<p> Most people in Western culture are inclined, if not obsessed, with the need to maintain perpetual youthfulness in their actions, attitudes, and image. This cultural ideal is fueled by inner fear as well as age-related stereotypes, prejudice, media messaging, consumerism, and lifestyle strategies. Most of these age-related factors are connected to "ageism," a 1969 term coined by Robert Butler. While the majority of people display various ageist attitudes, often it is without awareness. In a culture that is so profoundly accepting of such a phenomenon, individuals and the church should consider an appropriate Christian response in light of ageism's impacts that include discrimination, loss of self-worth, fear of aging, and judgment of self and others. Once aware of its prevalence and impact, this thesis proposes that the church can respond by raising awareness of ageism and its implications, and modeling a "better way" in its daily life and ministry.</p> / Thesis / Master of Divinity (M.Div)

This study investigates the effects of priming participants with either negative or positive images of older adults and the impressions they form of a neutral image of an older adult after subsequent priming. Participants were first primed with 25 positive, 25 negative, or no images of older adults, then they were asked to write a short story about "a day in the life of' a neutral woman and to complete several surveys including the Fraboni Scale of Ageism (FSA), Marlowe Crowne, and the NEO-FF inventory. The primary dependent variable was participants' short stories; which were analyzed for linguistic indicators of prejudice toward older adults. Additionally, the data were analyzed to unveil variables that predict ageism. Although priming did not have a significant effect, participants without perceived social support of a grandparent or older adult scored relatively higher on the FSA. Ageism was also predicted by the terminology used in the narrative written to describe the older adult female in the image. Ageism, like other forms of prejudice, develops over a lifetime and cannot be expected to be elicited or eradicated in a few hours. The results of this study suggest perceived level of support from an older adult is more important to reducing ageism than exposure to positive images of older adults.

Drawing on previous literature in cultural gerontology, ageism and age relations, and cultural appropriation this study analyzes the recent grannyhair trend on instagram. Recently, younger women have been coloring their hair combinations of white, silver, and gray and posting images of their style on instagram with the #grannyhair designation. In this study we use an intersectional approach to age and gender relations to explore this phenomenon. Previous studies show that women's behaviors and presentations of aging are policed by cultural standards of age-appropriate appearance and performance, particularly in regards to their hair. Qualitative content analysis of #grannyhair images are examined to assess the extent of age-based stereotypes and policing of age-appropriate behavior and appearance. This study found that instagram users engaged in this trend did not challenge age relations. Rather, boundaries of age-appropriate behaviors enacted in the #grannyhair trend are largely set by younger users. The ways in which young users utilize ageist stereotypes as a way to emphasize the contrast between their stylistic choices and their status as young attractive women framed the #grannyhair trend as one of appropriation. That is, young women adopted gray, white, and silver hair as a cultural symbol and changed its original meaning as a marker of old age. Conversations among both young and old instagram users echoing previous literature that details the contentious relationships old women have with their aging bodies, and hair specifically. / Master of Science / Recently, young women have been coloring their hair combinations of white, silver, and gray and posting images of their style on instagram with the #grannyhair designation. As this trend gained popularity, there has been some speculation as to what this trend could mean for old women and their attitudes towards and experiences of their own hair turning white or gray. While some news sites have speculated that this trend represents a celebration of old women’s appearances, this study finds that while both young and old women participate in this trend, they discuss it in different ways that do not challenge ageist attitudes or negative stereotypes of old women. For young women, this style is not about celebrating or valuing old age, and they engage in this trend through making jokes that make clear that they are not old, and that old is still a devalued category. Old women either clearly stated that the trend was odd because looking old is clearly bad (as it comes with a decrease in status) or talked about giving in to the inevitability of gray hair. As such, old women are now faced with either adhering to the new standards of white or gray hair, or face further social exclusion and invisibility.

