Thesis (Ed.D.)--University of West Florida, 2006. / Title from title page of source document. Document formatted into pages; contains 95 pages. Includes bibliographical references.

Submitted by Automa??o e Estat?stica (sst@bczm.ufrn.br) on 2017-02-02T14:33:26Z No. of bitstreams: 1 LiviaMariaDeAzevedo_DISSERT.pdf: 1401266 bytes, checksum: e711e670cfddfc04f72de6124077ab1a (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Arlan Eloi Leite Silva (eloihistoriador@yahoo.com.br) on 2017-02-09T17:10:06Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 LiviaMariaDeAzevedo_DISSERT.pdf: 1401266 bytes, checksum: e711e670cfddfc04f72de6124077ab1a (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-02-09T17:10:06Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 LiviaMariaDeAzevedo_DISSERT.pdf: 1401266 bytes, checksum: e711e670cfddfc04f72de6124077ab1a (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-06-30 / A ideia de que envelhecer acarreta v?rias doen?as cr?nicas, perdas da autoestima, da beleza exterior, dos reflexos e da mem?ria ainda permanece na sociedade. A falta de conhecimento sobre o envelhecimento, refor?ado ao culto ? juventude ? o suficiente para se formarem estere?tipos e preconceitos contra essas pessoas. Este tipo de discrimina??o chama-se velhismo. Diante desse contexto, o presente trabalho objetivou verificar a ocorr?ncia do velhismo e os fatores a ele relacionados na realidade de idosos n?o institucionalizados. Trata-se de um estudo transversal, com uma abordagem quantitativa, envolvendo 188 indiv?duos com 60 anos ou mais de idade que foram escolhidos por conveni?ncia em uma amostragem por cotas. Utilizou-se para a coleta de dados um question?rio contendo o perfil demogr?fico, econ?mico, social, de sa?de e o Mapa M?nimo de Rela??es do Idoso, al?m do instrumento Ageism Survey traduzido e adaptado, utilizado para verificar a ocorr?ncia do velhismo. No tratamento dos dados foi realizada a caracteriza??o da amostra por meio da an?lise descritiva, depois obteve-se as poss?veis associa??es significativas atrav?s do teste Qui quadrado (p<0,20), e em seguida, foi feita a an?lise multivariada pela regress?o log?stica (p<0,05). Foi encontrado quanto a vari?vel ?sofreu algum tipo de discrimina??o? que os idosos com menor n?mero de comorbidades foram mais discriminados do que os mais doentes. O mesmo aconteceu com o idoso que ? respons?vel pela sua pr?pria casa, o qual sofre mais discrimina??o do que aquele que tem algum filho ou parente como respons?vel. O que usa transporte p?blico tamb?m sofre mais velhismo do que o que n?o usa, assim como quem tem mais tempo de aposentadoria em rela??o a quem tem menos tempo. Da mesma forma, os idosos que tiveram mais filhos foram mais v?timas do velhismo, e as mulheres idosas sofrem mais discrimina??o do que os homens. Em rela??o a vari?vel ?gravidade do velhismo?, os idosos que n?o recebem apoio emocional ou recebem de algu?m que n?o seja da fam?lia sofrem a forma mais grave de velhismo quando comparado ?queles que recebem apoio emocional de pelo menos um membro da fam?lia. Percebeu-se tamb?m que ter 4 filhos ou mais e ser do sexo feminino s?o fatores para sofrer o velhismo de forma mais grave. Com os resultados apresentados, observou-se o quanto o velhismo ? frequente e est? generalizado para a maioria dos idosos entrevistados, estando relacionado principalmente ?s suas condi??es de vida e de sa?de. Essa situa??o se agrava ? medida que se observa o desconhecimento da popula??o, inclusive a idosa, sobre este tipo de discrimina??o, al?m da gravidade e os problemas que ela pode acarretar. / The idea that aging causes various chronic diseases, loss of self-esteem, the outer beauty, reflexes and memory still remains in society. The lack of knowledge about aging, reinforced the cult of youth is enough to form stereotypes and prejudices against them. This kind of discrimination is called ageism. In this context, this study aimed to verify the occurrence of ageism and factors related to it in the reality of non-institutionalized elderly. This is a cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach, involving 188 individuals aged 60 years or older who were chosen for convenience in a sample by quotas. It was used for data collection a questionnaire containing demographic, economic, social and health profile and Map Minimum Relations Aging beyond the Ageism Survey instrument translated and adapted, used to check the occurrence of ageism. In the treatment of data was performed to characterize the sample by means of descriptive analysis, then gave the possible significant associations with the chi square test (p <0.20), and then was made a multivariate analysis by logistic regression ( p <0.05). It was found as the variable "suffered some kind of discrimination" that elderly patients with fewer comorbidities were more discriminated against than the sickest. The same happened to the old man who is responsible for his own house, which suffers more discrimination than one that has a son or relative responsible. Who uses public transportation also suffers more ageism than that does not use, as well as those who have more time for retirement compared to those who have less time. Similarly, older people had more children were more ageism victims, and older women suffer more discrimination than men. Regarding the variable "severity of ageism," the elderly who do not receive emotional support or receive from someone other than family suffer the most severe form of ageism when compared to those who receive emotional support from at least one family member. It was also perceived to have four or more children and being female are factors to suffer the ageism more severe form. With the results, it was observed how the ageism is common and is generalized to the majority of elderly respondents, and were primarily related to their living conditions and health. This situation worsens as observing the ignorance of the population, including the elderly, this kind of discrimination, in addition to gravity and the problems it can cause.

