Ageism and the Rights of Older People (original) (raw)
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Journal of Social Issues, 1980
Society can improve the lot of older people in many ways, and in so doing can improve the life of each of us. New knowledge through research can enhance health and social services, and these changes along with increased economic security could help older people maintain their independence for as long as possible.
Book Review: Ageing Without Ageism? Conceptual Puzzles and Policy Proposals
2024
Ageing Without Ageism? Conceptual Puzzles and Policy Proposals is a collection of 18 essays that examine various aspects of ageing, ageism, age-related politics and public policy from different philosophical and ethical perspectives. As noted in the Introduction, this book is timely owing to two key factors. First, given the increased emphasis on interrogating categories like gender, race, disability and sexuality in framing inclusive social policies, it is essential to critically assess 'age' as well. This involves examining whether age-based categorisations are distinct from other categories or not. Second, as societies face ageing demographics, there is an urgent need for policies that address these demographic shifts effectively (pp. 1-2). To that end, the essays in Part 1 (Chapters 1 to 7) primarily address philosophical questions related to age and ageism, while those in Part 2 (Chapters 8 to 18) concentrate on age-related policy issues intersecting with other critical areas, including education, health care, political participation, taxation and inheritance. It should be noted that the chapter numbering in the hardback edition is different from that in the online book. In Chapter 1 ' Age discrimination: is it special? Is it wrong?' , Katharina Berndt Rasmussen categorises four distinct forms of age-based treatment and, thereafter, employs three theoretical frameworks to critically assess the morality of agedifferentiated treatment. In Chapter 2 'Does the badness of disability differ from that of old age?' , Kasper Lippert-Rasmussen compares old age with disability, proposing a 'moderate-bad-difference-view of disability' that acknowledges the general disadvantages associated with disability while highlighting their complex interplay with social and non-social factors. In Chapter 3 'In defence of age-differentiated paternalism' , Viki Møller Lyngby Pedersen examines the feasibility of social policies that restrict children's and adolescents' liberties based on paternalistic grounds. Pedersen distinguishes between 'soft' and 'hard' paternalistic policies, suggesting that while the justification for any form of paternalism generally weakens with age, the effectiveness of any specific policy measure will hinge on whether the 'hard' or 'soft' paternalistic approach is
Current challenges of ageing and ageism with a focus on healthcare and long-term care
2016
- [4]. Several scholars entered the debate. Indeed, Iversen and colleagues [5] presented the core aspects of ageism namely: “Ageism is defined as negative or positive stereotypes, prejudice and/or discrimination against (or to the advantage of) elderly people on the basis of their chronological age or on the basis of a perception of them as being ‘old’ or ‘elderly’. Ageism can be implicit or explicit and can be expressed on a micro-, mesoor macro-level” (p. 4). The key dimensions defined by Iverson and colleagues are the three classical components (cognitive-stereotypes, affective-prejudice, behavioraldiscrimination); the positive/negative aspect (positive ageism, negative ageism), the conscious/unconscious aspect (explicit ageism, implicit ageism); and the levels at which ageism can manifest (microlevel ageism, meso-level ageism, macro-level ageism). More recently, Levy and Macdonald [6] urged for a deeper understanding of ageism by moving beyond the negative aspect and includin...
Critical Questions for Ageing Societies, by Gemma M. Carney and Paul Nash
Age, Culture, Humanities: An Interdisciplinary Journal
While in the fields of critical, cultural and humanistic gerontology scholars have been highly skeptical of widespread concerns about "population ageing", an "alarmist demography" (Katz 2002) (see also Katz 2022 in this issue) continues to dominate both political and cultural discourses in the global north, and increasingly in the global south. Addressing contemporary concerns about "population aging," Critical Questions for Ageing Societies challenges dominant understandings of demographic changes in terms of a "demographic time-bomb" (18). Approaching the topic from a poststructuralist perspective, the book interrogates how older age and aging are socially constructed through cultural and political discourses and concludes that "the problem is not aging itself, it is that we use age to structure social, economic and political life in a way that is neither efficient nor effective" (7). A feminist approach is distinct throughout the book in ways that foreground gender, other inequalities, and their intersections. Focusing on the social and political contexts of the UK and USA, the book offers a solution-based approach, suggesting practical strategies directed toward restructuring society and the welfare system, with a concentration on rising to the challenges-and embracing the opportunities-resulting from contemporary demographic changes. For example, they suggest that policy focused on 'extending working lives' needs to provide attractive opportunities for older workers, as well as tackle ageism in the workplace. Another suggestion is to create more effective partnerships between public and private care providers, as well as to move away from a regional care strategy to a national one in order to provide consistency in, and equal distribution of, care. Structured as a textbook for an undergraduate audience, the book is divided into selfcontained chapters that address some of the questions students have asked the authors over the years, such as: "All old people are pretty much the same, aren't they? (Ch. 5)," "Why do older people have it so good? (Ch. 7)," and "Will I ever have enough money to retire? (Ch. 3)." The topics of the chapters are population aging (Ch. 1), ageism and ageist stereotypes (Ch. 2), retirement and active aging (Ch. 3), elder care (Ch. 4), diversity in the older population (Ch. 5), gender and aging (Ch. 6), the myth of generational conflict (Ch. 7), political demography (Ch. 8), and cultural gerontology (Ch. 9), with a final chapter
Ageism 1 Ageism: Busting the Myths
2009
Ageism has been defined as the “discrimination based on age, especially prejudice against the elderly” (Yahoo Education, 2009). One would think that in this day and age, when we have so many challenges as a world, a nation and a society, we would turn to those who have the experience and wisdom. Instead there is a prejudice, a false belief that those with the most life experience and those who have seen a great deal cannot offer much, if anything; that they are tossed to the wayside and thought incompetent, too old, cognitively impaired or just not physically strong enough to endure an in-depth discussion. Much is learned from the older population just by listening to the stories of their experiences and their knowledge and wisdom about the present. They have much to offer and this author has met many an “elderly person” who has inspired and influenced her life. This is the motivation behind this research and the reason for the inclusion of individual experiences.