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The Use of Figurative Language to Describe Frailty in Older Adults

  • Original Research
  • Clinics and Public Health
  • Published:
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Abstract

Introduction

Frailty affects 15% of non-institutionalized older adults in the United States, yet confusion remains in defining and, in turn, assessing frailty. Figurative language, such as metaphor, can help to explain difficult scientific concepts and to form new theories. We aimed to examine the use of figurative language to describe frailty and to identify themes in the way figurative expressions are used. Understanding how frailty is described figuratively may offer insights for developing useful communication approaches in research settings.

Methods

We performed a comprehensive review of editorials in the scientific literature to explore figurative language used to describe frailty in older adults. We categorized themes among the figurative expressions, which may help to inform how to effectively communicate about frailty.

Results

We found 24 editorials containing 32 figurative expressions. The figurative expressions conceptualized frailty in six ways: 1) a complex, multifaceted concept; 2) an important issue in health and medicine; 3) indicative of something that is failing or faulty; 4) indicative of fragility; 5) representative of vulnerable, ignored persons; and 6) an opportunity for self-awareness and reflection.

Discussion

Our review highlights the heterogeneity in depictions of frailty, which is consonant with the lack of a standardized definition of frailty. We also found a novel aspect to the concept of frailty, which merits attention: frailty characterized as an opportunity for self-awareness and reflection. Figurative language, which often juxtaposes familiar with challenging, complex concepts, can offer insights on issues in frailty research and holds potential as a tool for researchers to improve communication about this important and debated medical condition.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center on Aging and Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

    Brian Buta, R. Miller & R. Varadhan

  2. Division of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

    Brian Buta, N. L. Schoenborn & A. R. Green

  3. Department of Philosophy, Loyola University of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

    D. Leder

  4. Division of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

    R. Varadhan

  5. MHS, 2024 E. Monument St., Suite 2-700, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

    Brian Buta

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  1. Brian Buta
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  2. D. Leder
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  3. R. Miller
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Correspondence to Brian Buta.

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Buta, B., Leder, D., Miller, R. et al. The Use of Figurative Language to Describe Frailty in Older Adults. J Frailty Aging 7, 127–133 (2018). https://doi.org/10.14283/jfa.2018.9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.14283/jfa.2018.9

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