Perceptions of negative stereotypes of older people in magazine advertisements: comparing the perceptions of older adults and college students

2008 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 233-251 ◽  
Author(s):  
TOM ROBINSON ◽  
BOB GUSTAFSON ◽  
MARK POPOVICH

ABSTRACTNegative stereotypes not only affect how older people feel about themselves, but also how younger people feel about old age and their prospect of growing old. The research reported in this paper has examined the negative and potentially harmful stereotypes of older people portrayed in magazine advertisements in the United States, as perceived by groups of older and young people. Q-methodology sorts of 40 advertisements with negative images of older people, along with personal interviews, were used to probe older people's and college student's feelings and attitudes about the images. The subjects were placed in four categories: ‘moralists’, ‘objectors’, ‘ageing moralists’ and ‘resentfuls’. Regardless of whether stereotypes were used, the older people liked the advertisements that showed them as being clever, vibrant and having a sense of humour. Neither the older people nor the students liked advertisements that ridiculed or poked fun at older people, or presented them as being out of touch with reality and unattractive. Both groups rated the stereotypes dealing with the real problems associated with ageing as inoffensive. The comparison of the two age groups showed a strong consensus about which images were acceptable and which offensive.

Author(s):  
Reneé A. Zucchero

The population of older adults within the United States is growing rapidly, which calls for increased understanding of that population. However, ageism is pervasive and one of the most engrained forms of prejudice. Intergenerational service-learning may be one way to reduce negative stereotypes and ageism. The Co-Mentoring Project is an intergenerational service-learning project that matches undergraduate students and vital older adult volunteers. Students meet with their partners at least four times over the course of the semester to conduct a life review and gather information to begin the older adults' memoirs. This chapter provides a rationale for intergenerational service-learning and information about its theoretical underpinnings. The chapter also offers information about service-learning best practices, including structured reflection, and how the Project's methodology is consistent with them. The multi-modal assessment conducted for the Project and its outcomes are discussed. Finally, directions for future research are described.


Author(s):  
Larry DeWitt ◽  
Edward D. Berkowitz

This chapter considers the history of Social Security, arguing that the 1950 amendments represented the fundamental adjustment that allowed the program’s long-term survival. It analyzes current issues in Social Security related to gender, race, and the program’s long-term solvency. It concludes that Social Security has legitimized the receipt of government benefits among many Americans and changed the nature of old age in the United States by providing older people with a guaranteed means of support. A large and costly program, Social Security has evolved into the United States’ major antipoverty program. Nonetheless it faces the criticism of those who argue that it favors older people over other age groups and that it represents an inefficient form of government coercion. Whether the program will be sustained in the future or modified in a significant way remains a critical question.


2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. 1114-1114
Author(s):  
Yong Zhu ◽  
Neha Jain ◽  
James Normington ◽  
Jean-Michel Michno ◽  
Nort Holschuh ◽  
...  

Abstract Objectives Ready-to-eat cereal (RTEC) is a nutrient-dense food that has been associated with better nutrient intake. This study was conducted to examine the association between consumption of RTEC and food group intake and diet quality in the United States using the most recent nationally representative data. Methods Participants from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2017–2018 were classified as RTEC eaters or non-eaters depending on whether RTEC was reported in their day-1 dietary recall. Food group intake was estimated from Food Patterns Equivalence Database 2017–2018. Diet quality was assessed by the Healthy Eating Index 2015 (HEI-2015). Differences in food group intake and diet quality by RTEC consumption status were compared by ANOVA for survey, and were analyzed separately in children (2–17 y, N = 2135), adults 18–64 y (N = 3675), and older adults (65 y or older, N = 1221). Results Consumption of RTEC was associated with significantly higher intake of whole grains and dairy products, in all age groups examined (all P < 0.01). Children who consumed RTEC had a significantly lower intake of total protein foods (3.7 cup eq. vs 4.6 cup eq., P < 0.001) and vegetables (0.7 cup eq. vs 0.9 cup eq., P < 0.001) than non-eaters, however, intake of these food groups was not significantly different in adults 18–64 y or older adults by RTEC consumption status. Consumption of RTEC was not significantly associated with intake of added sugar in all age groups examined (all P > 0.05). Diet quality, as measured by HEI-2015 total score, was significantly higher in RTEC eaters than non-eaters in children, adults 18–64y, and older adults (all P < 0.01). Conclusions The results demonstrated that consumption of RTEC was associated with higher intake of whole grains and dairy products, but not with added sugar in the US population. RTEC consumption was also associated with better diet quality. Funding Sources The study was supported by Bell Institute of Health and Nutrition, General Mills, Inc.


