THE ELDERLY PEOPLES’ PERCEPTION IN REFERENCE TO THEIR SUBJECTIVE WELLBEING IN SELECTED MAINSTREAM CHURCHES IN AFFLUENT KAREN-LANGATA, NAIROBI, KENYA

Abstract

There is a global concern about the exponential growth of the aging population, which must be put into perspective. By 2019, there were one billion people who were 60 years of age or older. This study investigated the elderly peoples’ perception in reference to their subjective wellbeing in selected mainstream churches in affluent Karen-Langata, Nairobi, Kenya. The study used a qualitative descriptive phenomenological approach. Purposeful sampling method was used to select 11 respondents in the in-depth interviews and 12 respondents in the focus group discussions (FGDs). The population of the study was the category of the young-old who were 60-75 years old. Verbatim data was transcribed, and descriptive themes were generated to show individual perspectives. Most of the elderly's subjective wellbeing was found to be influenced by their sense of self-actualization, their sense of belonging, and their level of life satisfaction. The elderly felt a sense of belonging when they were accepted, given attention, and support by their close family and friends, included in neighbourhood events and held leadership positions in the community. The growing elderly population should prompt policymakers to operationalize measures that will aptly improve their psychosocial wellbeing. The County government should plan, design, and enforce construction with the elderly in mind where ramps, lifts, and accessible, bedrooms are included. The church can organize talks and forums on healthy aging, healthy grieving mechanisms, and setting up structures and programmes for better support to the elderly.