Self-Organization of Senior as a System-Forming Factor of Active Longevity

Introduction. The relevance of the study is determined by the importance of the process of self-organization in older age for maintaining activity, forming belonging, cohesion and community among the elderly. By older people, according to the current legislation of the Russian Federation, the authors mean people aged 55 and older. It clearly shows that opportunities for self-organization at the city level are being created for this group.

Methodology and sources. The authors rely on the results of a survey of leaders of selforganized clubs of the Moscow Longevity Centers (sampling of 203 people, age of respondents from 55 to 88 years, date: January 2024). The purpose of the research is to study the ability of representatives of the older generation to independently organize free time, build new external and internal social connections in an independently organized homogeneous social system of active longevity, based on individual motivation. The research hypothesis is that “Moscow Longevity” is a system based on the self-organization of the elderly.

Results and discussion. An extensive network of government institutions – Centers of Moscow Longevity (CML) – has all the conditions to satisfy the most diverse needs of older people in leisure and recreation. The novelty of the studied approach to self-organization of the elderly lies in the possibility of its interpretation as a way of constructing a new social reality/activity of older people, where state assistance involves abandoning the dependent scenario (“come and take what you can take”), providing opportunities for individual development patterns (“come and create it yourself as you like"). As such a social reality, the features of self-organization of the elderly are considered using the example of the “Moscow Longevity” ecosystem.

Conclusion. The leadership potential of elders, accumulated throughout life, and the willingness to organize their leisure time independently on the basis of the Moscow Longevity Centers are shown, and the specifics of self-organization of the elderly in the active longevity system of Moscow are revealed. There was made an important conclusion about the desire of the respondents to be active, and the effectiveness and interest of seniors in self-organization on the basis of the CML was shown.

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