Why Does Ageism Occur?

Why Does Ageism Occur
We are a capitalistic society in America, Which basically means we all have to earn money and provide for ourselves. This makes us very competitive against each other. Especially with companies are wanting the best workers and workers are wanting the best jobs. So companies often look down on older workers because they are not in their prime condition or they believe they are not as capable as someone younger which is not always true. And since seniors sometimes struggle to earn as much money as they once had throughout their life or lose the ability to provide and take care of their self they are often looked down upon by society. Even though a lot of seniors are still able to provide and take care of them selves they tend to get stereotyped into a category they do not belong in. The fact is we all grow old and we should not cast stereotypes and judgments against seniors, it is the same thing as casting the stereotype onto our future self. These people who are treated as second class citizens were once the workforce and the fathers/mothers of an earlier generation and have helped pave the way for younger generations to come and should be treated with respect.

Ageism Article

I would like to share this article i think it shows and explains ageism well. Here is a quote from the article.

For thousands of American workers, it’s the same message they claim to hear on the job. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has received more than 19,000 age discrimination complaints in each of the past two years, and has helped win tens of millions of dollars in settlements.

The article is from 2004 but it is still good please check the full article here.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5868712/ns/health-aging/

Discrimination of Seniors

Discrimination of Seniors occurs on many personal levels for the elderly.
Many seniors would agree that peoples actions and beliefs are very discriminatory toward them. These beliefs are often held against seniors inability to preform physical events/actions, like playing a sport causally with their grandchildren or occasionally working out. They are also discriminated against when it comes to employment. Most people over the age of 50 face problems with being hired or receiving promotions due to their age. Companies also tend to layoff the older or most experienced workers rather than the younger.

The Elderly and Driving

The Elderly and Driving

People often discriminate against older drivers as we all know. I am sure most people know what i am talking about when people say "Grandpa Driver". I think this is another awful stereotype the elderly are put into. Seniors over the age of 65 or 70 are often forced to retake driving test and have more strict rules on when there drivers license get taken away. I think we all have a mental image of someone over the age of 65 that looks very old and in need of help and assistance when that is not always the case we always stereotype people because that is what the media has taught us best to do in America. I think it is a shame and to stereotype against seniors is like stereotyping against your older future self.

interesting video on ageism

This video is a good representation on how older people feel about ageism

i think its important to be aware of older generations opinion on how they want to be treated because we will all hopefully be that old one day

The Stigma Associated with Age

In the USA Hollywood and the media obsess over the young and attractive. In many cultures around the world the old were treated as the most respected and admired in the society. In the United States people tend to look down on the older generation and treat them as if they are incapable of doing normal everyday things. This is mostly in my opinion of how the media has attached a stigma to being old. This stigma leads to stereotyping most elderly people as handicapped or helpless. We treat old people as secound class citizens and do not consider them a major help to society.

Ageism and how it has affected you

Ageism effects the old and young, it even played a big part in the 2008 presidential election with John McCain. Most people have already experienced ageism or are going to eventually experience it. I would like to know/think about how it has already effected you or how you think i could effect you in the future. I think its important for everyone to acknowledge the fact that ageism exist and effects almost everyone in at least one part or their life.

Ageism in the workplace against youth

Ageism doesn't just happen to the old. It happens to the young as well. Employers can get away with paying under minimum wage to kids under the age of 18. Often these jobs are manual labor and much more tiring than other jobs offered. When i was younger i had a job as a landscaper. The job was very demanding and hard work. Me being the youngest i was expected to move heavy things and do most of the manual labor in the blistering heat and i was doing this for under minimum wage. When i finally turned 18 i was happy to see myself get a raise ( which i believed i deserved!) only to be fired and replaced by someone under the age of 18. Companies and greedy businesses need to stop taking advantage of youth in the workforce. Post your thoughts on youth in the workforce below.

Ageism Video

This is a great Ageism video by Lauren Daniels; everyone should check it out- especially young citizenshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7iFd93grk8


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7iFd93grk8

Great Article about ageism in America

The following is an excerpt from an article I read (link below).  It is very true that we stereotype events because of age...

