Retirement is undergoing structural and discursive transformations that have implications for the individual and social experience and management of later life. Although discourses about retirement do not determine how individuals will prepare for and act as ‘retirees’, they provide morally-laden messages that shape people's possibilities for being and acting. Using Canadian newspaper articles published in 1999 and 2000, and drawing upon the governmentality perspective, this study explores the interconnections between neo-liberal political rationality and discursive constructions of ‘retiree’ subjectivities. The analysis demonstrates the ways in which certain subjectivities, and their associated technologies and practices of the self that are consistent with neo-liberal political rationality, are being shaped as ideal for ‘retirees’. The paper critically examines this process and its implications, and argues that the personal ‘freedom’ promised with the idealised life practices is ultimately illusory, because they oblige older people to resist or defy ageing through relentless projects of self-reflection and improvement, self-marketing, risk management, lifestyle maximisation and body optimisation. The implications of the neo-liberal discourse about old age and ‘retirees’ for future social policies and older people's services are critically examined.

This occupational terminology interactive dialogue outlines a construct that I have been developing since my doctoral work. Writing this paper has provided me with an opportunity to reflect on how the construct of ‘occupational possibilities’ has evolved, and how it provides a particular lens to examine transactions between structure and agency in the shaping of occupation at individual and collective levels. As such, this construct fits within the growing body of work in occupational science exploring theoretical and methodological approaches to addressing the ‘situated’ nature of occupation; that is, how occupation is shaped, embedded and negotiated within, as well as how it contributes to the shaping of, social systems and structures (Cutchin, Aldrich, Luc Ballaird, & Coppola, 2008; Dickie, Cutchin, & Humphry, 2006; Hocking, 2000; Phelan & Kinsella, 2009). Within this paper, after providing a description of the construct of occupational possibilities, I address its theoretical underpinnings within the governmentality perspective and raise questions and examples to illustrate its potential usefulness to further understanding of occupation as a situated phenomenon.

Over the past decade, many occupational science scholars have emphasized the critical potential of occupational science; that is, its capacity to generate knowledge to inform practices that work against occupational inequities. Within this lecture, previously articulated concerns regarding the ‘individualizing of occupation’ within occupational science are politicized, by placing them within the broader ‘individualizing of the social’ that is associated with neoliberalism and related socio-political transformations. This broader ‘individualizing of the social’, which has involved configuring various social problematics as individual concerns and responsibilities within an array of social policies, discourses and practices, obscures the economic, political and other social factors that shape inequities in possibilities for work, retirement, education, leisure and other occupations. Working against such inequities requires problematizing the ‘individualizing of occupation’, within and outside of occupational science, and situating occupation within economic, political and other types of social forces. Drawing upon on-going research addressing the contemporary re-construction of retirement and later life work, I argue that critically examining how occupational possibilities are constructed in ways that align with broader socio-political forces, as well as how they are actively negotiated by individuals and collectives, provides a valuable way forward in enacting the critical potential of occupational science.

Planning a public health initiative is both a science and an art. Public health practitioners work in a complex, often time-constrained environment, where formal research literature can be unavailable or uncertain. Consequently, public health practitioners often draw upon other forms of knowledge. Through use of one-on-one interviews and focus groups, we aimed to gain a better understanding of how tacit knowledge is used to inform program initiatives in public health. This study was designed as a narrative inquiry, which is based on the assumption that we make sense of the world by telling stories. Four public health units were purposively selected for maximum variation, based on geography and academic affiliation. Analysis revealed different ways in which tacit knowledge was used to plan the public health program or initiative, including discovering the opportunity, bringing a team together, and working out program details (such as partnering, funding). The findings of this study demonstrate that tacit knowledge is drawn upon, and embedded within, various stages of the process of program planning in public health. The results will be useful in guiding the development of future knowledge translation strategies for public health organizations and decision makers.

Although decisions related to driving are vital to well-being in later life, little is known about how aging drivers who do not experience a medical condition that requires driving cessation regulate their driving. This exploratory, qualitative study used focus groups with 79 such community-dwelling individuals to examine driving self-regulation from the perspective of pre-senior (aged 55–64) drivers, senior (aged 65 years or over) drivers, and senior ex-drivers. Themes resulting from inductive analysis addressed the importance of driving, mechanisms of self-monitoring and self-regulation, people who influenced decision making, and opinions regarding licensing regulations. A preliminary model of the process of self-regulation that highlights intrapersonal, interpersonal, and environmental influences on why, how, and when aging drivers adapt or cease driving is presented. The model identifies areas for future research to enhance understanding of this process, including the effectiveness of self-regulation. Findings suggest that increased public awareness of issues related to driving and aging could assist aging drivers, their families, and their family physicians in optimizing driving safety for this population. Since a near accident or accident was seen as the only factor that would lead many informants to stop driving and few informants planned for driving cessation, there is a need for interventions that help aging drivers make the transition to ex-driver in a timely and personally acceptable way.