Reducing ageism: comparing the efficacy of videos, written information, and infographics as intervention mediums.

Ageism (prejudice, discrimination, and stereotyping directed toward individuals based on age) is pervasive in the U.S. and around the world. Ageism is a significant social issue which negatively impacts general health and well-being. As such, ageism interventions that are scale-able and accessible to many people is paramount. Building on the PEACE (Positive Education about Aging and Contact Experiences) model, undergraduates (n = 497) were randomly assigned to one of three experimental conditions that provided education about aging (which included challenging age stereotypes) and extended positive intergenerational contact via 1) written information, 2) infographics, 3) videos, or 4) a control condition (no stimuli). Participants in all three of the experimental conditions (vs. control condition) reported lower levels of ageism, less negative age stereotypes, and more positive age stereotypes. There were no significant differences in aging anxiety. Out of the experimental conditions, watching videos was the most effective experimental condition. These findings highlight the promise of providing information about aging and depictions of positive intergenerational contact in a variety of different mediums as a way to reduce ageism. Brief online ageism reduction interventions based on the PEACE model are a promising tool for reducing ageism.

Do media portrayals of super-agers reduce or increase ageism toward older adults?

Super-agers are older adults with exemplary cognitive and/or physical abilities. However, the impact of media portrayals of super-agers is unknown. This study examined whether exposure to mass media stories about "moderate" super-agers (exemplary cognitive and physical skill levels) versus "extreme" super-agers (most extreme cognitive and physical skill levels) impacts young adults' ageism. Undergraduate participants exposed to media portrayals of moderate super-agers reported greater agreement with positive age stereotypes toward older adults, whereas participants exposed to extreme super-agers reported lower levels of ageism as compared to control participants. Based on these findings, young adults may perceive super-agers in a positive manner as super-agers highlight positive attributes. Since super-agers are often portrayed as defying negative stereotypes through diligence and a positive outlook (less so through good genes or access to healthcare), exposure to super-agers could have negative effects, which is an important future direction.

Correction to: Resilience and grit predict fewer academic and career concerns among first-year undergraduate students during COVID-19.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1007/s11218-022-09741-3.].

An experimental investigation of a simulated online intergenerational friendship.

Reducing ageism is a significant social issue. The current study involved a novel experimental examination of whether a one-time simulated online intergenerational friendship would reduce ageism. Undergraduate participants were randomly assigned to complete an interpersonal closeness exercise (the "fast friends" procedure, Aron et al., 1997; Lytle & Levy, 2015) with a confederate who used a script to answer the fast friends questions, during which they either did not reveal their age (control condition) or revealed being an older adult (age 65; experimental condition). Results indicate that experimental (vs. control) participants reported less ageism and more positive behavior (friendlier responses). These findings suggest that positive online intergenerational contact may help combat ageism. As intergenerational contact was limited before the COVID-19 pandemic and even more so during the pandemic, facilitating online intergenerational contact may be a particularly worthwhile ageism reduction strategy. Further implications of these findings and future directions are discussed.

Resilience and grit predict fewer academic and career concerns among first-year undergraduate students during COVID-19.

Since March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly disrupted higher education in the United States (U.S.). During the first wave of infection and hospitalization, many universities and colleges transitioned classroom instruction to online or a hybrid format. In September 2021, classes largely returned to in-person after the COVID-19 vaccine was widely available and, in some cases, mandated on university and college campuses across the U.S. In the current research, first-year undergraduate students answered a series of questions about their resilience, grit, and perceived academic and career impacts from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in Spring (February/March - May) 2021 and 2022. Findings from a series of regression analyses showed that grit and resilience seemed to protect students and help them stay on track, even in the face of the global pandemic. Undergraduate students who reported higher levels of grit and resilience were less likely to worry about job opportunities shrinking as well as less likely to report changing their academic goals, career goals, and proposed major. Future directions and implications are discussed.

Reducing ageism toward older adults and highlighting older adults as contributors during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated ageism (stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination) toward older adults in the United States, highlighting the belief that older adults are a burden. Prior to the pandemic, a growing body of research sought to reduce ageism using the PEACE (Positive Education about Aging and Contact Experiences) model. Extending that research, participants were randomly assigned to watch three videos (less than 10 min total) that challenged stereotypes about aging and older adults, depicted positive intergenerational contact, and highlighted older adults as contributors to society (experimental condition) or three videos on wallpaper (control condition). Experimental participants (undergraduate students in Study 1 and a national community sample of young adults in Study 2) reported increased endorsement of older adults as contributors to society and positive stereotypes of older adults. In addition, in Study 2, negative stereotypes of older adults and views of intergenerational conflict were also reduced among experimental (vs. control) participants. These promising findings show that relatively brief ageism reduction interventions are effective during the pandemic and for the first time, that the perception of older adults as contributors to society can be increased. Future directions and implications for social policies are discussed.

