Introduction
An important aspect of healthy ageing is the ability to cope with and adapt to life conditions and transitions (e.g. Baltes and Baltes Reference Baltes and Baltes1990; Rook, Charles and Heckenhaus Reference Rook, Charles, Heckhausen, Friedman and Silver2007). Substantial research has investigated the positive effects of social relationships (e.g. Cohen Reference Cohen2004; Hagerty et al. Reference Hagerty, Williams, Coyne and Early1996; Taylor Reference Taylor, Friedman and Silver2007) and physical activity (e.g. Bailey and McLaren Reference Bailey and McLaren2005; Unger, Johnson and Marks Reference Unger, Johnson and Marks1997) on women's health and wellbeing in older age, but the ways in which participation in a women's leisure-based social group contributes to healthy ageing has received less attention. In particular, the ways in which participation in social activity helps older women cope with transitory, acute and chronic stressors in their lives requires further research. In this paper we examine older women's participation in a women's leisure-based social organisation, The Red Hat Society (RHS). The Society is an international organisation of women aged 50 years and older and has the mission ‘to celebrate the silliness of life’. It currently has around one million members distributed across 41,000 local chapters in 30 countries. Using qualitative data from a larger study of women's involvement in the RHS, the purpose of this analysis was to examine the ways in which older women saw their involvement in the Society as helpful in managing stress in their lives. In this study we use the term ‘older women’ to describe women in mid- to late life.
Stress and coping in older women's lives
Many older women perceive their lives to be stressful (Shields and Martel Reference Shields and Martel2003). Higher perceived stress is linked to poorer health and psychological wellbeing (Shields Reference Shields2004; Taylor and Lynch Reference Taylor and Lynch2004). Although women live longer than men, many at the oldest ages have multiple chronic health conditions (Roberto, Gigliotti and Husser Reference Roberto, Gigliotti and Husser2005). The accumulation of chronic health conditions can negatively affect psychological wellbeing and quality of life (Schultz and Kopec Reference Schultz and Kopec2003). In addition to health-related stressors, the death of a spouse is often a challenging loss for older women (Anderson and Dimond Reference Anderson and Dimond1995). Related to this, social isolation, loneliness and loss of social support systems may be additional stressors in older women's lives that affect psychological wellbeing (e.g. Harlow, Goldberg and Comstock Reference Harlow, Goldberg and Comstock1991; Hawkley et al. Reference Hawkley, Masi, Berry and Cacioppo2006; Tiikkainen and Heikkinen Reference Tiikkainen and Heikkinen2005).
Although older women perceive many aspects of their lives as stressful, most report a relatively high level of life satisfaction (Shields Reference Shields2004; Shields and Martel Reference Shields and Martel2003). What helps women to cope effectively with stressors in their lives? There is evidence that both personal attributes and social resources influence the perceived severity of a stressor, and also the types of coping strategies that older women use to manage these stressors (Basford et al. Reference Basford, Poon, Dowzer, Booth, Poon, Gueldner and Sprouse2003; Canetto Reference Canetto and Unger2001). Personal factors, such as a sense of personal competence or a belief in one's abilities to cope with stressful situations, are important for maintaining wellbeing in the face of chronic stressors (Moos and Holahan Reference Moos and Holahan2003). Beliefs in one's abilities to manage the challenges of everyday life affect not only the appraisal of stressors but the ways that people choose to cope with them (Fiori, Mcilvane and Brown Reference Fiori, Mcilvane and Brown2006; Zautra and Wrabetz Reference Zautra and Wrabetz1991). There is also evidence that maintaining a sense of optimism and a positive attitude towards life can affect coping and wellbeing in later life (Smith, Young and Lee Reference Smith, Young and Lee2004).
Researchers have found that social networks, including friends as well as family members, can have both direct and indirect effects on health and wellbeing in older age (e.g. Krause Reference Krause, Binstock and George2006; Taylor, Reference Taylor, Friedman and Silver2007), including during chronic health challenges such as heart disease (Janevic, Janz, and Dodge Reference Janevic, Janz and Dodge2004) or cancer (Shannon and Bourque Reference Shannon and Bourque2005). Although most older women report high levels of continued social support in their lives, many have to cope with stressors such as family care-giving or loss of a spouse, both of which may result in social isolation and loneliness (Taylor and Lynch Reference Taylor and Lynch2004). Social networks are a source of positive affirmation (e.g. being respected by others, receiving positive feedback), and buffer the effects of stress on subjective wellbeing by providing instrumental (e.g. information sharing, tangible aid) or emotional support (Friedman and King Reference Friedman and King1994; Shields Reference Shields2004).
