Ch. 2 Stereotypes and Images

In Aging, the Individual, and Society, chapter two discusses about all the negative attitudes towards older people. There are positive and negative stereotypes about everything, but in this case it could be crucial to not only the people insulted also the people prejudging. It is amazing how studies show that people who have negative stereotypes towards older people are more prune to heart-related diseases. Although it may be hard to wrap our minds around this it actually makes a lot of sense. Age stereotypes which are learned at a young age are carried over into old age. For example if a child or young adult look at older people as slow and forgetful they will too be slow and forgetful, but one that sees them as fun and nice they will want to be like that when they reach that age. We all take a part in how our society works and even our ancestors took part on it in their time. In 1890s, social security system was established for German elders who were 65 or older although what few know is that life expectancy during that time was 48 for men and 51 for women. Sixty years later it was introduced to the United States although today we are living longer. People are living longer and by the age 65 some do not feel old. Social Scientist today are questioning whether 75, 80, or 85 should better define the mark of the beginning of old age. People are now healthier, better educated, and more connected to the world (Barrow & Hillier, 2011). Media and television play a great part in what we feel and believe. Older people are a large group of television viewers and if what they see is insults in nonverbal communication they are more likely to believe what they say because that is how people view them. Not only are we making them depressed but younger viewers are watching and in a way television is telling them what to feel and how they should view older generations. The reality is that since we are living longer we should keep the same ideas and opinions as our ancestors because things change and so should we. All ages should be respected, not only our young who remind us of who we were, but also our elder who with a couple of words can teach us a life time lesson. Our society should not become age segregated just because we do not want to change our views toward our people.