Pre-pandemic Ageism Toward Older Adults Predicts Behavioral Intentions During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

OBJECTIVES: During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, older adults have been disproportionately affected by high rates of health complications and mortality. Reactions toward older adults included a mix of prosocial behaviors and ageist responses, consistent with the history of positive and negative views and treatment of older adults in the United States. METHODS: In a two-part study (n = 113, Mage = 18.49, SD = 0.50; range 18-19), we examined whether pre-pandemic ageism among undergraduates predicts prosocial behavioral intentions toward older adults both specific to COVID-19 and in general. RESULTS: Pre-pandemic ageism toward older adults predicted less intentions to help older adults generally and specific to COVID-19. Whereas viewing older adults as incompetent predicted greater intentions to help specific to COVID-19. DISCUSSION: These results reflect the complexity of predicting helping behaviors and suggest that even supportive behaviors toward older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic may be rooted in negative ageist stereotypes. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.

An Examination of Intergenerational Contact Experiences Using 10,338 Journal Entries From 2,414 Young Adults.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: With continued negative depictions of older adults and limitations on positive intergenerational contact, ageism is a significant social issue. Using a rich data set of journal entries, we examined sentiments, emotions, and optimal intergenerational contact conditions among volunteers in an intergenerational program. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: 10,338 journal entries were analyzed from 2,414 young adult volunteers from GlamourGals Foundation, Inc., a U.S. nonprofit, which aims to reduce isolation by facilitating intergenerational contact. Applying the PEACE (Positive Education about Aging and Contact Experiences) theoretical model, each sentence was coded using sentiment analysis, emotional analysis, and supervised learning methods across 5 optimal intergenerational contact conditions. RESULTS: Out of 74,475 sentences, participants reported predominantly positive sentiments (64.2% positive, 29% neutral, and 6.8% negative) and more positive emotions (e.g., joy) than negative emotions (e.g., disgust). Nearly all participants (98.2%) wrote at least a sentence that included at least 1 of the 5 optimal intergenerational contact conditions. Moreover, positive sentiment was present in higher percentages when more instances of optimal contact conditions were reported (54.4% for none, 71.6% for 1 category, 81.5% for 2, 83% for 3, 89.2% for 4, 98.4% for 5). DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS: The present investigation applied a theoretical model to assess a long-standing community intergenerational program. Contact that provided one-to-one, cooperative, equal status interactions involving personal disclosure that was sanctioned by the program administrators was associated with positive sentiment. Future directions and implications are discussed.

Erratum: Gait monitoring for older adults during guided walking: An integrated assistive robot and wearable sensor approach - ERRATUM.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1017/wtc.2022.23.].

Gait monitoring for older adults during guided walking: An integrated assistive robot and wearable sensor approach.

An active lifestyle can mitigate physical decline and cognitive impairment in older adults. Regular walking exercises for older individuals result in enhanced balance and reduced risk of falling. In this article, we present a study on gait monitoring for older adults during walking using an integrated system encompassing an assistive robot and wearable sensors. The system fuses data from the robot onboard Red Green Blue plus Depth (RGB-D) sensor with inertial and pressure sensors embedded in shoe insoles, and estimates spatiotemporal gait parameters and dynamic margin of stability in real-time. Data collected with 24 participants at a community center reveal associations between gait parameters, physical performance (evaluated with the Short Physical Performance Battery), and cognitive ability (measured with the Montreal Cognitive Assessment). The results validate the feasibility of using such a portable system in out-of-the-lab conditions and will be helpful for designing future technology-enhanced exercise interventions to improve balance, mobility, and strength and potentially reduce falls in older adults.