In addition, social activities provide opportunities for women to receive social support and connect with friends. More social activities, as well as satisfaction with these activities, are linked to higher quality of life in later life (Stobert, Dosman and Keating Reference Stobert, Dosman and Keating2006). Janz et al. (Reference Janz, Janevic, Dodge, Fingerlin, Schork, Mosca and Clark2001), for example, reported that women with heart disease who maintained or improved their satisfaction with social activities were 4.5 times more likely to maintain or improve their quality of life than women whose satisfaction with social activities deteriorated. Nonetheless, few researchers have examined the potential of leisure-based social groups as a coping resource for women in later life.
Leisure as a resource for coping with stress
For our purposes, leisure is defined as preferred, enjoyable and meaningful activities that are pursued in free or discretionary time (Kleiber Reference Kleiber1999). There is growing research on the role of leisure in coping with stress. Leisure-based companionship, taking a break, and leisure activities that promote mood enhancement have consistently been found to moderate the relationship between stress and psychological wellbeing in university student and adult samples (e.g. Iwasaki and Mannell Reference Iwasaki and Mannell2000). Research has demonstrated the importance among adults of leisure-based physical activity as a context for stress release and companionship (e.g. Iso-Ahola and Park Reference Iso-Ahola and Park1996; Iwasaki, Zuzanek and Mannell Reference Iwasaki, Zuzanek and Mannell2001). There is also evidence that leisure can be an effective coping resource for people living with chronic health conditions or permanent disabilities (e.g. Hutchinson et al. Reference Hutchinson, Loy, Kleiber and Dattilo2003; Shannon and Bourque Reference Shannon and Bourque2005). In the context of these chronic stressors, leisure has been found: (a) to be a positive distraction (which in turn reduces distress and increases positive affect), (b) to sustain coping efforts, (c) to provide social supports, and (d) to foster a sense of optimism in the face of ongoing stressors (Hutchinson et al. Reference Hutchinson, Loy, Kleiber and Dattilo2003; Kleiber, Hutchinson and Williams Reference Kleiber, Hutchinson and Williams2002). Despite growing evidence of the benefits of leisure for coping, few researchers have focused on older women's leisure-based coping (see Dupuis and Smale Reference Dupuis and Smale1995; Zuzanek, Robinson and Iwasaki Reference Zuzanek, Robinson and Iwasaki1998 as exceptions). In addition, there is a need to extend beyond general descriptions of ‘leisure’ to examine specific leisure-based social contexts and their relation to coping.
Positive emotions in the stress-coping process
Coping involves affective, cognitive and behavioural responses to situations appraised as stressful (Lazarus and Folkman Reference Lazarus and Folkman1984). Why does leisure contribute positively to coping actively with stress? In addition to serving as a context for the social relationships and social activities that support coping, leisure is the context in people's lives which is most likely to generate positive emotions. ‘The practical importance of the emotions in our psychological and physical well-being, and in social functioning, is widely recognized’ (Lazarus Reference Lazarus1999: 35). Operating within a social-psychological paradigm, Lazarus emphasised the interdependence of stress and emotions and the social worlds in which people live; he suggested that aspects of the social and cultural environment (e.g. social demands, constraints, opportunities and culture) influence individuals' appraisals and emotional and coping responses. While much of the focus of earlier stress-coping research was on ways to manage or reduce negative emotions, more recently researchers have explored the value of positive emotions in coping (e.g. Folkman Reference Folkman1997; Zautra et al. Reference Zautra, Affleck, Tennen, Reich and Davis2005).
Much of the recent research on the role of positive emotions in the stress-coping process has featured people living with severe and chronic stress (e.g. Billings et al. Reference Billings, Folkman, Acree and Moskowitz2000; Folkman Reference Folkman1997). Although this research has acknowledged the significance of ‘moments of enjoyment’ in the coping process, the specific life contexts or activity types that are most likely to engender positive emotions have not been examined. In addition, not all stressors are severe and produce chronic or protracted distress. How do positive emotions help older women manage daily life stresses (e.g. activity restrictions associated with ageing, multiple demands on time) and the challenges associated with life transitions (e.g. residential relocation, retirement)? It is important to identify leisure-based social contexts that promote older women's health and wellbeing in the face of chronic and acute stressors, as well as daily hassles.
To summarise, how older women cope with stressors in later life influences not only their physical health but also their psychological wellbeing and quality of life. The purpose of this study was to focus on understanding the ways in which participation in a women's leisure-based social group, the Red Hat Society, serves as a coping resource for older women. Although numerous theoretical perspectives (e.g. lifecourse perspective, sociology of emotions, ageing theories) could be used to understand the ways social group participation contributes to older women's health and wellbeing, the focus of the following analysis is the dynamics of leisure-based coping and positive emotions.