This project explored whether mindfulness and acceptance-based practices (MABPs) for older adults would reduce the negative effects of ageism and negative attitudes and beliefs related to aging. In addition, state affect and stress were explored. This study used an experimental design to compare two groups of older adults and two groups of undergraduate students – those who received a MABP and those who did not, after being presented with negative ageist stereotypes. Condition and condition by age sample comparisons revealed several findings. Following the MABP, undergraduates who received a MABP had significantly lower ageism scores than did undergraduates who did not. Older adult findings were opposite of proposed hypotheses, with older adults having higher scores on ageism after receiving the MABP, as compared to the scores of older adults who were in the comparison condition. Differences in state mindfulness were seen between conditions, with the MABP condition exhibiting more state mindfulness than in the comparison condition. However, there was no significant condition by age sample interaction effect. Change scores for state affect after the MABP were non-significant at either level of analysis, and older adults showed no difference in digit span stress scores based on their condition assignment. Exploratory analyses revealed some research consistent, as well as nuanced, findings. These findings suggest that undergraduates may respond to MABPs for recontextualizing aging, discrimination, and stigma. These findings also suggest that older adults may employ different coping strategies when confronted with ageism in an experimental context when asked to reflect, as oppose to participate in MABPs. Overall, a need for aging education, experimental research with older adults, and empirical understandings of MABPs for age-related issues, is needed. Limitations and future directions are discussed.

A gap exists in the literature on the actual experiences of older workers with information and communication technology adoption in technology-infused workplaces. To inform organizations on how to more effectively support this employee group's adoption of technology, the purpose of this qualitative exploratory multiple case study was designed to gain a deeper understanding of the daily experiences of older workers when adopting and adapting to information and communication technologies in a technology-infused workplace. This study is framed by, first, the selection-optimization-compensation framework for successful aging and, second, the age-inclusive training design framework. Semistructured interviews with 8 participants, observational field notes, and archival data provided data regarding specific technology experiences among older workers in the workplace. Identifiable themes emerged through thematic analysis of the textual data and cross-case synthesis analysis. A total of 8 categories that enclose a total of 18 themes were identified. The categories are (a) selection of resources, (b) optimization of resources, (c) compensation of resources, (d) performance limitations, (e) assessing training needs, (f) establishing/ sustaining performance, (g) age-inclusive training needs, and (h) older workers as organizational assets. Findings enhanced social change efforts by providing insight on the daily experiences that the older worker faced which may contribute to limited productivity in the workplace. Organizational leaders and human resource managers may use results of this study to implement provisions that improve help organizational profitability, team cohesiveness, and workplace satisfaction.

While picture books are often viewed as educational resources for young readers, it is crucial to not overlook the images and content this literary medium contains. Research suggests that repetitive messages encompassing a stereotypical nature cultivate lasting impressions on young audiences. One portrayal often associated with negative implications is the depictions of older characters in children's first literature. This investigation analyzed a selection of picture books from the New York Times best sellers list, the Book Sense best sellers list, and the Caldecott award winners for the years 2000–2010. In an attempt to provide a time spectrum communicating the levels of ageism that remain prevalent within the last decade, over 700 illustrated literary works were included in this exploration. Although conclusions supported a continuation of the under-representation of senior adults that is congruent to similar studies, findings suggested a significant improvement in the overall portrayal of older characters in illustrated books. This result communicates an optimistic outlook in continuing the promotion of positive attitudes for children regarding the aging process.

