Aging & the Elderly

graying

used to indicate that an increasing proportion of a society’s population is older

biological aging

• changes in reproductive capacity, immune system response, and cardiovascular function

• varies according to our genes, lifestyles, and luck

• physical aging is merely age-linked, not age-caused

psychological aging

• how old one feels, acts, and behaves

• not necessarily equal to chronological age

• most personality traits, self-concept, and self-esteem remain fairly stable from midlife onward

social aging

• society shapes the meanings and experiences of aging

• expectations and assumptions of those around us about

  • how we should behave

  • what we are like

  • what we can do

  • what we should be doing

• too young or too old for certain roles and opportunities

ageism

discrimination or prejudice against a person on the grounds of age

elder abuse

an intentional act or failure to act that causes or creates a risk of harm to an older adult (age 60 or older)

• the abuse often occurs at the hands of a caregiver or a person the elder trusts

• physical, sexual, emotional/psychological, neglect, financial

prejudice

thoughts and feelings about a social group (based on age, gender, race, ethnicity, religion), which lead to preconceived notions and judgements about the group

discrimination

harmful or negative actions against individuals based on their gender, age, race, ethnicity, religion regardless of their individual merit

• intentional behavior

• antipathy (negative feelings) toward or stereotypes (negative beliefs) about members of a status group

conflict (causes of discrimination)

beneficiaries of systems of inequality protect their privileges by using the resources they control to exclude members of subordinate groups

cognition (causes of discrimination)

automatic, nonconscious cognitive processes that distort our perceptions and treatment of others

categorization (causes of discrimination)

• ingroups and outgroups

• exaggerate similarity and difference

• automatically prefer ingroup members to outgroup members

• discrimination through ingroup favoritism rather than pervasive outgroup antipathy

stereotyping

attribute traits that we habitually associate with a group to individuals who belong to that group

• confirmatory bias

attribution bias

how we expect others to perform affects the meaning we assign to their behavior

• when performance conforms to our expectations, we attribute it to their stable, internal traits (ability)

• when it contradicts our expectations, we attribute it to transient external causes (task difficulty or luck)

• we expect members of social preferred groups to succeed

macro-micro link

categorization, in-group preference, and stereotyping are cognitively efficient

• over time members of preferred groups accumulate advantages and members of disparaged groups accumulate disadvantages

disengagement theory

functional for society to relieve older people of their traditional roles as it frees up those positions for younger people

• forced retirement policies

activity theory

people who are busy and engaged, leading fulfilling and productive lives, can be functional for society

• remain in work and social roles as long as possible; volunteering

continuity theory

older adults’ well-being is enhanced when their activities are consistent with their personality, preferences, and activities earlier in life

• former teacher volunteering at a school

conflict theory (aging)

many problems of aging (poverty, poor health, inadequate health care) are systematically produced by the routine operation of social institutions

• rates of poverty among older adults differ by race and gender, reflecting systems of stratification

life-course theory

people play an active role in determining their physical and mental well-being, but constrained by context

• boys and girls may have had similar career aspirations in early 20th century , but men received more structural support than women