Methods
Study context
Several aspects of the structure of the RHS foster playfulness and positive emotions and, in turn, enable participation to be a coping resource. First, each chapter registers with the Society's head office (in California) after self-selecting a fun or provocative chapter name, like the ‘Purple COWS (Creative, Outgoing, Wise and Sexy)’ or ‘Menopause Mammas’. The chapters then select a ‘Queen’ as the titular head of the group, with tongue-in-cheek names like ‘The Duchess of Disorganisation’ and ‘The Queen of Hysteria’. These chapter names often signify the intention to create a play space outside the norms and expectations of everyday life (Yarnal Reference Yarnal2006). Secondly, the ease with which women can become (and feel) part of the group may create the perception of social support. After a chapter is recognised by the Society, women register online, at no cost, to become members of a specific chapter. Some chapters limit membership to 10 to 15 members; others do not set a limit. Often women who know each other will form a chapter, and then extend invitations to others whom they think may be interested in participating. Alternatively, some women who are new to an area or are seeking change in their lives search for a local chapter with openings for new members, or they will form their own group. Often story-sharing occurs in the context of social gatherings, which may help new members quickly become part of the group.
Thirdly, ‘dressing up’ is an essential part of being a Society member and may engender a sense of solidarity and positive emotions. Members are encouraged to attend events wearing ‘full regalia’ which includes, at a minimum, gaudy red hats and garish purple outfits. It more generally involves frilly bathrobes, fuzzy slippers, ‘diamond’ encrusted tiaras, elaborate ‘creations’ festooned with glitzy jewelry, garish hatpins, elaborate feather boas, vivid mesh stockings, and bright red and purple handbags. Dressing up gives Red Hatters an opportunity to ‘let [their] hair down’, permission to ‘be goofy’ and a ‘supportive’ context to engage in spontaneous, immediate, self-indulgent pleasures. For the most part, each chapter functions separately. Most chapters meet regularly and, at times, individuals or groups attend larger regional or national gatherings. While many groups meet monthly at restaurants or members' homes for luncheons, other activities promote more overt forms of playful self-expression, such as: miniature golf, learning to belly-dance, eating dessert first at a restaurant, riding in a stretch limousine, attending a pyjama party in a local park, or having a sleepover ‘with chick flicks, popcorn, 50s music, pizza and snacks, games, and contests’.
When individuals join the Society they are not asked for socio-demographic information except for their address and the name and location of the chapter to which they wish to belong. Nonetheless, based on observations at two large-scale events in the United States, it appeared that members from the United States and other developed countries (e.g. England, Australia and Canada) are predominantly Caucasian. Interestingly, despite the lack of visible ethnic diversity at large events, many members articulated that a key benefit of membership was the diversity of the group. One member noted, for instance, ‘The ladies in our chapter are diverse. We have a member who has lived all over the world, and some who have hardly left the state. We have a professional artist, a pharmacist and several retired mill workers. We are white, black, Hispanic and American … and we are all one’. We also found evidence that exposure to women from diverse life circumstances enabled some to step outside their comfort zones. One member noted that the diverse membership had contributed to her personal growth and development. She wrote, ‘What has amazed me more than anything is the fact that I have met women that before the Red Hats I would have not made friends with – I would have made an assumption about them and not pursued it. Now I have to take the time to meet these people as they are joining the group, and there are quite a few that I would have cast off previously that I just adore at this point! It makes me wonder how many people in my life I have done this with – and it's a shame!’
Data collection
We used an on-line questionnaire posted on the RHS website for 10 days to collect data. This approach was adopted because increasing numbers of older adults have access to and are knowledgeable about computers (Fox Reference Fox2004) and because, if carefully designed, online surveys can minimise the four major sources of error in surveys: incomplete coverage, sampling bias, measurement errors, and non-response (Dillman and Bowker Reference Dillman, Bowker, Reips and Bosnjak2001). We used Survey Monkey, a commercial online software data-gathering tool to format and manage the survey.
Members were provided with a brief description of the study on the Society's home page. Interested participants clicked a URL link that took them directly to an expanded description of the study, an informed consent form, and the questionnaire. The online questionnaire was designed to collect information about: (a) chapter membership and organisational structure; (b) reasons for joining; (c) why individuals remained members and what might make them leave; and, (d) individuals' socio-demographic characteristics (e.g. marital status, age and education). It was originally intended to gather information about income but the Society's executives thought this too intrusive. In addition, the online survey did not note the country in which members currently resided. As a result we were unable to factor social or cultural differences into this analysis.
