The Aging Human Body as a Biological or Sociocultural Reality: A Study Based on the Writings of Select Christian Philosophers and Research on the Elderly
The Aging Human Body as a Biological or Sociocultural Reality: A Study Based on the Writings of Select Christian Philosophers and Research on the Elderly

Summary/Abstract: Because the topic is complex, the representatives of various scientific disciples have taken up the question of the corporeality of the human person. For example, biological and medical science researchers analyze the human body as a biological phenomenon, while those in the humanities, philosophy, or the social sciences consider the socio-cultural dimensions of corporeality. This article takes the latter approach both by considering the thoughts of select Christian philosophers and analyzing results obtained from a study carried out among people aged 60 years and older in order to answer the following questions: Do the elderly perceive the human body as a biological or as a sociocultural reality? How does this same population understand the aging body? According to the results of this study, seniors perceive the human body at any age primarily as a biological reality. The way that the study participants experience the drama of aging, as St. Augustine calls it in his writings, could have influenced why they rarely consider the sociocultural dimension of aging.

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