‘Old’ Materialisms vs. ‘New’ Materialisms in Ageing Research: A Comparison Based on Empirical Data on Grieving

Abstract The importance of materiality is increasingly being discussed in ageing research, particularly in approaches of cultural, environmental, and material gerontology. This growing interest in materiality has led to a critical examination of the relationship between approaches that are inspired by what are referred to as ‘old materialisms’—that is, historical–materialist and Marxist approaches—on the one hand and ‘new materialisms’—that is, newer feminist and poststructural approaches—on the other hand. In this article, approaches of ‘old’ and ‘new’ materialisms are discussed comparatively in terms of their potential benefits. For this purpose, we use the intersectional multilevel analysis according to Gabriele Winker and Nina Degele and core concepts of agential realism according to Karen Barad. Using material on widowhood and mourning taken from interviews with professional experts, we work out similarities and differences and the extent to which a combination of ‘old’ and ‘new’ materialisms offers specific analytical interpretations on an empirical level as well as the methodological consequences in ageing research in particular and sociological research in general.