The sample
The target sample size was 1,000 members. Based on response rates to previous on-line surveys, the research team expected to reach this number in one month (Dillman Reference Dillman2000). Instead, it was achieved in two days, a testament to the popularity and salience of the Society to its members. To allow additional members an opportunity to contribute their opinions, the survey was kept online for 10 days. For the purposes of this paper, we focus on responses to one of the open-ended prompts in the survey: ‘We are interested in any stories you might like to share about meaningful experiences you have had through your Red Hat Society membership’. No less than 1,693 women responded to this question and their replies created over 750 single-spaced pages of text. The responses ranged from a sentence or phrase to over three pages. Among the women who responded to the prompt, 47 per cent were aged 51 to 60 years, 34 per cent aged 61 to 70 years, and eight per cent aged 71 to 80 years. The majority (96%) were white. Forty-three per cent were retired and 33 per cent worked full-time. Seven-in-ten indicated that they lived with a partner, while 21 per cent lived alone. The majority (59%) had had a high school education, 19 per cent had received college education and 14 per cent were college graduates. A particular interest, 29 per cent of the members owned six to ten hats.
Data analysis
The original data analysis was conducted by a six-member research team (four graduate students and two faculty members). The team used Huberman and Miles' (Reference Huberman, Miles, Denzin and Lincoln1998) interactive model of data analysis, with its three iterative components of data reduction, data display, and conclusion-drawing/verification. Data reduction involved both deductive and inductive approaches (Creswell Reference Creswell2003; Maxwell Reference Maxwell1996). The coding process began with preliminary categories based on pilot data collection and literature review. Additional emergent categories were also developed by each team member reading a randomly drawn 10 per cent subset of the data. Together these a priori and emergent categories provided the preliminary coding framework. Using this framework, two members of the research group (one coder pair) agreed the codes for three randomly drawn subsets of data (amounting to 28 per cent of the total); the result being the final codebook. This required several rounds of independent and verification coding, including consulting the entire research team about additions and refinements to the codebook. Then, three coder pairs used the final codebook to code the entire data set (including recoding the data used in codebook development). Throughout the process the research team met as a group to discuss cases that were difficult to code.
The category ‘coping’ was a major theme identified by the original research team. Of the 1,693 responses, 272 responses (16%) were coded to this category. Based on the key constructs in the stress-coping and leisure-coping literature, the first author (who was involved in the pilot data collection but not the online data collection) constructed a post-hoc coding framework for the coping category. Sub-categories were constructed to recode the data in the category. Two members of the original research team reviewed and agreed the analytic framework. The post-hoc coding framework is presented here.
The results
The results are presented in two sections. First, we report descriptions by Red Hatters of the stressors and negative life events that they experienced in their lives and how these stressors fostered their involvement in the Society. Secondly, we present the various ways that participation in the organisation served as a coping resource.
Stressors in the lives of Red Hat Societymembers
It is notable that, in response to being asked to share ‘meaningful experiences’, about one-in-six of the informants chose to write about something that was stressful or difficult to manage, and with which the Society (or other members) had helped them cope. While we present quotations that exemplify each stressor, it is important to note that these abstracts do not adequately convey the range and depth of the Red Hatters' statements. Many members (65 cases) described chronic stressors associated with a spouse's death, current health challenges (54) and care-giving (21) as reasons for their participation in the Society. One recently widowed woman noted, ‘I had a void in my life after my husband passed away and I was 55 years old. There was such a hole in my life and home … it's just what the doctor ordered’. Some members lived with a chronic health condition, such as multiple sclerosis (MS) or cancer. One explained that, ‘I have MS and the Red Hat Society gives me something to look forward to on my bad days and fun memories to make on my good days’. Others reported their own or other members' experiences with depression and anxiety. One member said, ‘The Red Hat Society has helped me to laugh more and cry less in the past few years. Joining RHS has been one of the most therapeutic things that I have ever done for myself’.
Other stressors included life transitions that were more transitory or less chronically distressing. These included residential transitions (40 cases), divorce (17), retirement (21), and generally coping with life transitions, e.g. ‘getting older’, the menopause and an ‘empty nest’ (13). Writing about her relocation, one woman noted, ‘I recently moved to a new State and if it had not been for the people I met through a local chapter, the move would have been very traumatic. But because of the warmth, acceptance and friendship of the women I met here, it feels like home to me already’. Reflecting on the shift to retirement, another stated, ‘It has eased the transition into retirement and prevented a severe case of depression’. Divorce is also associated with financial or residential transitions that can be stressful. As one wrote, ‘I'm a divorcee in a new area and needed to acquire new friends in the area. It certainly came through for me. These people are warm, funny, interesting and alive’.
