Examples Of Ageism In America

The social problem of Ageism within the older generation of the U.S. is a problem often overlooked by the general population. Ageism toward the elderly is defined as “negative attitudes and behavior toward the elderly”. There are many examples of ageism within modern America (Nelson 27); stereotypes being “slow grandma crossing the road” or the “grumpy old man”. Age is “one of the earliest characteristics we notice about other people” and our experiences with the older population can change how we act or feel towards them (Nelson 3). Discriminatory behavior based on age can be seen in nearly all facets of our later life–working age, mental capacity, social interactions–and can be said to be. Our discrimination of the elderly as an infantized/lesser
The result of this stereotyping is shown in a study conducted by AARP, where “Americans under age thirty-five are more likely to think that “older workers” are less effective, and that ‘old people’ are lonely, miserable, suffering from defective memory, and ‘pretty much alike’” (qtd. in Gullete 58). Raising awareness to reduce these depictions or displaying elders in a more positive light may help humanize our older population and stop ageism at its source before its effects can be felt. Moreover, the impact of these biases and stereotypes often means we group “the old” into one big fixed identity “In youth, one’s age can seem just as fixed as one’s gender and race appear to be,” it is easy for the mind to do so and undermines age as a fluid concept (Gullete 57). This idea is called age essentialism, it describes the idea of age as a fixed and unchangeable process, rather than a controllable factor that can change from individual to