Author(s):  
David Weiss ◽  
Manfred Diehl

Abstract Objectives We validated an aging mindset measure that captures beliefs about the process of aging. Specifically, we introduce a brief 4-item and an extended 10-item measure assessing (non)essentialist beliefs about aging. Methods We report findings from one longitudinal and one cross-cultural study, including young, middle-aged, and older adults between 18 and 88 years. The studies established (retest) reliability and measurement invariance as well as convergent and discriminant validity of the measures. Results First, in a longitudinal study (N = 124, 50–84 years) including 4 measurement occasions, we showed that the 4-item scale assessing (non)essentialist beliefs about aging has good retest reliability and convergent as well as discriminant validity (e.g., awareness of age-related change). Second, in a large cross-cultural sample (N = 1,080, 18–82 years) of participants in the United States and Germany, we established an extended 10-item measure of (non)essentialist beliefs about aging, providing support for a 2-factor structure as well as measurement invariance across samples within and across countries (the United States and Germany), age groups (young, middle-aged, and older adults), as well as across men and women. Discussion Our results highlight the importance of distinguishing between fixed versus malleable aging beliefs in research on aging and life-span development.


1995 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Georgina R. Slavoff ◽  
Jacqueline S. Johnson

The present study evaluates the role of age on the rate of acquiring English as a second language in an immersion setting. Subjects were children with native languages typologically very different from English. The children arrived in the United States between the ages of 7 and 12 years and were tested on their knowledge of English grammatical morphology and syntax at different lengths of stay in the United States, ranging from 6 months to 3 years. Subjects' performance was predicted by the length of their stay in the United States and by gender, with females outperforming males. Age of arrival played no role in predicting subjects' rate of acquisition. Performance was very similar between two age groups examined (7–9– and 10–12-year-old arrivals) throughout the 3 years measured. The present results suggest that, on certain aspects of grammar, different-aged children acquire a second language during the first 3 years of acquisition at similar rates when their native language is very different in typology from the target language.


2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. 1115-1115
Author(s):  
Yong Zhu ◽  
Neha Jain ◽  
James Normington ◽  
Jean-Michel Michno ◽  
Nort Holschuh ◽  
...  

Abstract Objectives Ready-to-eat cereal (RTEC) has been associated with improved intake of under-consumed nutrients. This study was conducted to examine consumption of RTEC and its association with nutrient intake and nutrition adequacy in the United States using the most recent nationally representative data. Methods Data from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2017–2018 was used. Participants were classified as RTEC eaters or non-eaters depending on whether RETC was reported in their day-1 dietary recall. Total daily nutrient intake was compared by RTEC consumption status using ANOVA for survey data. Percentages below Estimated Average Requirement (EAR) for selected vitamins and minerals that are usually fortified in RTEC products were calculated using the National Cancer Institute method as estimate of usual intake. Data were analyzed in children (2–17 y, N = 2135), adults 18–64 y (N = 3675), and older adults (65 y or older, N = 1221) separately. Results Among children, 34% reported RTEC consumption. The percentage of RTEC consumers was 14% in adults 18–64y and 22% in adults 65y or older. Consumption of RTEC was associated with significantly higher intake of carbohydrate, dietary fiber, calcium, iron, zinc, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, vitamin A, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, folate, vitamin B12, and vitamin D (all P < 0.05), but not with intake of protein, saturated fat, and vitamin E, in all three groups examined. Children who consumed RTEC also had a significantly lower intake of sodium (2735 mg vs 2929 mg, P = 0.02) and total fat (70 g vs 76 g, P = 0.005) than non-eaters, whereas energy intake was significantly higher in RTEC eaters than non-eaters in adults 18–64y (2390 kcal vs 2171 kcal, P = 0.03) and older adults (2081 kcal vs 1921 kcal, P = 0.03). Percentages below EAR for vitamin A, B vitamins, vitamin C, vitamin D, calcium, zinc, iron were lower in RTEC eaters than non-eaters in all age groups examined. Conclusions We found that consumption of RTEC was associated with higher intake of nutrients to encourage and RTEC consumers were more likely to meet nutrient recommendations compared to RTEC non-consumers. Funding Sources The study was supported by Bell Institute of Health and Nutrition, General Mills, Inc.