The purpose of this thesis was to examine a potential cognitive mechanism for simultaneous processing of age, race, and gender schemas. Marcus and Fritzsche (2014) propose that the outcome of the tripartite relationship of age, race, and sex are associated with archetypes, and that these archetypes categorize different intersections uniquely. To facilitate this, age groups selected were “old” and “young”, race groups selected were “Black” and “White”, and sex/gender groups selected were “female” and “male”. Several photographs representing each intersection were selected from LinkedIn for use in the pilot study, which were rated via a survey measuring the target’s stereotype, and the items included were chosen with the intent of selecting archetypal pictures for the main study that were the relatively equivalent across several dimensions. The main study used the selected photographs to address perceptions of participants (n=84) regarding adjectives used to represent each of the eight archetype conditions. Results suggest partial support for the proposed archetype theory, but the study faced limitations with respects to the photographs used in the main study. Inconsistencies with the literature suggest that the archetypes may been measured improperly, were conceived incorrectly, or do not exist. However, this study serves as a step towards understanding the complex relationship between a person’s age, race, and sex.

An aging global population has brought attention to the presence of age bias in health care and the role it plays in contributing to health disparities in the older population. This increased awareness provides nurse educators with an opportunity to examine innovative, evidence-informed educational interventions that aim to decrease bias and change attitudes. Immersive, experiential strategies that promote empathy may improve attitudes towards older adults. There is limited research in nursing education that examines the effect of immersive teaching interventions on learner empathy and attitudes. A quasi-experimental control group study was conducted to evaluate the effect of a virtual reality experience on nursing student empathy and attitudes towards older adults. Learners assigned to the intervention participated in a virtual reality experience where they were immersed into the story of an older adult. The virtual reality experience provided learners with the opportunity to view segments of the scenario from the first-person perspective. Virtual reality also allowed them to experience sensory and other age-related changes associated with aging and daily life. The control group completed a narrative case study that presented the same story depicted in the virtual reality. Lastly, all learners participated in a standardized patient simulation to evaluate empathic behaviors. There were no statistically significant differences in empathy or attitudes towards older adults between groups; however, both groups had significant improvements on both variables. The concept of narrative transportation, which suggests that students engaged in narrative stories are likely to have improved empathy and a change in beliefs and attitudes towards the story character and representative demographic, was used to examine participant engagement. Engagement scores did not differ between groups. Associations between the study variables were explored. Positive and statistically significant relationships were observed between empathy and attitudes towards older adults, engagement and empathy, engagement and empathic behaviors, empathy and empathic behaviors, and engagement and attitudes towards older adults. Further analysis showed that learner engagement and empathy predicted empathic behaviors. These findings add to the limited nursing education research on empathy and virtual reality and show that narrative patient stories can improve empathy and attitudes towards older adults in nursing students. These findings add to the evidence that supports the use of virtual reality in nursing education; however, the VR modality may not be superior to other educational strategies when presenting patient stories.

No description available.

no / Laura Middleton-Green, lecturer and researcher in palliative and end of life care, writes about how attitudes to death influence care of the dying.

Most of the empirical research on later life well-being in Taiwan has focused on demographic, structural factors and resources flow, and tended to ignore the meaning and beliefs older Taiwanese assign to aging and the consequences. In light of dramatic social transformation and the changing nature of elderly support, the empirical test of the values and beliefs about later life and their effects may provide a significant viewpoint in understanding why some older adults in Taiwan are healthier and live longer than others. This project employs a national representative data drawn from the Survey of Health and Living Status of the Elderly in Taiwan in year 1996 and 1999. Beliefs about aging are conceptualized into several constructs and each is linked to three dimensions of health outcomes: physical health, mental health and mortality. In addition, I tested whether engagement in healthy habits, supportive social relationships, and greater involvement in social activities account for the associations. Results suggest that general higher levels of positive beliefs about aging are predictive of improved health and longevity over time. When I divide general beliefs into positive and negative domains, I find that positive beliefs improve health largely through life style factors. While, compared to positive beliefs, negative beliefs seem to exert stronger effects on health through pathways well beyond an individual's lifestyle. That is, pessimistic views on aging may be more detrimental to health because domains related to negative beliefs (e.g., "boredom and uselessness" and "financial insecurity") directly challenge an individual's desires to search for a sense of meaning, purpose and security later in life. Taken together, this study shows that positive beliefs about aging shape proactive behaviors and translate limited resources into opportunities, eventually leading to better health outcomes. In contrast, viewing aging in an unfavorable way may limit an individual's pursuit for a better life, and, in turn, impact health and well-being, regardless the actual resources possessed by the individuals. Therefore, this study suggests despite physically intact, generally active, and supportive relationships, the individual's subjective perception of aging is another important determinant in securing a healthy later life among elderly Taiwanese. / text