Finally, some of the comments related to normative life transitions, such as children leaving home, and ‘getting older’. Several wrote about their sense of loneliness and lack of purpose after their children left home or moved away. One wrote, ‘my children are grown and have moved away. I've been very depressed and after being in a group … I really feel I am getting over my reasons to be sad and lonely’. Others wrote more generally about their participation as helping them to face ageing with a more positive outlook. One woman noted, ‘When we're feeling AGE creeping up with aches/serious health problems, along comes Red Hatting celebrating being over 50, encouraging us to indulge ourselves in fun, dressing up and fraternity (sic)’. Another commented, ‘I joined as soon as I turned 50 years, on my birthday in fact, to help me get over the hurdle of getting older’.
Participation as a coping resource
Although the women related numerous examples of how membership helped them to cope with stressors in their lives (e.g. combating shyness), there were four primary ways that The Society served as a coping resource. It was a context for: social support, emotional regulation, sustaining coping efforts, and meaning-focused coping.
Social support
The most frequently described way that the RHS helped members manage stress in their lives was by providing multiple forms of support, both instrumental and emotional (73 cases). In terms of instrumental support, or practical help, a myriad of examples were provided, from helping to provide food at a husband's funeral to going to doctor's appointments, bringing meals and offering information. For many women, however, it was the emotional support of feeling cared for that was the most significant coping resource. As one woman wrote, ‘I recently lost my best friend of 29 years to cancer. … The love and support of my fellow chapter members has kept me going and helped me cope with the loss’. Also important was the confidence of knowing that they could rely on RHS members for support. The following is but one example of this feeling of being emotionally supported that was reflected in words such as ‘loved’, ‘kindness’, ‘accepted’, ‘encouragement’ and ‘sisterhood’, which were used repeatedly in the women's responses. As one reflected:
Our group has been through several illnesses and deaths the past year. We were so much support for each other during these sad times. It shows that true ‘sisterhood’ shares sad times as well as happy times. Our bond of friendship was definitely strengthened. We learned that we can laugh together and cry together.
In addition, participation in the Society also provided opportunities to be with supportive others without having to talk about problems, i.e. in contrast to typical support-group procedure. Interestingly, while some of the chapters initially formed ‘just for fun’, they grew into social-support networks for members as they faced emerging life crises. As one informant explained:
Originally we formed the group to keep in touch with our friends and have some fun; however, the purpose changed somewhat when a couple of our members faced life-threatening illnesses. We became a strong support network that was there for those who needed it. As a result, our bond of friendship is stronger, as is our appreciation for the passage of time. Tempus fugit, we might as well eat dessert first!
Emotional regulation
As well as the supportive environment provided by membership in the Society, many women reported that their participation enabled self-regulation of their stress-induced negative emotions. Fifty-nine women wrote about how participation helped them either to reduce distress or to feel better. With respect to managing negative emotions, some women wrote about how participation helped them deal with long-standing mental health challenges (e.g. anxiety or depression), and others described the ways it gave them a break from the distress associated with a personal situation. One woman noted, for example, ‘I have some very difficult medical problems and have found that being able to just have fun and laugh has made them easier to deal with’. In addition to helping to reduce distress, participation helped the women to increase their positive emotional and psychological states — in other words, to feel better. In fact, most wrote not about its ‘stress relieving’ capacity, but instead about how participation helped them to feel good in spite of the stress. One woman noted, ‘Becoming a member of the Red Hat Society allows me to “escape” and have fun with other people. I enjoy laughing and being silly. The once-a-month activities we do are “therapy” for me’. Another wrote, ‘My husband has Alzheimer's, so I'm very lonely and isolated. I joined a chapter in a larger nearby town. … [They] have taught me how to laugh again, and have fun, and just be silly. I feel like I've regained my sanity thanks to them’. Notable among the women's expressions were that participation helped them ‘to enjoy life again’, ‘bring us back to life’, ‘learn to have fun again’ and ‘learn to laugh again’.
Sustaining coping efforts
For many of the women, the stressors in their lives do not go away. They must cope with them day-to-day. For example, 17 wrote that participation not only provided them with the chance to have a break and recharge, but also gave them something to look forward to. Both respite and anticipated positive experiences enabled them to endure the challenges of their lives. Many women used the phrase, ‘something to look forward to’, to describe what it meant to them to be involved. As one woman wrote, ‘None of the stressful areas in my life have changed, but now I have something to look forward to every month. I always leave a get-together feeling as though it's been good for me emotionally and physically’.
