In-depth interviews with older migrants and their children
All interviews with older migrants from Turkey, China, Iran, and the former Dutch East Indies have now been completed. Interviews have also been conducted with older people from Suriname and their children, as well as with older people and their children who do not have a migration background. A few interviews with the children of older people from Iran and China still need to be conducted.
The purpose of these in-depth interviews is to gain a better understanding of the taboo surrounding loneliness within these migrant groups and to explore how this taboo can be broken. During the in-depth interviews with older migrants, we used photo elicitation: by showing photographs, we gained more insight into what loneliness means to them and what support or needs they experience when they feel lonely. In the conversations with the children, we learned more about how they talk- or do not talk – with their father or mother about loneliness and how they perceive their own role in their parent’s loneliness. The findings from these interviews form an important foundation for further developing interventions and trainings that can effectively address loneliness among older migrants.
First meeting of the advisory committee for the PROMISE project
At the start of January 2025, the advisory committee for the PROMISE project convened for the first time. This committee is made up of three renowned experts:
- Halleh Ghorashi, Professor of Anthropology at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
- Anja Machielse, Emeritus Professor of Humanism and Social Resilience, and Special Professor of Social Resilience of Older Adults at the University of Humanistic Studies
- Theo van Tilburg, Emeritus Professor of Sociology and Social Gerontology at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Together, they bring a wealth of knowledge and experience, both from a quantitative and qualitative perspective. During the first meeting, we discussed the interview questionnaire and the accompanying photos with Halleh Ghorashi and Theo van Tilburg. Based on their constructive feedback, we restructured the questionnaire and made some adjustments to the photos. Their input has helped us take another step forward in preparing for the in-depth interviews. We look forward to the next meeting with the advisory committee.