BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF OUR RESEARCH PROJECT

Senior Men’s Informal Learning and Wellbeing:

Through community-based participation

Research Project through the School of Education, University of Ballarat

for the National Seniors Productive Ageing Centre, Australia

Method: Literature, survey and focus group interviews in three Australian states.

Project Time Frame: October 2008 – November 2009

Researchers: Associate Professor Barry Golding, Dr Mike Brown, Dr Annette Foley

Researcher Contacts:

Barry Golding b.golding@ballarat.edu.au

03 53279733;

Mike Brown mb.brown@ballarat.edu.au 03 53279736,

Annette Foley a.foley@ballarat.edu.au 03 53279764.

School of Education, University of Ballarat,

PO Box 663, Ballarat, Victoria 3353 Australia;

Fax: 03 53279717.

OUR AIMS & THE TYPES OF ORGANIZATIONS WE ARE INTERESTED IN

Our aim is to study senior men’s participation in community-based organizations in urban, rural and remote contexts in Australia. Our interest is in what senior men (over 50) learn informally and what wellbeing benefits the men, their families and communities get out of that participation.

We plan to visit, survey and interview adult men over 50 (in work, out of work, retired) in a wide variety of community organizations in three states – South Australia, New South Wales and Tasmania. The organizations we are interested in include sporting, fire, sea search and rescue, aged care, adult and community education, religious, cultural or Aboriginal organizations as well as men’s special interest organizations including men’s sheds.

We expect to find out what is attractive, common and different about senior men participating and learning informally in a range of community organizations to find better ways to engage and benefit other men.

WHERE & WHEN WE PLAN TO VISIT

We have tentatively selected cities and towns in urban, regional and rural areas where the proportion of senior men (age 50+) not in the workforce (including in retirement) is higher than the Australian average. The urban areas and the researchers that will visit them are Hobart (Mike Brown), Sydney (Annette Foley) & Adelaide (Barry Golding). The regional, rural and remote areas Barry will visit will be around Oatlands (Tas), Lismore (NSW) & Ceduna (SA).

We first plan to visit each area in late 2008 or early 2009 to fully inform local organizations and communities what participation would involve and to seek their cooperation with interviews and surveys with fully informed and consenting participants, planned for mid 2009.

This Australian project forms part of an international project on informal men’s learning being conducted in Australia, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Ireland. It will have full university research ethics approvals. The results of the research report to NSPAC will be available on request. No individuals will be identified in the research reports.