Meaning-focused coping and ‘re-vitalising’ life
Another way in which participation in the RHS served as a coping resource was as a catalyst for self-affirmation, re-appraisal and renewal. Twenty-one women wrote about how becoming a Red Hatter provided them with opportunities to re-appraise their lives or experience a sense of personal renewal or growth. These forms of meaning-focused coping followed, for the most part, a traumatic life event, health crisis or a lifetime of abuse. For some women this re-appraisal process affirmed or validated their sense of self. For example, one woman wrote, ‘a series of life events was leading me into a depressive state. The fun and sisterhood involved has given me a renewed sense of being. There is nothing more glorious than a bunch of “older” dressed up women laughing at life’. For others, it offered an opportunity to re-appraise life priorities and discover new ways of being, including allowing themselves opportunities to be more joyful. As one woman wrote, ‘The RHS has given me the opportunity to enjoy life again. I and my husband both have serious medical problems and, aside from working, all I did was sit in the house’. In addition, participation offered some women a renewed sense of purpose in life, helped them to address other issues in their lives, or changed their life priorities. As one wrote:
It has revitalised my life, given me a focus in retirement. As a result of finding ME and having positive, fun-filled playmates in this silliness, I have developed the courage to address other areas in my life that needed to be addressed to make changes for the better. … I am reinventing myself, thanks to the impetus of my involvement with the Society's activities and philosophy.
Discussion
The purpose of the study was to understand how participation in the Red Hat Society is a coping resource for older women. The results presented here derived from responses to an open-ended question about the meaning of participation. It was therefore an interesting, powerful and unexpected finding that many women wrote voluntarily and in great depth about the ways in which participation helped them cope with stressful aspects of their lives. The findings are relevant to theories about the role of positive emotions and leisure in coping with stress, and have implications for our understanding of the factors that promote healthy ageing.
Stress appraisals and coping responses
In general, two types of stressors were frequently described by the Society's members. The first was associated with normative life transitions, such as residential re-locations and retirement, or the stress of everyday living, including daily hassles and living with the typical aches and pains associated with ‘getting older’. For the most part, even though these situations could not be changed (the women could not stop ageing), participation in the RHS provided a way by which they could change their circumstances, or make them less distressing and more manageable. For example, even the death of a loved one could be compensated for, to some degree, through building new social relationships. Participation afforded opportunities to build new social connections, seek informational support, or take action to change the ways that they viewed their situation or themselves. It was striking that many of the women were experiencing a second set of stressors which brought considerable distress and for which there were no clear solutions, such as chronic health conditions, permanent disabilities, and family care-giving. In such stressful contexts, many of the women believed that participation positively influenced their lives and helped them feel better able to manage. In particular, participation provided a welcomed respite from their stressful lives; it was a ‘stress reliever’. In addition to alleviating distress, however, participation also afforded numerous, powerful opportunities for positive emotions.
Our findings add support to the idea that active efforts to cope with stressful situations are linked to better psychological outcomes, even when the situation cannot be changed (Gottlieb Reference Gottlieb1997). The findings are also consistent with the suggestion that people who believe they have personal or social resources to manage a stressful situation may perceive themselves as more able to manage the situation and engage in more active coping (Moos and Holahan Reference Moos and Holahan2003). In this study, women's participation in the Society promoted a sense of personal empowerment and confidence in their ability to handle life's challenges.
The role of positive emotions in the coping process
Two aspects of participation contributed to the women's perception that they were better able to manage the stressors in their everyday lives: positive emotions and social supports. We first focus on the role of emotions in the coping process. The analysis was informed by socio-psychological research on positive emotions and stress (e.g. Lazarus Reference Lazarus1999; Zautra, Johnson and Davis Reference Zautra, Johnson and Davis2005). Folkman (Reference Folkman1997) and colleagues (Folkman and Moskowitz Reference Folkman and Moskowitz2000, Reference Folkman and Moskowitz2004) have examined the role of positive psychological states (involving both positive emotions and thoughts) in the stress-coping process. Based on research with people living with severe and chronic stress (e.g. caring for someone dying of HIV/AIDS), they theorised that positive emotions and thoughts have two functions in situations where the stressor cannot be resolved (e.g. living with the death of a spouse, chronic health limitations). First, as a result of experiencing positive emotions and cognitions in severely stressful circumstances, people may engage in meaning-focused coping, which involves either re-appraising the situation in relation to deeply held values or beliefs, or revising goals to maintain the senses of personal control and purpose (Park and Folkman Reference Folkman1997). The findings provide support for this proposition. Some of the women described decisions to change life priorities and the way they lived. In these situations, women decided to seek opportunities to enjoy life more fully through participation in the RHS, which embodied what they came to believe was important in their lives. In other words, participation was more than simply managing their life circumstances; it enabled some women to expand the ways they saw themselves and the possibilities life afforded them, thus fostering self-exploration and personal growth.
