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Defining Ageism
Ageism is a term or concept that has become popular in the modern society though its definition remains problematic. Most of the existing definitions of ageism are based on parallels of sexism and racism (Iversen, Larsen & Solem, 2009). However, ageism can basically be defined as stereotyping or discriminating against others based on their age. In most cases, ageism refers to poor treatment of older people or the elderly though it can also refer to prejudice against young people in certain cases. Some of the most common prejudices associated with ageism including the belief that older people are unable to contribute to the society, consideration of the elderly as slow and inactive, and viewing them as people with poor memory. While some of these issues reflect the experiences of older people, they can be used for positive or negative stereotyping of the elderly population.
An example of positive stereotyping is providing social support services and help to the elderly in their daily life activities since they are slow and inactive. On the contrary, an example of negative stereotyping of older people is overlooking them for employment due to their age even though they could have the ability to perform the job. This example of negative stereotyping marginalizes and excludes the elderly from making meaningful contributions to the society (Gendron et al., 2016).
An example of age stereotyping I have witnessed occurred in a hospital setting where a young person was standing next to an elderly man. Some of the people in the hospital started talking about the young person looked healthy while the older man seemed like he was suffering from a chronic disease. These individuals perpetuated the stereotype that younger people are healthier than the elderly. The elderly person expressed his disappointment at their statements and reprimanded them for their negative stereotypes. He stated that he was healthy and had actually come to visit one of his sick family members admitted at the hospital. One of the nurses at the hospital also joined in and reminded them that age is not necessarily an indicator of health.
References
Gendron, T.L., Welleford, E.A., Inker, J. & White, J.T. (2016, December 1). The Language of Ageism: Why We Need to Use Words Carefully. The Gerontologist, 56(6), 997-1006.
Iversen, T.N., Larsen, L. & Solem, P.E. (2009, November). A Conceptual Analysis of Ageism. Nordic Psychology, 61(3), 4-22.
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