Social isolation and precariousness of the elderly: An ethnography of old age in French Polynesia
The proposed research aims to fill a significant gap in scientific data, both qualitative and empirical, on the lived situations of old age in this Polynesian familialist context. When, how and why do the elderly find themselves in situations of social isolation and precariousness in French Polynesia? This survey aims to understand the social, economic, political and moral mechanisms at work in the production of situations of social isolation and precariousness for the elderly in this overseas territory, bringing to the debate on this theme a pioneering contribution and a decentralized perspective vis-à-vis the French metropolitan context. Firstly, we will attempt to establish a framework for the social, political and moral issues associated with old age and the elderly in contemporary Polynesian society (1). Secondly, through a series of portraits of elderly people, we will explore life trajectories and experiences of old age in isolation and precariousness in French Polynesia (2).
In this way, the ethnographic survey aims to describe and analyze the daily lives of Polynesian elderly people, for whom old age begins under such conditions. The year-long research project is intended as a pioneering contribution to the debate on old age and its regulation in France, with a view to taking greater account of the political, cultural and social contexts of the French overseas territories.