Secondly, Folkman (Reference Folkman1997: 1216) suggested that, to manage the distress associated with highly stressful situations that cannot be changed, some people actively ‘search for and create positive psychological states in order to gain relief, if only momentary, from the distress’. This typically occurs when people infuse ordinary events with positive meanings, so as to feel better, more competent and more in control. Positive meanings strengthen perceived psychological and social resources by changing the ways people appraise the situation. Re-appraisal has a symbiotic effect on stressors: it helps individuals deal with persistent stressors, which in turn contributes to their ability to manage them. The results of thus analysis provide support for the proposition. Participation helped some women gain temporary respite from the distress. Although many of the stressors that the informants described offered little hope of change, it was notable how participation provided a way for these women actively to manage the distress associated with daily, transitory and chronic stressors. Even if these situations could not be changed, their participation provided the women with both a positive distraction from the stressor (e.g. a respite and break) and something positive to look forward to. In so doing, they perceived themselves as better able to cope with their everyday lives.
Social networks and ‘sisterhood’ as coping resources
Among the most striking aspects of the informants' statements were the strong expressions of caring and of feeling cared for as part of a ‘sisterhood’ in the Society. Perceptions of belonging, acceptance and support were central to the women's returns from their participation. These social connections and opportunities for social support were of particular importance to the older women who lived alone. This finding adds to the considerable evidence on the importance of social support for maintaining health and wellbeing in older age (Krause Reference Krause, Binstock and George2006; Prunchno and Rosenbaum Reference Pruncho, Rosenbaum, Lerner, Easterbrooks and Mistry2003), in the face of chronic health challenges (Janevic et al. Reference Janevic, Janz and Dodge2004), and in the context of coping with the stress of care-giving or the loss of a spouse. It was clear that the sense of support provided by the members of the RHS provided not only important social networks, but emotional and instrumental supports in the face of challenging life circumstances (Friedman and King Reference Friedman and King1994; Shields Reference Shields2004). Notably, feeling part of a ‘sisterhood’ cultivated a sense of belonging and acceptance. In turn, ‘sisterhood’ promoted perceptions of being better able to manage challenging life circumstances, from knowing that other women who genuinely cared and were available to help if needed.
Participation in RHS as a leisure coping strategy
Although there is a growing body of research on the role of leisure in coping with stress, as noted earlier there has been little attention to understanding the kinds of leisure-related activities or contexts that might confer optimal coping-related benefits. The findings reported here provide support for the contention that leisure-based friendships and companionship can be sources of support and empowerment for women (Freysinger and Flannery Reference Freysinger and Flannery1992). Unique to the findings is that not only did the women receive social support, but also many felt they were coping by feeling needed and helping others. The reciprocal nature of leisure-based social support warrants greater attention in the leisure-coping literature. Participation enabled members to maintain a sense of emotional wellbeing in situations of high stress. This finding supports other research that has identified the moderating or stress-buffering role of leisure-coping (e.g. Iwasaki Reference Iwasaki2006; Iwasaki and Mannell Reference Iwasaki and Mannell2000). This finding is also consistent with other research on the role of leisure in coping with negative life events (Hutchinson et al. Reference Hutchinson, Loy, Kleiber and Dattilo2003; Hutchinson and Kleiber Reference Hutchinson and Kleiber2005). In sum, this finding strongly supports the contention that leisure can be a positive coping resource in the context of negative life events by: (a) serving as a positive distraction, (b) sustaining coping efforts, (c) providing social supports, and (d) fostering a sense of optimism in the face of persistent stressors.
What enables the Red Hat Society, a leisure-based social group, confer such important coping benefits for older women? In addition to the strong social relationships (and thus social support) that is provided through the sisterhood, dressing up and ‘playing together’ afforded, in some sense, a liminal or separate space wherein the women could let down their guard and temporarily escape from everyday life (Yarnal Reference Yarnal2006). For many of the women, everyday living was clearly constrained, but The Society enabled group cohesion, fun and positive self-expression. Opportunities to laugh or ‘have a hoot’ helped women experience positive psychological states — positive emotions and thoughts. In addition to experiencing high levels of enjoyment, participation not only enabled the women to feel they were taking good care of themselves (and others), but also generated feelings of accomplishment, satisfaction, competence and control. Not only were positive emotions engendered from participation in The Society's events but also, according to many informants, participation had a more lasting effect by helping them cope with chronic, transitory and everyday hassles. Many aspects of membership — the sense of belonging, dressing up, opportunities for self-expression, taking care of self and others, and experiencing positive emotions — buffered or distanced women from the stressors in their lives, thus generating a sense of optimism and providing something to look forward to. In other words, making time ‘to play’ with other Red Hatters may demonstrate that it is possible to still have fun despite life's challenges. Learning how to laugh and ‘enjoy life again’ was an important aspect of living with the losses associated with ageing.