Ageism appears in many forms. A few examples illustrate how the behavior of an older person is described in an ageist manner, where the same behavior by a younger person is explained without stereotypes. When older people forget someone's name, they are viewed as senile. When a younger person fails to recall a name, we usually say he or she has a faulty memory. When an older person complains about life or a particular incident, they are called cranky and difficult, while a younger person may just be seen as being critical. If an older person has trouble hearing, she is dismissed as "getting old," rather than having difficulty with her hearing. Children also can hold negative stereotypes about older people. Some young children equate aging with being sick, unfulfilled, unhappy, or dying.
Older people also face stereotypes on the job. The most common stereotypes about older workers are that older workers are less productive, more expensive, less adaptable, and more rigid than younger workers.
As with stereotypes about other groups, the facts refute the stereotypes. While studies show that interest, motivation, and skill do not decline with age, some employers continue to perceive older workers as resistant to change, slow to learn new skills, and uncomfortable with new technologies. Studies consistently demonstrate that there is no correlation between age and job performance, despite the common stereotype that productivity declines with age. Indeed, research reveals that some intellectual functions may even improve with age. While the cost of certain employee benefits such as health and life insurance may increase with age, the data is lacking to support the stereotype that older workers cost more to employ than younger workers. Differences in salary costs are typically due to tenure rather than age.

Read more: Ageism - Stereotypes About Age And Older Persons - Aging, Job, Differences, Workers, People, Studies, Children, Common, and Name http://medicine.jrank.org/pages/57/Ageism-Stereotypes-about-age-older-persons.html#ixzz1JnywiI15

Grandparents

I golf  a lot with my grandpa.  He lives in another state so I go there a lot and stay with my grandparents.  We have gone on vacation to Florida with them 5 or 6 times since I have been born.  As they both get older, my grandma always seems to be the one that complains about the way people treat her in public-they don't respect her or don't listen to what she is actually asking.  Lately my  grandpa, who is NOT a complainer, has made a few comments about the way his pharmacy or other clerks treat him when he is trying to purchase something.  Well, I went on vacation with them over my spring break and boy, did I see that it is true.  When my grandpa calls to make tee times, it sounded like they were very short with him, but I really did see it when we played golf.  People would get mad at us for no apparent reason-so it seemed.  We were playing with an older couple one day-making three sentiors and me, and we constantly had remarks made about or slow play when we were actually ahead of schedule.  When we ordered something at a restaurant, the lady taking our order seemed annoyed the 'old man' was asking quesitons about meny choices because he has diabetes.  She was smiling and friendly with me, but that all changed when taking his order.  I see this all the time now-people treating my grandparents differently.  I know my mom said while she was in a store over Christmas with her mom that she saw it too; people would be very short with my grandma but not with her.  My mom even made a comment to the lady about how rude she was to my grandma...she didn't know they were together and apparently told my mom that she just hated waiting on old people.  Then, I am sure my mom blew it and told her what she really thought.  I have been reading a lot about ageism but many of the articles seemed to be when the topic was pretty hot about 5 years ago.  Well; everyone says that bringing the topic to the forefront would make a call for change, but I am not seeing it at all; especially now that I am aware and my grandparents are older.    Here's an article I found about seniors being treated like second class citizens....how true.  http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/446179/old_people_treated_as__second_class/index.html

Ageism
Stereotyping and Prejudice against Older Persons
Edited by Todd D. Nelson

Preface

"Although researchers have paid a great deal of attention to racism and sexism, there has been a dearth of research on ageism. A major reason for this neglect is that age prejudice is still considered socially acceptable. As baby boomers approach retirement age, however, there has been increased academic and popular interest in aging. This volume presents the current thinking on age stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination by researchers in gerontology, psychology, sociology, and communication"

I read the sample chapters online of this book...it is very interesting if you are researching or wanting to just know more about ageism; especially here in America.  This book not only looks at recent research in ageism, but also has some chapters on how to 'stop' or reduce ageism.  I am not too sure that will ever be the case.  If you look at other countries, they embrace the elderly; definitely treated differently than here in America.  There has been an increase interest in ageism but bringing it out in the public and trying to get the word out doesn't seem to be changing the way America views the elderly.  This book was published in 2004 and it seems not much improvement has been made since then. 

Link

This was an article I found about ageism that was interesting.  Although this is an older article, it puts into perspective that the number of seniors is going to double in the next few decades in the U.S.  Americans are living longer and are more active longer than in the past, but it still seems like they are being treated the same even though they are more self sufficient than past decades. 
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5868712/