Objectives Popular responses to the pandemic illustrate ageism's pervasiveness and the extent of collective acquiescence to its newest expressions. We explore these themes by analyzing Twitter reactions to "calculated ageism" - a term we use to refer to a political figure's edict that older adults should sacrifice their lives if it will mitigate the pandemic's economic damage to younger people. Methods Using thematic analysis, we examine tweets (n=188) responding to Texas Lt. Governor Dan Patrick's March 23, 2020, statement that encouraged generational self-sacrifice. Themes that emerged included positions of support or opposition and tweeters' critiques. Results The large majority of tweets - 90 percent - opposed calculated ageism, while only 5 percent supported it and 5 percent conveyed no position. Opposition centered on moral critiques, political-economic critiques, assertions of older adults' worth, and public health arguments. Support centered on individual responsibility and patriotism. Discussion While prior research reveals ageism to be solidly entrenched in popular culture, our study finds that limits prevail and identifies the reasons underlying them. The most common reasons for opposing calculated ageism center on its immorality and on its privileging of the economic interests of the powerful few over the many, patterns suggesting that the boundaries of ageism are influenced by core beliefs about fairness. They also are shaped by a bedrock conviction that older lives have value. This intergenerational solidarity could be leveraged to reduce ageism during the pandemic and beyond.

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Calculated Ageism: Generational Sacrifice as a Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Marriage is a rite of passage in U.S. culture influenced by fairy-tale expectations presented in the media and perpetuated through gender role socialization. Our study tested endorsement of marriage myths and benevolent sexism as predictors of engaged heterosexual college women’s premarital relationship outcomes and psychological well-being. Women in heterosexual relationships (N = 99) completed an online questionnaire 6–12 months before their wedding. Results indicated endorsement of marriage myths predicted positive experiences, whereas benevolent sexism predicted negative experiences. However, several interactions indicated that women who rejected marriage myths but endorsed benevolent sexism showed more negative patterns including lower relationship satisfaction and confidence, lower educational expectations, and higher depression. Results are interpreted using self-discrepancy theory such that when actual and ideal experiences are congruent, higher relationship satisfaction and more positive well-being results, whereas discrepant actual–ideal experiences predict dissatisfaction and more negative well-being. These results have implications for counseling couples on holding realistic expectations for their romantic partners. Marriage counselors can advise couples about the potential negative consequences of endorsing benevolent sexism. Exposure of common myths or unrealistic expectations about one’s partner and relationship may decrease the real–ideal discrepancy and increase marital satisfaction, thus increasing the likelihood of relationship longevity.

The Real Versus the Ideal

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a suspected surge of ageism in America and has imposed critical health and safety behavior modifications for people of all ages (Ayalon et al., 2020; Lichtenstein, 2020). Given that older adults are a high-risk group, maintaining their safety has been paramount in implementing preventive measures (i.e., more handwashing, social distancing); however, making such behavior modifications might be contingent on how one views older adults (i.e., ageist stereotypes). Therefore, the goal of the current pre-registered study was to explore if hostile and benevolent ageism relate to pandemic-related fear and behavior change. An online survey assessing responses to the pandemic was taken by 164 younger and 171 older adults. Higher hostile ageism predicted lower pandemic-related behavior modification. Those high in benevolent ageism reported lower behavior change, but also reported higher pandemic-related fear; however, when pandemic-related fear was considered a mediator between the two, the directionality between benevolent ageism and behavior change switched, indicating a suppression effect. These findings highlight that ageist attitudes do predict responses to the pandemic and that hostile and benevolent ageism are distinct facets that have unique implications during a health pandemic.

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Ageism and Behavior Change During a Health Pandemic: A Preregistered Study

In February 2021, France had more than 76,000 deaths due to COVID-19 and older adults were heavily affected. Most measures taken to reduce the impact of COVID-19 (quarantine, visit ban in nursing home, etc.) significantly influenced the lives of older adults. Yet they were rarely consulted about their implementation. Exclusion of and discrimination against older adults has been accentuated during the COVID-19 pandemic. While many articles discussing COVID-19 also mention ageism, few actually incorporate the perspectives and opinions of older adults. Our research aims to assess the ageism experienced by older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted interviews with older adults (63-92 years, mean age = 76 years) in an urban area of France. Participants reported experiencing more ageism during the COVID-19 pandemic, including hostile and benevolent ageism from older adults' families. Despite reports of experiencing ageist attitudes and behaviors from others, however, older adults also identified positive signs of intergenerational solidarity during this COVID-19 crisis.

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COVID-19 and Quarantine, a Catalyst for Ageism.

While there have been several studies on overt forms of marginalization, few have examined benevolent marginalization, where people may unquestioningly participate in their own paternalistic subjugation by following a prescribed identity. How might such individuals end up achieving emancipation from an infantilizing identity? To address this puzzle, we conducted a longitudinal study of a German sheltered workshop, an organization providing employment for disabled people. We observed that workers with disability initially maintained a regulating organizational identity based on paternalistic segregation. However, over time, they constructed their own self-determining identity and coproduced a change in the workshop’s identity from “shelter” to “inclusion.” First, we show that in order to coconstruct their preferred self-concept, benevolently marginalized individuals need to gain the support of those in power, who change their role from a guardian to an ally. Second, while achieving liberation from overt marginalization is likely to involve confrontation with one’s oppressors, we suggest that achieving emancipation from benevolent marginalization is a collaborative process of mutual consciousness raising and sensitization. Third, while changes of identity may occur after exposure to alternative discourses, often involving the contentious performances of external activists, we show how insider activists mobilize collective action for change within a protectionist organization. 