Conclusion
Although the reported analysis was informed by psychological and social-psychological research and theory on the role of leisure and positive emotions in stress-coping, we recognise that many theoretical lenses are available, and that numerous questions could be asked that would provide more understanding of the role of the Society in the lives of older women. The notions that the women might use dressing-up as a tool for resistance, i.e. a ‘mask of ageing’ (Conway and Hockey Reference Conway and Hockey1998; Featherstone and Hepworth Reference Featherstone, Hepworth, Bytheway, Keil, Allat and Bryman1991; Hepworth Reference Hepworth and Tulle2004), or to resist ageing stereotypes, merit further investigation but were outside the scope of the current analysis. It would be of interest to examine to what extent the relative freedom for self-expression, and the exploration and abandonment of more restrictive social norms and expectations (e.g. about what it means to be an older woman), influence how Red Hatters are (re)framing their views of what it means to be ill, widowed or an older woman.
Examining the meanings of participation in the RHS using the theoretical perspectives provided by the sociology of emotion is also warranted (see Turner and Stets Reference Turner and Stets2005 for a review). Emotions structure people's lived experience and connect their feelings and thoughts about the self with those about others and the world (e.g. Csordas Reference Csordas1994). Writing about the sociology of health and emotions, Williams and Bendelow (Reference Williams, Bendelow, James and Gabe1996: 46) asserted that the ‘fundamental embodied nature of human emotions [is] an ongoing structure of lived experience, and an active mode of being-in-the-world; one which provides the existential basis of culture and self, human sociability and social institutions’. If emotions are embodied experiences that connect the self to social and cultural life, this raises many interesting questions about the symbolic nature of ‘dressing up’, or of experiencing one's self as part of a ‘sisterhood’ of older women, for understanding the connections between participation in a leisure-based social group and what it means to age well. In turn, how do these experiences shape how the women may be re-experiencing and re-appraising their selves or their health? Although Yarnal (Reference Yarnal2006) examined women's participation in relation to the liminal nature of the play and sense of belonging (communitas) associated with being a member, a deeper understanding of the social and interactional processes supported by the myriad forms of participation in the RHS would be valuable. They enable the women to experience and express a range of positive emotions and, in turn, to see themselves as more capable of managing difficult life stresses as a result.
Other questions are raised by the analysis. Are there long-term benefits for older women who join a women's leisure-based social group? If so, do these benefits differ with the nature or intensity of the stressor, or with the age and social situation of the women? As mentioned previously, the health-related benefits of physical activity have been well established for older women; how does participation in a non-physical activity compare on the effectiveness in enhancing psychological wellbeing? Are there similar benefits for men? It is interesting that there are few studies of men's participation in leisure-based social groups. Further, there is a need to determine the relative efficacy of participation for women who report traumatic, unexpected life events as against normative or expected life transitions. Finally, consideration should be given to the ways in which participation could be promoted and supported for women who might be considered at risk of poor psychological wellbeing or social isolation.
As the discussion implies, much more can be learned from ethnographic, cross-cultural, longitudinal and comparative studies of women's participation in the RHS and other women's leisure-based social groups. We also recognise the limitations of our study associated with the homogeneity of the sample and the data collection method. As noted earlier, the Society's membership largely comprises white, educated women and does not reflect the diversity of older women. Although we were not permitted to ask about income, neither did we ask questions about the country in which the respondent resides, about perceived social supports outside the Society, or about membership of other social, cultural or religious groups. As a result, we cannot fully contextualise the meanings of participation across cultures and in relation to other important aspects of older women's lives. Additionally, we acknowledge that there may have been a self-selection bias; in other words, we do not know if only those women who perceived their participation to be beneficial responded to the survey. Finally, the study may not represent the experiences of members who did not use computers or the Internet.
Despite these limitations, we confidently conclude that the findings provide evidence of the beneficial aspects of participation for many Red Hatters, and that these extend beyond fun and friendship. Participation in women's leisure-based social groups can be considered a highly effective health promotion strategy to counteract stress (Iwasaki Reference Iwasaki2006), particularly in personal situations that cannot be changed. This finding adds support to theoretical propositions about the role of positive emotions in promoting resilience by broadening and building personal and social resources (Fredrickson Reference Fredrickson1998; Isen Reference Isen, Aspinwall and Staudinger2003). The question arises whether the coping benefits conferred by participation are unique to the Red Hat Society (e.g. because of the high value placed on being playful and dressing up), or whether positive outcomes will result whenever women get together in leisure-based social settings.
Acknowledgements
We are indebted to The Red Hat Society's Executive and to all the Red Hatters who provided information for their willingness to share their experiences.
