Growing Up on an Appalachian Farm

Abstract

Background Research on centenarians to date has focused on areas with a high population of centenarians. However, there is limited literature on centenarians' perspectives about growing up on farms from the heartland of Appalachia in Eastern Tennessee. Purpose This qualitative descriptive study was designed to characterize the role of a farming childhood by exploring the viewpoints of community-dwelling centenarians who grew up on farms in south central Appalachia. Methods A qualitative descriptive design was used with a convenience sample ( n = 16). Cognitive status was determined with the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire. Demographic data were collected. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed with the Neuendorf method of content analysis. Results Main emerging themes were the farm, the family, and the environment. Conclusion The farm was at the center of these centenarians' childhood, influencing their family, community relations, and social interactions, which provided lessons that they utilized throughout their long lives.

‘Just another day’: the lived experience of being a hundred years old for ten New Zealanders

“…All individuals in the study came from sound economic backgrounds and some of them had been very high achievers and continued to have high cognitive functions at an extreme age. The significance of attainment of a higher education was similar to those in Holston and Callen (2017) and Archer et al (2005), but not identified by Freeman et al (2013). In the Hong Kong study of six centenarians, most participants perceived their working life as the most important factor in their life and retired at very old ages (Wong et al, 2014).…”

“…Our participants commented that they rarely consumed alcohol, and credited this with contributing to their longevity. The qualitative descriptive study on centenarians growing up on an Appalachian farm by Holston and Callen (2017) also put emphasis on eating healthy garden-fresh produce and having ample milk and butter, produced on the farm, as contributing to longevity. For participants in Scelzo et al (2018), who were rural dwelling, 'love of the land' was also a significant factor in the lives of the centenarians.…”

“…In respect to case-to-case transfer (transferability), our study confirms other qualitative studies on centenarians that have specifically investigated the narrated experiences of centenarians (Pascucci and Loving, 1997; Archer et al ., 2005; Power et al ., 2006; Darviri et al ., 2009; Hutnik et al ., 2012; Manning et al ., 2012; Freeman et al ., 2013; Wong et al ., 2014; Holston and Callen, 2017; Scelzo et al ., 2018). Attaining extended longevity was seen as ‘just another day’, expressed in a number of different ways in most of the above studies, and was linked to specific lifestyles and life satisfaction.…”

The Experience of Living to an Extreme Age: A Meta-Ethnography

“…Good food was described as part of the fabric of a good family:We always had a pitcher of buttermilk and a pan of sweet potatoes on the table waiting for us when we got home from school. (Holston & Callen, 2017)…”

“…We always had a pitcher of buttermilk and a pan of sweet potatoes on the table waiting for us when we got home from school. (Holston & Callen, 2017) Looking after your own body included dialogue about whether or not to access formal health care. People described the challenge of deciding, am I ill or is this a natural part of aging?…”