1997 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 397-408 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard B. Du Boff

Since the 1980s welfare state protections have been blamed for a host of economic problems. In the United States, conservatives have always disliked Social Security but could not effectively attack this popular program until the 1980s, when they devised a new tactic—warning young people that they would never get their “money's worth” from Social Security, which is on the brink of “bankruptcy.” The political climate, dominated by a drive to cut back “big government,” also became favorable for attempts to destabilize Social Security politically. Thus, negative images of Social Security have been forced onto the public agenda, and economists who consider themselves “liberal” have uncritically accepted this new set of political “givens.” It is an example of how they address “crises” as separable issues tied to no particular social context.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S692-S692
Author(s):  
Sanae El Ibrahimi ◽  
Yunyu Xiao ◽  
Matthew L Smith

Abstract Background: Suicide ranks within the top fifteen causes of death among adults 55 and older in the United States and is a growing concern in the face of social isolation and other end-of-life issues. This study examined differences and trends in suicide rates and methods among older adults in the U.S. Methods: Suicide mortality rates from 2008-2017 were derived from the Multiple Cause of Death files in the CDC’s WONDER database. Suicide deaths were identified from the underlying causes of death using ICD-10 codes. Age-adjusted death rates (per 100,000) were calculated. Older adults were grouped into four age categories: 55-64, 65-74, 75-84, and 85+ years. Percent change in suicide rates between 2008-2017 were examined, which were then stratified by gender and top suicide methods. Results: Suicide rates increased by 16% among adults 55 years of age and older from 2008 to 2017 (15.4 vs 17.8 per 100,000 respectively). In 2017, the suicide rate among older adults was 27% higher than the general population (14.0 per 100,000). Suicide rates were significantly higher among men relative to women for those ages 85+ (14:1 ratio of males-to-females). However, females in the 65-74 age group experienced the highest increase of suicide rate (41%) compared to other females or males across age groups. The most common method of suicide was firearms, followed by poisoning and suffocation. Suffocation had the highest increase over time (37%). Conclusion: Rising suicide rates among older adults suggest the need for tailored intervention strategies that address upstream suicide-related risk factors.


2020 ◽  
Vol 86 (5) ◽  
pp. 407-414
Author(s):  
Denslow Trumbull ◽  
Riccardo Lemini ◽  
Enrique F. Elli ◽  
Sanjay P. Bagaria ◽  
Kristopher Attwood ◽  
...  

Background Recent studies have shown an increase in the incidence of gastric cancer (GC) among young adults in Asia and Latin America. However, it is unknown if a similar trend is happening in the United States. Methods A retrospective review of the National Cancer Database was conducted to identify patients diagnosed with gastric adenocarcinoma between the years of 2004 and 2013. Results A total of 93 734 patients were included. The two age groups below 40 did not see a change in GC incidence; however, age groups above 40 had increasing incidence. Patients aged 18 to 25 had the largest proportion of stage 4 disease and a poor survival (median 11.5 months), compared to older patients. Conclusion Despite the increasing trend of GC among individuals, the incidence of GC among young adults is not increasing. However, this subpopulation presents at more advanced stages (clinical stage 4) and thus has worse survival.


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