Ageism
From Life Done Right SeniorWiki
Ageism is a term expressing prejudice against older adults through attitudes and behavior. Public reaction to ageism in the early 1960’s reached its pinnacle in passage of federal legislation. Advocacy efforts of such organizations as the Gray Panthers, the National Council of Senior Citizens, and the AARP contributed to passage of the Older Americans Act of 1965 and the Age Discrimination in Employment of 1967 (ADEA). Age discrimination in employment continues today, abated in part by low unemployment and greater recognition of the value of older workers. Ageism today is sometimes expressed as "intergenerational warfare," primarily focused on the proportion of the Federal budget allocated to programs benefiting older adults. Advocates of programs for children and adolescents fear that an increasing share of federal dollars for domestic programs with be consumed in passage of reform proposals designed to stabilize and expand the benefits of Medicare and Social Security.
Public policy interest in and issues about older workers are often cyclical, dependent in part upon the health of the economy, the employment rate and retirement benefits. At the level of the individual, issues are more basic such as the security and benefits of employment and self-employment, the ability to maintain technical competence in a changing workplace, and the affordability of retirement. Age discrimination continues to be a major issue, but given recognition of government prohibition and oversight of its practice, it is sometimes difficult to uncover and eliminate.
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External Links
- National Academy for Teaching and Learning about Aging
- Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967
- Facts About Age Discrimination
Related Resources
- Ageism - curriculum materials provide a basic introduction to ageism toward older adults.
- The Representation of Elderly Persons in Prime Time Television Advertising - this study updates previously published research regarding the image and representation of elderly in television commercials
- 2005 issue of the Journal of Social Issues - thematic journal issue devoted to empirical and theoretical research on ageism.
- Ageism In America - detailed report on ageism from the International Longevity Center.
- Ageism: Stereotyping and Prejudice Against Older Persons - edited scholarly volume of the latest research and theory on Ageism.
- Article on Older Drivers.
- An in-depth look at ageism by Linda M. Woolfe, Ph.D., of Webster University
- Age discrimination laws by the BBC
Related Books
- Ageism: Stereotyping and Prejudice against Older Persons by Todd D. Nelson
- Learning to Be Old: Gender, Culture, and Aging by Margaret Cruikshank
- Ageism: Negative and Positive by Erdman Ballagh Palmore
- AAged by Culture by Margaret Morganroth Gullette
- Encyclopedia Of Ageism by Erdman Ballagh Palmore
- Gender, Social Inequalities, and Aging by Toni M. Calasanti
- Look Me in the Eye: Old Women, Aging and Ageism by Barbara MacDonald
- Age Matters: Realigning Feminist Thinking by Toni M. Calasanti
- Declining to Decline: Cultural Combat and the Politics of the Midlife by Margaret Morganroth Gullette
- Facing the Mirror: Older Women and Beauty Shop Culture by Frida Ke Furman
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