Bakgrund: Mängden äldre ökar i befolkningen. Av dessa är många äldre kvinnor på grund av deras högre genomsnittlig livslängd. Relationer förändras med en högre ålder och de sociala förutsättningar som finns. Sexuella revolutionen under 1900-talet har påverkat deras liv och möjligheter till fri sexualitet. Menopaus är en naturlig åldersrelaterad påverkan för biologiska kvinnor som innebär kroppsförändringar med symtom som påverkar sexualiteten. Välbefinnandet och hälsan påverkar sexualiteten. När livet förändras måste människan förändra sin livsvärld och anpassas till nya förutsättningar. Andra faktorer som religion, kultur, samhälle påverkar sexualiteten och hur kvinnan uttrycker den. Sjuksköterskan kan vägleda äldre kvinnor i sin sexualitet genom att vara professionella. Syfte: Att belysa äldre kvinnors upplevelse av sexualiteten och olika faktorer som påverkar den. Metod: Kvalitativ forskningsanalys av åtta artiklar. Resultat: De äldre kvinnorna från studierna var en grupp med stor mångfald, med flera unika berättelser och upplevelser. Ur denna mångfald har fyra kategorier kunnat urskiljas som belyser kvinnors sexualitet och de faktorer som påverkar den. Dessa kategorier var: Miljö, Självkänsla och självbild, Partner, Intimitet och Sexualitet. Slutsats: Det är viktigt att sjuksköterskan beaktar sexualiteten för att kunna möta människan i hennes situation, när det kommer till ett svårt och känsligt ämne som sexualitet. / Background: The amount of the elderly increasesin the population. Of these, many are older women because of their longer average life expectancy. Relationships change with a higher age and the social conditions that exist. The Sexual Revolution of the 20th century has affected their lives and opportunities for free sexuality. Menopause is a natural age-related impact for biological women, which involves bodily changes with symptoms that affect sexuality. When life changes, people must change and adapt to new conditions. Other factors such as religion, culture, society affect sexuality and how the woman expresses it. The nurse can guide older women in their sexuality by being professional. Purpose: To highlight older women's experiences of sexuality and various factors that affect it. Method: Qualitative research analysis of eight articles. Result: The older women from the studies were a group of great diversity, several unique stories and experiences. From this diversity, four categories have been distinguished which shed light on women's sexuality and the factors that affect it. These categories were: Environment, Self-esteem and Self-image, Partner, Intimacy and Sexuality. Conclusion: It is important that the nurse takes into account sexuality in order to be able to meet the woman in her situation, when it comes to a difficult and sensitive subject such as sexuality.

Older adults make up a significant and increasing proportion of the U.S. population and are frequent users of healthcare services. Ageism in healthcare, driven by an incomplete and narrowly biomedical perspective on aging, has been linked to various problematic outcomes for older patients, including under- and over-treatment. The purpose of this study was to use the theory of relational ageism to explore the relationship between personal aging anxiety among healthcare professionals and their attitudes to older patients, considering the potentially moderating factors of job role and work setting. Using convenience sampling, clinical healthcare professionals working for a mid-sized, regional healthcare system in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States were invited to participate in an online survey, resulting in a sample of N = 145. Independent variables in this study included the sociodemographic variables of gender, age, race, ethnicity, level of education, formal geriatric or gerontological education, and years of expression, plus job role, work setting, and aging anxiety scores as measured by the Aging Anxiety Scale. The dependent variable was attitudes to older patients as measured by the Geriatric Attitudes Scale. Regression analysis findings suggest that while having formal geriatric or gerontological education was associated with more negative attitudes to older patients, other sociodemographic variables including gender, age, race, ethnicity, level of education, and years of experience were not predictive of attitudes to older patients. While physicians had more negative attitudes toward older patients than did nurses, therapists, and other types of clinicians, work setting was not predictive of attitudes toward older patients. Study findings also indicate that higher levels of personal aging anxiety of healthcare professionals were correlated with more negative attitudes to older patients. This study provides information that can inform diversity training for healthcare professionals in order to improve attitudes toward older patients and reduce age discrimination in healthcare. A key recommendation is the inclusion of an exploration of healthcare professionals’ internalized attitudes to aging in any diversity training in order to increase awareness that these internalized attitudes about aging may influence their attitudes to older patients.

Thesis (M.G.S.)--Miami University, Dept. of Sociology and Gerontology, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 26-28).

