The SenQuality project addresses the topic of individual later life preparation in order to support well-being in old age. Demographic ageing is likely to be of major significance in the coming decades. Low birth rates and higher life expectancy will lead to a much older population structure. In 2018 about one fifths of the EU-28 populated were 65 years and older. During the next decades this is expected to gradually increase up to 28.5 % in 2050 (eurostat, Ageing Europe, 2019). The demographic change will have far-reaching implications. Expected cuts in social security systems, challenges for the health and care systems etc. emphasize an increased responsibility of individuals to prepare for later life. But also personal age-related changes influence future well-being. This includes bodily changes, role transitions when retiring but also loosing independence or trusted people. Several studies have shown that planning and preparing for age related changes is associated with increased well-being in later life, e.g. Noone et.al., Preretirement planning and well-being in later life, 2009; Yeung & Zhou, Planning for Retirement: Longitudinal Effect on Retirement Resources and Post-retirement Well-being, 2017; Preston et.al., Planning and preparing for later life, 2018. However, many people have not thought much about their later life nor taken future-oriented actions. The aim of the project is to raise awareness for the importance of planning for later life in a positive way and offer an individual, easy-accessible and flexible planning tool for own measures. The main result will be an online platform at which adults can search and find answers for their personal later life planning. This will be done with the help of self-reflection and different material and good practices as inspiration for a concrete action-plan. Preparation will not only concern financial aspects, which some persons might see as difficult to influence, but nine different life domains: - Finances - Emergencies & Exceptional Circumstances - Mental & Physical Fitness - Housing - Looks & Appearance - Social relationships - Health - Leisure Activities & Lifestyle - Work& Employment. The project follows by this the assumptions of Anna E. Kornadt (University of Luxemburg) and Klaus Rothermund (University of Jena) who see preparation as a lifelong and multidimensional process and defined in their studies these domains (e.g. Preparation for old age in different life domains, 2014). Preparations are considered for an active ‘"third age", where the loss of the work role and its substitution with leisure activities or bridge employment are relevant, and for a ‘‘fourth age’’ in which the deterioration of one’s health, dependence/independence, generativity issues, and closeness to death becomes more important. The main target group of this project are therefore adults in their middle age between 40 and 65 as well as seniors in their 3rd age around retirement. They will be the direct beneficiaries of the preparation tool. Piloting is foreseen with 175 adult learners. In addition, also adult educators, counsellors, psychologists and other related professional groups will be involved as participants to contribute to the different IOs but also to benefit from the self-reflection concept and the online platform for own counselling offers. In a first Intellectual Output, “Domains for later life preparation”, an information pack will be elaborated with description, concrete information and advice on the nine domains relevant for later life incl. good practice examples for preparation. This will form an individual result but also the basis for the contents of the online platform on later life planning. The 2nd output contains the development of a methodological framework as concept for assessment, self-reflection and action plan in the nine domains concerned. It will ask about the current situation and where it should go (plans, hopes, values etc.) besides supporting to find individual answers what to do to reach the own aims. Both outputs lead to an online platform for later life planning (IO3) as main result of the project. After introductions into each domain, the current situation of the users will be illuminated in form of a self-reflection, based on the conceptional framework developed in IO2. Good practice examples and different also country specific sources and materials will serve as inspiration for own planning. The impact of the SenQuality project will be an increased motivation of adults to prepare for later life in a stage in which this still can be influenced in addition to an increased knowledge on how to plan for later life. Considering the demographic changes in Europe and its related challenges but also individual challenges for people in getting older, there is no doubt about the necessity of individual preparation for later life. The topic is of societal interest. The project intents to offer a European solution for a European problem.
The project’s main objective was motivating and supporting individual preparation for life later. SenQuality wanted to raise awareness for the importance of planning for later life in a positive way and motivate people to start preparation for their third and forth age. To achieve these goals, the project aimed to provide assistance through a comprehensive, attractive and easily accessible planning tool. The methodology is also intended to support counsellors on age preparation issues. In the project, we understood ageing as a multidimensional process that effects life in many different ways. We therefore focussed not only on financial preparation or health measures but on a total of 9 interconnected life domains: finances, emergencies and exceptional circumstances, mental and physical fitness, housing, looks and appearance, social relationships, health, leisure activities and lifestyle, and work and employment. We based this approach on the works of researchers Anna E. Kornadt (University of Luxemburg) and Klaus Rothermund (University of Jena), who defined preparation as a lifelong and multidimensional process.
The project dealt with later life preparation, a topic that is of great importance, especially due to the increasing life expectancy and with this, the ageing population in Europe. Demographic ageing is a phenomenon that can be observed across Europe: A decrease in births combined with an increase in life expectancy leads to a substantial growth of the age group 65+. Official statistics reveal that life expectancy has risen, on average, by more than two years per decade since the 1960s while the percentage of the working age populiation is decreasing. This poses challenges for several policy areas, especially the health and care systems, finances/fiscal sustainability, family and social policy etc. But it also results in an increased responsibility of people to prepare individually for later life. In order to maintain a certain standard of living in old age, people cannot rely exclusively on state pension and health care schemes, but must also make individual preparations. Several studies show besides that active later life planning and self-reflection of age-related transitions can influence also well-being in later life positively.