Appetite for Food
The aim of the project, Appetite for Food, was to investigate through a qualitative study, combined with a user-involved process, older people’s everyday life, wishes, and routines, and thereby provide new insights into older people’s experiences of appetite. The focus of the study was on “elderly food” or “menu for small eaters” via food delivery by the municipal supplier: Copenhagen Food Service a la carte (KMS).
The project entails a broad understanding of appetite and the factors that can influence it. Therefore, the emphasis of the project is on the biological, sensory, social, individual, structural, and material aspects of older people’s everyday life and relationship with food.
In addition to a fixed “help structure” and many visits, the everyday life of older people is characterized by habits from a life that was different in the past – for example, when their spouse was alive or before illness or creation changed their everyday life. Many of these habits are embedded routines, but they are also practices in motion. This interplay between old habits, new realities, and the structures and practices of the surrounding society is the object of this project.
Appetite for Food is a project related to the interdisciplinary research project CALM at the university of Copenhagen.
In this project, we prioritize the examination of older people’s everyday lives, routines, and practices around food and eating. Our fieldwork is therefore primarily concerned with exploring older people’s perceptions of appetite in everyday life; furthermore, we use a range of qualitative methods in the investigation. The qualitative studies of everyday life provide an opportunity to inquire into personal perceptions, opinions, and logics, as well as to observe habits and practices that are not always possible to verbalize.
Among the qualitative methods that we employ are semi-structured interviews in our work with the elderly and KMS. We also use focus group interviews in our work with the Food and Meal Team and the SOSU helpers/assistants.
With the project, we have learned that the current categorizations of elderly people do not embrace all elderly people who receive food from KMS. We notice that a group of practicing small eaters do not gain the most out of their food scheme. Self-image, health, and ideals play an important role in relation to appetite, as several small eaters are concerned with weight in different ways.
For many older people, their working life, and habits from before play a role in their lives as older people in terms of eating times and their perception of frequently recognizable dishes; for instance, an individual who has been previously interested in food tends to adopt a more active stance, for better or worse.
In addition, the home and the regular dining area are significant elements in the appetite of older people. The familiarity and comfort of home can encourage older people to eat again after hospitalization.
Researchers
| Name | Title | Phone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jespersen, Astrid Pernille | Professor | +4520972205 |
| Grønnow, Cæcilie Liv | Cand. Mag i Etnologi |
| Jensen, Tenna | Ph.d. i Historie |
| Larsen, Marie | Ph.d studerende |
| Meisner, Nynne Uldal | BA i Europæisk Etnologi |
| Toft, Camilla Bundgård | BA i Europæisk Etnologi |
About the project
Project manager: Astrid Pernille Jespersen, professor and Tenna Jensen, PhD in History
Project coordinator: Liv Cæcilie Grønnow, MA in Ethnology
Project period: 2015-2015