Examining the utility of national indicators of relative age disadvantage in Europe

Do we all perceive experiences of age discrimination in the same way? Cross-cultural differences in perceived age discrimination and its association with life satisfaction

Age discrimination is pervasive in most societies and bears far-reaching consequences for individuals' psychological well-being. Despite that, studies that examine cross-cultural differences in age discrimination are still lacking. Likewise, whether the detrimental association between age discrimination and psychological well-being varies across contexts remains an open question. In this study, therefore, we examined cross-cultural differences in perceived experiences of age discrimination and their detrimental association with a specific indicator of psychological well-being, which is life satisfaction. The sample was drawn from the Ageing as Future study and comprised 1653 older adults (60-90 years) from the Czech Republic, Germany, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the USA. Participants self-reported their experiences of age discrimination and their life satisfaction. Findings indicated that participants from Hong Kong and Taiwan reported experiences of perceived age discrimination more often than participants from the Czech Republic, Germany, and the USA. Furthermore, experiences of age discrimination were negatively associated with life satisfaction. Cultural context moderated this relation: We found a smaller detrimental association between perceived experiences of age discrimination and life satisfaction in Eastern cultures, that is, in contexts where such experiences were perceived to be more prevalent. These findings highlight the importance of examining age discrimination across cultures. Experiences of age discrimination are clearly undesirable in that they negatively affect psychological well-being. Our results indicate that a higher self-reported prevalence of perceived age discrimination in the samples studied weakens this negative association. We discuss these findings in terms of adaptation (versus sensitization) in response to discrimination.

Age Discrimination in the Context of Motivation and Healthy Aging

Age discrimination can undermine older people's motivation to stay engaged with their lives and poses a major challenge to healthy aging. In this article, we review research on age discrimination in different life domains, including health and work. Motivation and health constitute potential antecedents as well as outcomes of age discrimination, with reduced motivation and impaired health increasing the likelihood of becoming a victim of age discrimination, but also resulting from age discrimination. Furthermore, high levels of motivation and health can also serve as buffers against the negative effects of age discrimination. Based on our literature review, we discuss possible strategies aimed at reducing age discrimination. Understanding and combating age discrimination can foster older people's motivation to participate in meaningful activities and promote healthy aging.

The Comparative Macro-Level Ageism Index: An International Comparison

Ageism, socially constructed discrimination against seniors, influences the quality of life of older adults. This study aimed to compare ageism in 15 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries using the scientifically developed Comparative Macro-Level Ageism Index (CMAI). We developed the CMAI by reviewing previous index research on the life of older people and conducting expert interviews using a Delphi method. We identified five domains, economic status, health, employment, environment, and social participation, and 17 indicators of ageism. Standardized ageism scores were compared across 15 OECD countries. The results indicated that the overall ageism score was highest in Turkey and lowest in Japan. Turkey was the most likely while South Korea was the least likely to practice age discrimination in the workplace. Yet, South Korea had the highest score for discriminating against seniors based on economic status while Spain had the lowest score in this domain. Japan had favorable conditions for economic status, health status, and social participation for older adults. Implications of this study and suggestions for further studies on developing an objective indicator of structural age discrimination are discussed.

Perceived Age Discrimination: A Precipitator or a Consequence of Depressive Symptoms?

Objectives

The main purpose of the study was to examine a bidirectional temporal relationship between perceived age discrimination and depressive symptoms. A secondary goal was to examine whether the negative effects of perceived age discrimination on one's depressive symptoms are stronger among respondents older than 70 years old, compared with respondents between the ages of 51 and 70.

Methods

The Health and Retirement Study is a U.S. nationally representative sample of individuals over the age of 50 and their spouse of any age. A cross-lagged model was estimated to examine the reciprocal associations of depressive symptoms and perceived age discrimination, controlling for age, gender, education, ethnicity, marital status, employment status, satisfaction with financial status, number of medical conditions, mobility, strength and fine motor skills, and memory functioning.

Results

The baseline model for the overall sample resulted in adequate fit indices: CFI = .945, TLI = .940, RMSEA = .024 (90% CI = .023, .025). The cross-lagged effect of perceived age discrimination on depressive symptoms was nonsignificant (B [SE] = -.01 [.04], p = .82), whereas the cross-lagged effect of depressive symptoms on perceived age discrimination was small, but significant (B [SE] = .04 [.02], p = .03). This implies that higher levels of depressive symptoms precede a greater likelihood of perceived age discrimination, net of sociodemographic and clinical variables. The cross-lagged effects did not vary according to age group (51-70 vs >70 years old).

Discussion

The subjective nature of perceived age discrimination is discussed.

Precarity and the assumption of rising insecurity in later life: a critique

In recent years, several authors have drawn attention to signs of growing inequalities in the ageing populations of the developed economies. Such formulations have employed the concept of precariousness to suggest that a ‘new’ precarity has emerged in old age. Questioning this position and drawing on data reported over the last two decades on income and health inequalities between and within retired and working-age households, the present paper argues that evidence of this ‘precarity’ is speculative at most and relates more to imagined futures than to empirically observed trends in the present. The ageing of ageing societies – that is the growing agedness of the older population – might imply an increase in precarity or vulnerability at older ages, but this is not a result of changes in the underlying economic and social relations of society. Instead, we would contend that it is the corporeal consequences of living longer. By conflating the various meanings of ‘precarity’ there is a corresponding danger that the very real changes brought about by population ageing will be underplayed, which may be to the detriment of the most vulnerable. The idea of a new precarity in later life may thus not serve the ends to which it is intended.