The aim of this novel piece of research was to explore experiences of self-stigma amongst a group of older people (aged 65+) currently using mental health services. In order to try and identify possible contributing factors to internalized stigma it was also decided to gather information on optimism and a baseline measure of distress. These scores were all compared with the individual’s likeliness to continue to use the mental health services as it was hypothesized that higher levels of self-stigma would be linked with a lower likelihood to continue to use services. Fourteen participants (age range 65-92) from three different geographical areas agreed to take part having been approached by a mental health professional known to them. Interviews were then arranged directly with each participant, with each interview being made up of three questionnaire measures to rate levels of distress, optimism and experiences of mental health stigma, a Likelihood to Continue to Use Services rating scale, and a repertory grid. The repertory grids had been specifically designed to explore the construct systems of the participants in relation to their age. The main finding was that experiences of mental health stigma were minimal, but that participants showed some signs of internalizing ageist attitudes. However, neither of these variables was correlated with a likelihood to continue to use services, suggesting that it is factors other than mental health stigma and age stigma and selfstigmatization that impact on an older person’s decision to continue to engage with mental health services or not. The small sample size also meant that power was lacking from the findings, indicating that further research needs to be carried out. This study has opened up a research area which needs further ongoing investigation in order to fully explore the clinical implications of self-stigma in relation to age and mental health problems. Areas of potential future research are offered and briefly explored.

”Here to stay” is the english title of this essay, about middle aged women who participates in these subcultures punk/hardcore, hard rock/metal and folk music in Sweden. The purpose is to explore the terms and conditions of participation for middle aged women in the subcultures. I have made interviews with six women between fortyseven och and sixtyseven years old who are organisers, musicians and in other ways taking part in these subcultures and scenes. I have also made observations at events and used autoethnography as method as I am part of the Swedish DIY punk scene. My analysis is based on poststructrural theory. I have used Judith Butlers theories on performativity and subject positions and used Jason Glynos and David Howarths theories on logics to explain the discourses I found. The results of this essay showed that the subcultures punk/hardcore and hard rock/metal are associated with male youth and that folk music include women of all ages at a higher extent than folk music. The more aggressive the music, the more the subcultures in my study evolve around hegemonic masculinity and male homosociality. On the other hand, women who take part in punk/hardcore and hard rock/metal have a chance to negotiate with and reject traditional femininity as a way of expressing their subcultural identity. The discourse implies that folk music is a welcoming subculture, which leads to the risk that excluding norms stand unchallenged. Women tend to leave the subculture they take part in as they become mothers, but those who stay gets to represent both their gender and their age.

Given the increasingly growing elderly population, and the large number of young Speech-Language Pathologists (SLPs), cultural competence regarding intergenerational ageism is a necessity. The current study aimed to discover whether SLP students are influenced by age-related stereotypes or judge communication objectively when assessing the language of older adults. First-year and second-year SLP graduate students evaluated narratives paired with images of older and younger adults on rating scales of language and communication. The results show that, although students primarily judge narratives based on quality, their language judgments are influenced by gender- and age-related stereotypes. Students judged males and females differently based on their age, with younger males rated worse overall. Students also appeared to lower their expectations when judging the language of older adults, suggesting that they expected poorer language skills to be more typical of older adults. The extent to which such biases may influence the students' communication with older adults is still unknown.

Physical appearance is one of the most important cues that an individual uses in forming an impression of another person. Researchers have found that perceptions of age are negatively related to perceptions of physical attractiveness. Because salespeople are influential in affecting a store's sales, especially for nondurable goods (Undell, 1972), consumers' perceptions of salespeople may influence the store's image and sales outcomes. The purpose of the present study was to investigate consumers' perceptions of salespeople of different ages and to determine if differences in these perceptions were related to consumers' age and salespersons' age. Two groups of subjects were investigated - younger adults (between 18 and 28 years of age) and older adults (55 years of age and older) . Younger adult subjects were recruited from university classrooms (n = 41). Older adult subjects were the recipients of Oregon Horne Economics Extension Newsletter (n = 46). The total sample size was 87. A questionnaire was used in the present study to investigate a consumer's perceptions. The questionnaire included three parts questions on the respondent's shopping patterns, a consumer shopping scenario which included the salesperson's age manipulation, and questions asking demographic information. Three dependent variables were measured in the questionnaire: perceptions of the salesperson's fashionability, product knowledge, and job performance. The data were analyzed using the chi-square statistic and content analysis. Results indicated that consumers' perceptions of a salesperson's fashionability was related to the age of the salesperson. Perceptions of a salesperson's fashionability was also related to the age of consumer and the age of the salesperson. Perceptions of the salesperson's product knowledge and performance were not related to the age of salesperson nor to the age of the consumers. / Graduation date: 1992