Minerva Center on Intersectionality in Aging (MCIA)

Building bridges between multiply marginalized older adults and mainstream society

University of Haifa (established in 2019)

Keywords

Aging; intersectionality; psychology; sociology; political science

Research activities and aims

The Minerva Center is developing interdisciplinary and comprehensive cutting-edge knowledge by

• Examining intersectionality and multiple marginalization processes in old age;
• Developing knowledge related to overcoming inequality and other social barriers;
• By developing models of social, psychological and political intervention, ranging from education and social activism involving the participation of the marginalized groups themselves.

These themes are adressed along several dimensions:

• The physical and mental health dimension, including the impact of health on quality of life in old age;
• The socio-cultural dimension, including prejudice, stigma and societal attitudes;
• The legal dimension, concerning the needs, legal rights and human rights of older people;
• The individual-psychological dimension, relating to closure, the disclosing of secrets, self-value and value within the family, which enable respectful closure of the life course;
• The lifelong effect of vulnerability and resilience.

Research work is done by developing interdisciplinary research topics from the life experiences of the above-mentioned populations, with a focus on intersectionality, suggesting two directions: The development of empirical and theoretical knowledge and practical implementation. Given the need to examine cross-cultural similarities and differences of the acquired knowledge, and given the relevance of the issues raised for other cultures, a cross-cultural comparative component is added by developing collaborations with German colleagues.