Reducing Ageism With Brief Videos About Aging Education, Ageism, and Intergenerational Contact.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: With an increasing older population, ageism continues to be a significant social issue. Interventions to reduce ageism and improve intergenerational contact are needed. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Building on the Positive Education about Aging and Contact Experiences (PEACE) model, undergraduates in an online experiment were randomly assigned to watch videos that provided education about aging, ageism, and positive intergenerational contact (experimental condition) or education about wallpaper (control condition). RESULTS: In Part 1, 845 undergraduates in the experimental condition (vs. control condition) reported lower levels of ageism, less negative age stereotypes, more positive age stereotypes, and more aging knowledge in an immediate post-test. In Part 2 (1-6 weeks later), undergraduates in the experimental condition (vs. control condition) reported more positive age stereotypes in a delayed post-test. DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS: These findings highlight the promise of providing information about aging and positive intergenerational contact to reduce ageism. Brief online educational videos based on the PEACE model hold promise as an effective tool to reach a wide audience and reduce ageism.

Prioritizing Health Care and Employment Resources During COVID-19: Roles of Benevolent and Hostile Ageism.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Benevolent and hostile ageism are subtypes of ageism that characterize older adults as incompetent. With benevolent ageism, older adults are also viewed as warm. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has strained resources and prompted debates about priority for older adults versus other groups. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: College students completed an online survey of how much priority should be given to older adults in 3 relevant health care-related scenarios and 3 relevant employment scenarios. RESULTS: Benevolent ageism significantly predicted higher priority for older adults to receive health care (triage, COVID-19 vaccine, and COVID-19 testing) and employment resources (retention of job and working from home) while greater endorsement of hostile ageism significantly predicted lower priority ratings. DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS: These findings replicate and extend past work. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to wreak havoc on health care and employment resources, this study sheds light on one factor-benevolent and hostile ageism-that contributes to a greater understanding of prioritization views toward a vulnerable segment of the population.

COVID-19 and ageism: How positive and negative responses impact older adults and society.

The disproportionately high rates of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) health complications and mortality among older adults prompted supportive public responses, such as special senior early shopping hours and penpal programs. Simultaneously, some older adults faced neglect and blatant displays of ageism (e.g., #BoomerRemover) and were considered the lowest priority to receive health care. This article examines positive and negative responses toward older adults in the United States during the pandemic and the consequences for older adults and society using data from the pandemic in the United States (and informed by data from other countries) as well as past theorizing and empirical research on views and treatment of older adults. Specifically, positive responses can reinforce the value of older adults, improve older adults' mental and physical health, reduce ageism, and improve intergenerational relations, whereas negative responses can have the opposite effects. However, positive responses (social distancing to protect older adults from COVID-19 infection) can inadvertently increase loneliness, depression, health problems, and negative stereotyping of older adults (e.g., helpless, weak). Pressing policy issues evident from the treatment of older adults during the pandemic include health care (triaging, elder abuse), employment (layoffs, retirement), and education about ageism, as well as the intersection of ageism with other forms of prejudice (e.g., racism) that cuts across these policies. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Instapals: Reducing ageism by facilitating intergenerational contact and providing aging education.

Utilizing the PEACE (Positive Education about Aging and Contact Experiences) model as a theoretical foundation, Instapals was a novel ageism reduction intervention with undergraduate students in a non-gerontology course that 1) provided aging education and 2) facilitated positive 1-to-1 intergenerational relationships with older adults (individuals 65+) through daily exchanges on Instagram for 30 days and two in-person meetings. Paired t-tests demonstrate a significant decrease in aging anxiety, psychological concerns about aging, and negative stereotyping of older adults. Results from coded open-ended responses suggest an overall positive experience with Instapals and more positive attitudes toward aging and older adults across a semester. Findings from the first test of Instapals, a theoretically-driven intervention, shows promise for reducing ageism among larger samples and in other settings.

Reducing Ageism: Education About Aging and Extended Contact With Older Adults.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Ageism is of increasing concern due to the growing older population worldwide and youth-centered focus of many societies. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: The current investigation tested the PEACE (Positive Education about Aging and Contact Experiences) model for the first time. Two online experimental studies examined 2 key factors for reducing ageism: education about aging (providing accurate information about aging) and extended contact (knowledge of positive intergenerational contact) as well as their potential combined effect (education plus extended contact). RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: In Study 1, 354 undergraduates in all 3 experimental conditions (vs. control participants) reported less negative attitudes toward older adults (delayed post-test) and greater aging knowledge (immediate and delayed post-tests), when controlling for pre-study attitudes. In Study 2, 505 national community participants (ages 18-59) in all experimental conditions (vs. control participants) reported less negative attitudes toward older adults (immediate post-test) and greater aging knowledge (immediate and delayed post-tests). In summary, across 2 online studies, education about aging and knowledge of intergenerational extended contact improved attitudes toward older adults and aging knowledge. IMPLICATIONS: Thus, brief, online ageism-reduction strategies can be an effective way to combat ageism. These strategies hold promise to be tested in other settings, with other samples, and to be elaborated into more in-depth interventions that aim to reduce ageism in everyday culture.

