknowledging the support extended by Satvinder Kaur and the publishing team of Springer Nature to fruitfully take forward the delivery of this academic project on older women which will interest a broad cross section of the population wanting to give visibility to issues related to older women. In this attempt of reaching out to a wider audience by bringing focus on older women, I also need to thank all my family members, including my husband, my son, daughter-in-law, little grandson, and extended clan of siblings for their support and necessary distractions to improve my concentration for this worthy project and focus. I enjoyed working on this and am grateful to all who contributed toward its successful completion.

Older women are generally regarded with negativity, but this needs to be overcome. There is increasing need for their concerns to be heard, responses generated toward improving their well-being and they be given respect and status in society. There are many strengths and resilience which older women bring in their lives, and these aspects need to be acknowledged by generating policy and societal response toward their well-being. This chapter with focus on older womens lives, on their images in society, on identifying their problems and concerns discusses the need for proactive practices, policies, and programs which enhance their status in society and contribute to toward giving them respect and dignity. The chapter points to difficulties older women face in their private lives, working situations, in relationships with different sections of society. The chapter puts forth an agenda which overcomes gender discrimination, fights ageism, removes barriers in health and social fields, and provides a positive approach toward recognizing their potential and their contributions in society. The analysis presented here adopts a development and human rights-oriented approach.