Americans are living longer than ever before. A child born today can expect to live 80 years, 90 years, or longer. Many of today's children will live to be centenarians. Aging education to prepare people for the long life ahead has been endorsed since the first White House Conference on Aging in 1961. However, little is happening with aging…

Examined role of misperceptions in a Congressional debate about policies for the aging. Found that misperceptions about the elderly, in the guise of compassionate stereotypes, were frequently expressed. Legislators voicing such stereotypes were the most likely to speak and vote against proposals to reduce Social Security benefits. Found some…

Attitudes were assessed after 89 undergraduates were asked either five neutral questions, five questions on the economic welfare of older people, or five on elders' physical frailty. Economic questions resulted in significantly more negative views of the mental aspects of aging, suggesting that questionnaires may contain tacit sources of bias. (SK)

A study examined 197 college students' impressions of memory skills and personality of older adults and the relation of these impressions to clothing cleanliness and condition. It found that clothing cleanliness and coordination affected attitudes and also interacted with the gender of the older person to affect those impressions. (JOW)

A survey of Washington State dentists in private practice shows generally inaccurate perceptions of the aging process. More experienced dentists held fewer stereotypes, those rating elderly patients as having good oral hygiene held positive stereotypes, and geriatrics coursework did not affect stereotypes. Implications for training and geriatric…

Surveyed 54 young, 54 middle-aged, and 54 older adults on connotative meanings of 10 common nouns referring to older persons. Results were similar across age groups. Mature American, Senior Citizen, and Retired Person were rated generally positively while Aged, Elderly, and nouns using "old" were rated more negatively. (Author/NB)

Age and sex of the applicant had little impact on attitudinal items. Competent and hired applicants were rated significantly more positively. There was a significant age by hiring interaction on the attribution items. Stable factors were used more often to explain the failures of the old. (Author)

In a review of studies using the Facts on Aging Quiz (FAQ), group reliability was high, but item reliability was low. Less educated groups were more biased against the elderly. In some ways the revised FAQ supports the Palmore scale, while compensating for its weaknesses. (JAC)

Before and 1 month after age awareness workshops, 200 British participants took the Palmore Aging Quiz and Fraboni Scale of Ageism. Palmore scores significantly improved but Fraboni scores were unchanged. Results suggest that increased awareness improves factual knowledge but does not change attitudes toward aging and older people. (Contains 18…

The sonata form (A-B-A) was used as a model in a lifespan development class to examine experiences and opinions about aging. Ageism was analyzed to illustrate the process of stereotyping and to modify attitudes about aging. (SK)

Two Commission of European Communities surveys of people over age 15 and of those over 60 demonstrated a widespread belief that older people deserve public support and services and face employment discrimination. Socioeconomic factors influenced older people's sense of security and life satisfaction. Positive intergenerational attitudes appeared.…

This paper argues that a key factor in the dependency of older people with intellectual disabilities is the age discriminatory attitudes held by many service providers. Two research projects of deinstitutionalization in Britain found greater improvement in competencies or less deterioration in older than younger individuals at follow-up despite…

Social ambivalence toward women's roles, sexuality, appearance, and aging combine with social standards of attractiveness to create both age and sex discrimination in the workplace. The life expectancy of presentability is shorter among women than men, thus creating an accelerated aging process termed labor market progeria. (SK)

Describes a class in human development where students took on roles of the elderly by simulating physical constraints and aging. Depicts their reactions to the conditions and behaviors of the elderly. Allows students to examine their personal conceptions of the elderly. Finds study fostered empathy with senior adults. (Author/NL)

Discusses aspects of age prejudice including: age restrictiveness, age distortion, and ageism. Considers social changes related to age prejudice. Describes a University of Vermont course in age prejudice. Includes a table listing cognitive, affective, and behavioral objectives for the reduction of age discrimination. (RC)