Intergenerational Commensality: A Critical Discussion on Non-Familial Age Groups Eating Together

Simon Biggs and Irja Haapala
Additional contact information
Simon Biggs: School of Social and Political Sciences, The University of Melbourne, University Park, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia
Irja Haapala: School of Social and Political Sciences, The University of Melbourne, University Park, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 15, 1-12

Abstract: Connecting intergenerational relationships and commensality has been a neglected area in research and conceptual development within both food and life-course studies. This has been especially true of relations beyond the family. Here, public and private settings are explored in order to examine the relationship between eating together and generationally intelligent empathy. This is to help the discovery of spaces where different generations can interact positively around food and mealtimes. Contemporary social and public health challenges include: to adapt to increased longevity and to build solidarity between generations; to repair the relations between generations arising from institutional segregation; and to increase experiences of generational connection and social inclusion. As age-based cohorts are led to see themselves as separate from each other, we must find ways of building and negotiating new complementary roles for different parts of the life-course. Commensality, eating together at the same table provides an important cultural location and opportunity around which complementary understandings between generations may be built. A new framework is proposed to help identify and critically examine the variables underpinning non-familial intergenerational commensal spaces.

Keywords: intergenerational; commensality; life-course; meals; generations; eating; non-familial; non-kin; family; food (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/15/7905/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/15/7905/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:15:p:7905-:d:601594

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().