Aged by popular culture is a research project designed to investigate how our perceptions of age and aging are shaped by two specific aspects of North American culture – Western media and popular culture – which have advanced and reinforced ageism though their celebration of the ‘cult of youth‘ and negative depictions of aging and old age that form the foundation of the anti-aging industry. This combination of factors has pushed older adults out into the margins of society where they have largely become invisible, resulting in an ageism that has become normalized and largely internalized by the general population.
Sixteen participants (5 between the ages of 20-35 years of age, and 11 between the ages of 65-80-years of age) contributed to this research in 2017-2018. Each participant created photographs or collage images based on specific interview questions that focused on media and popular culture’s depiction of aging and older age in contemporary society, which were then discussed during a recorded qualitative interview. Participant photos, images and audio clips are included in the dissertation which is in a website format that was specifically designed as a teaching tool to be used in K-12 schools, post-secondary institutions, and other organizations and senior’s centres. This website dissertation has the objective of promoting critical thinking that may generate a positive change in attitudes towards aging, build more positive intergenerational connections, and help to reduce the harmful effects of ageism in contemporary society.
Seven theme topics were created based on an analysis of the participant images and interviews which can be accessed through ‘Themes’ on the Website Menu. I suggest using these themes as your navigation tools through the website. Each section contains a discussion and analysis of the topic, plus participant photos, text and audio clips. Links within pages provide access to detailed information on the various statistics, concepts and definitions connected to each theme topic. Additional information on Aged by popular culture and the research process is available through links on the ‘Research’ section of the ‘Website Menu.’ (See ‘Table of Contents’ for the complete list of website menu sections and topics.) The Literature Review and Copyright information are also included in a PDF format, as part of this submission.
Please note: The dissertation (‘Aged by popular culture’) was created as a website. The current URL link is: https://agedbypopularcultureoutcalt.uvic.ca .The website dissertation has also been archived as a URL and can be accessed through this link: https://wayback.archive-it.org/17458/20210908235329/https://onlineacademiccommunity.uvic.ca/outcaltl/ / Graduate
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:uvic.ca/oai:dspace.library.uvic.ca:1828/13386 |
| Date | 13 September 2021 |
| Creators | Outcalt, Linda |
| Contributors | Kerr, Mary, Chappell, Neena L. |
| Source Sets | University of Victoria |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | Available to the World Wide Web |
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