From Sheltered to Included: The Emancipation of Disabled Workers from Benevolent Marginalization

Stereotypes of older adults fit a paternalistic pattern, including elevated warmth and lowered competence, yet little effort has been made to elucidate this in an everyday context. This phenomenon ...

Benevolent ageism: Attitudes of overaccommodative behavior toward older women

Background: Older adults are stereotyped in a paternalistic manner (warm, but incompetent), deserving of assistance regardless of their need; however, little is known about how gender contextualize...

Expanding Benevolent Ageism: Replicating Attitudes of Overaccommodation to Older Men

The present study examined the interrelationships between benevolent ageism, metamemory, self-compassion, and environmental mastery. By assessing older adults’ perceptions of overaccommodative behaviors, we found greater perceptions of benevolent ageist experiences, or well-intended patronage, related to lower levels of environmental mastery, effectively managing one’s own affairs, in a sample of 202 older adults. Additionally, this relationship is mediated by metamemory, or self-perceptions of memory abilities, as greater perceptions of benevolent ageism experiences indirectly predicted less environmental mastery through having decreased metamemory confidence. Finally, this mediated relationship is moderated by self-compassion, or kindness and acceptance towards oneself, in that self-compassion interacts with benevolent ageism to predict metamemory, which in turn predicts environmental mastery. Self-compassion is part of a growing literature on intervening variables that helping professionals can teach older adults to mitigate the relationship between ageism and their overall well-being alongside efforts to diminish the pervasiveness of ageism in society.

Metamemory and Self-Compassion as Protective Factors in the Relationship Between Benevolent Ageism and Environmental Mastery

Abstract Intergenerational book clubs have been successful in reducing ageist attitudes of younger adults (YA) while increasing feelings of social connectedness among older adults (OA; Lohman et al., 2003). We implemented both in-person (Nf11: YA=4, OA=7) and virtual (Nf8: YA=5, OA=3) modalities for an intergenerational book club to increase intergenerational interactions on campus, considering aging researchers’ claim of heightened ageism and exacerbated loneliness following the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic (Ayalon et al., 2020; Brooke & Jackson, 2020). Both groups met thrice over twelve weeks and completed measures on ageist attitudes (α=.83), engagement with the group (α=.91), and social connectedness (α=.91) each time. There was attrition in both groups (final meeting: Nf9 (in-person) and Nf3 (virtual)). To better understand overall motivations to participate and what factors may have contributed to attrition, we utilized content analysis with participants’ feedback to examine their motivation for joining, what they enjoyed most after participating, and what they would improve. Participants were motivated to join because they enjoyed reading; comparatively, they enjoyed group discussions and hearing different perspectives. Future recommendations include meeting more often, increasing the number and size of groups, and scheduling meetings closer together. The majority wished to continue participating. The data suggest future expansion of intergenerational book clubs on campus are desired to support age-friendly interactions and needed to further examine if these interactions can curb ageism and increase social connectedness among diverse age groups. Discussion will include recommendations regarding measures, lessons learned for an optimal protocol, and next steps.

A pilot study of an intergenerational book club: lessons learned for improving feasibility


 Prior work has explored benevolent and hostile attitudes toward older adults (Chasteen & Cary, 2015) and their paternalistic, mixed incompetent-warm perceptions within the Stereotype Content Model (SCM; Fiske et al., 2002); however, older adults’ perspectives of these attitudes have not received similar attention. This study assessed older adults’ experiences with benevolent and hostile ageism using an adapted version of the Ambivalent Ageism Scale (AAS; Cary et al., 2017; α=.85) and using a mean split, examined if there are differences among the younger- and older-older adults. Within a sample of older adults (Nf202) that ranged in age from 65–90 (M=71.6), we found that when comparing those aged 65–70 and 71 and above, those who were older (M=1.76, SD=.44) reported more experiences with benevolent ageism than their younger counterparts (M=1.56, SD=.42), t(200)=3.30, p =.001). These groups did not significantly differ in hostile ageism, t(200)= -.05, p = .96. When participants were asked why they have been treated thusly as described by the AAS items, 18% of the participants believed it was due to their age, in comparison to those who attributed it to personality (41%), gender (9%), or unknown factors (11%). Benevolent ageism is clearly not a monolithic experience for older adults as those who are older report more patronization, and not all participants felt age was the defining reason for their treatment. Further work should assess how these experiences are qualitatively different across diverse age groups of older adults, as ageism reduction interventions may need to be tailored appropriately.

https://academic.oup.com/innovateage/article-pdf/6/Supplement_1/762/48314229/igac059.2763.pdf

Jennifer F Sublett

Papers

Benevolent ageism: Attitudes of overaccommodative behavior toward older women

Expanding Benevolent Ageism: Replicating Attitudes of Overaccommodation to Older Men

Metamemory and Self-Compassion as Protective Factors in the Relationship Between Benevolent Ageism and Environmental Mastery

A pilot study of an intergenerational book club: lessons learned for improving feasibility

Not one and the same: varied experiences of benevolent ageism in older adulthood