Old Age

Question 1

What is one way the family may create and reinforce old age identity?

Answer 1

Exclusion and a disengagement process where they leave their social roles

Question 2

Define disengagement

Answer 2

Refers to how people may leave social roles when they get older

Question 3

What did parsons find?

Answer 3

• elderly have less status in society
• elderly lose their most important social role within the family
• may be relatively isolated
• disengagement theory
• socially constructed

Question 4

What is one way the media may create and reinforce the old age identity?

Answer 4

Portraying the elderly in a stereotyped way

Question 5

What did carrigan and szmigin find?

Answer 5

whilst older consumers have grown in number and affluence, they are less likely to be portrayed in advertisements than younger people

Question 6

What did Sontag find?

Answer 6

• double standard of ageing
• women expected to be youthful throughout their media careers and men are not

Question 7

What did Landis find?

Answer 7

• supports finding of age concern
• identified a number of stereotypes in representations of older people
• depicted as one dimensional

Question 8

What is one way peer groups may create and reinforce old age identity?

Answer 8

Inclusion into new groups by taking up activities during retirement

Question 9

What did Clarke and Warren find?

Answer 9

• Old age may be a time to make new friends and engage in new interests
• active ageing

Question 10

What is one way the workplace may create and reinforce old age identity?

Answer 10

Exclusion as the labour market is institutionally ageist

Question 11

What did Johnson find?

Answer 11

• suggested ageism occurs in workplace in Uk
• ageism is institutionalised and embedded in practices and society

Question 12

Define ageism

Answer 12

Discrimination based on age especially prejudice against the elderly

Question 13

Define institutional ageism

Answer 13

Practices and policies engrained in an institution to disadvantage people on the basis of age

Question 14

What is one way religion may create and reinforce the old age identity?

Answer 14

Inclusion and giving people a sense of comfort when facing death

Question 15

What did Voas find?

Answer 15

• suggested older people are much more likely to identity as religious
• due to: generational effect and ageing effect

Question 16

What is generational effect?

Answer 16

Elderly were brought up in a much more religious era and socialisation into values was more intense

Question 17

What is ageing effect?

Answer 17

People become more spiritual the closer they get to death

Question 18

What did Hockey and James find?

Answer 18

• elderly are infantilised
• social construct
• children pretend to be older to gain social status and older people act younger
• accounts of residents mocking staff by deliberately behaving childish