Culturally Relevant Meanings of the Protestant Work Ethic and Attitudes towards Poor Persons.

The Protestant work ethic (PWE), or the belief that hard work leads to success, is a popular belief across cultures. Much work indicates that PWE contributes to negative evaluations of disadvantaged groups presumably through the notion that they deserve their disadvantage for not working hard enough ("PWE-Justifier"). But there is another dimension of PWE that expresses the belief that everyone could succeed through hard work ("PWE-Equalizer"). We propose that the PWE-Justifier is meaningful in cultures that emphasize individualism and personal responsibility, but not in others. In a cross-cultural study, we compare how PWE-Justifier relates to evaluations of poor persons in the USA (individualist culture) and the Philippines (low individualist culture). In the USA sample, regression analysis indicated that internal attributions of poverty mediated the relationships of PWE-Justifier with negative stereotypes (R2 = .32) and with negative attitudes towards poor persons (R2 = .13). Bootstrapping analysis indicated that both indirect effects of PWE-Justifier were significant: Negative stereotypes, B = .17, SE = .03, p < .0001, 95% CI [.11, .24]; negative attitudes, B = 2.52, SE = 1.11, p = .014, 95% CI [0.49, 4.84]. The results were not found in the Philippine sample, where instead, PWE-Equalizer negatively predicted negative attitudes (R2 = .05) and positively predicted empathy (R2 = .05) for poor persons. The results are discussed in terms of how the negative consequences of PWE may derive from the cultural syndrome of individualism that emphasizes personal control and responsibility.

Sexual Orientation and Gender Differences in Aging Perceptions and Concerns Among Older Adults.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Ageism (negative attitudes and behavior toward older adults) is a serious social issue and is of growing concern as the population of older adults continues to increase. Research demonstrates that negative aging perceptions and aging concerns are associated with poor health and well-being among older adults; yet, few studies have examined sexual orientation or gender differences in aging perceptions and concerns among older adults. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: The current online study examined aging perceptions and concerns among a national community sample of 821 (female = 464) participants (76 lesbian, 159 gay, 88 bisexual, 498 heterosexual participants) ranging from 45 to 80 years of age (M = 55.56). RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Older women reported more aging anxiety and endorsement of aging stereotypes while older sexual minority individuals reported heightened general aging concerns compared to their heterosexual peers. Among sexual minority participants, discrimination based on age and sexual orientation predicted greater sexual minority-specific aging concerns, anxiety, and depression. Experiencing sexual orientation discrimination buffered age discrimination's impact on sexual minority-specific aging concerns, suggesting that experiencing discrimination based on one stigmatized identity (sexual minority) may promote effective coping with discrimination based on another stigmatized identity (older adult). Conversely, age and sexual orientation discrimination had multiplicative effects on anxiety and depression. IMPLICATIONS: Overall, findings point to the importance of examining sexual orientation and gender differences in aging perceptions and concerns to more fully understand the experiences, health, and well-being of the growing older population. Implications for future directions are discussed.

Essentialist beliefs: Understanding contact with and attitudes towards lesbian and gay individuals.

Sexual prejudice remains a widespread problem worldwide. Past research demonstrates that cross-orientation contact (contact between heterosexuals and lesbian/gay individuals) reduces sexual prejudice among heterosexuals, especially when contact is high quality. This study extends the literature on the relationship between cross-orientation contact and sexual prejudice and the mediation of this relationship by intergroup anxiety by examining the role of a key ideology - essentialist beliefs about homosexuality (immutability, universality, and discreteness beliefs). Findings indicate that the mediation of the relationship between cross-orientation contact and sexual prejudice by intergroup anxiety differs by level of essentialist beliefs. Additionally, the relationship between cross-orientation contact and sexual prejudice appears to be mediated by essentialist beliefs as well as intergroup anxiety. These results suggest that individuals who endorse essentialist beliefs commonly associated with increased bias (high discreteness and low immutability and universality beliefs) may benefit the most from cross-orientation contact and resultant decreases in intergroup anxiety. Further, decreasing essentialist beliefs generally associated with increased bias may be a mechanism through which cross-orientation contact reduces sexual prejudice. Implications and future directions are discussed.