ORGANIZATION OF LEISURE FOR ELDERLY PEOPLE 

Shchanina Ekaterina Vladimirovna, Candidate of sociological sciences, associate professor, sub-department
of sociology and human resource management, Penza State University (40 Krasnaya street, Penza, Russia), shchanina@mail.ru 

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Background. People’s life style changes as they enter the retirement. The circle of contacts narrows, however the amount of free time grows. This free time needs to be filled with useful and substantial activity to continue adequate sound life. In this connection there occurs a necessity to solve the problem organization of leisure for eldrly people. In turn, the development of active life style of elderly people presupposes active participation in the said process of elderly people themselves. The article aims at analyzing main directions in organization of leisure for elderly people taking into account their needs.
Materials and methods. Realization of the research tasks was achieved through carrying out a sociological research athe mong elderly people of Penza. Special place in the said research is taken by the study of problems and needs of elderly people. The activity approach was used a methodological base. The main source of research results was the questionary.
Results. The study of problems and needs of elderly people revealed that elderly people are quite different in respect to criteria of health and labour ability, labour activity and motives thereof, marital status and social connections, housing and income, perception of the surrounding world, adaptation to social conditions.
Conclusions. The study of problems and needs of elderly people allowed to conclude that identification of the old age should be functional, connected with main changes in social-cultural roles of an individual. The research results confirmed that one of the ways to avoid social isolation is to improve the level of elderly person’s involvement in social life. An important direction of harmonization of elderly people’s relations and their social contacts with society is the leisure activity independent of a place of residence. Correctly organized leisure improves psychological condition of elderly people – raises the spirits, calms, awakes optimism, gives the feeling of life satisfaction.

elderly people, old age, elderly people’s needs, social activity, leisure of elderly people. 

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