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Course S, Koç FŞ, Saka FÖ. Representation of older adults in Turkish newspaper reports during the COVID-19 pandemic. J Aging Stud 2024; 69:101232. [PMID: 38834247 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaging.2024.101232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2023] [Revised: 04/22/2024] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 06/06/2024]
Abstract
This research investigates the representation of older adults in Turkish newspaper reports during the first national lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Turkey in order to understand the representation and reinforcement of ageism in this context. To this end, fifty newspaper reports from five top-selling Turkish newspapers at the time were selected randomly and analysed using critical discourse analysis for the text producers' linguistic choices in the representations of older adults. The findings show that the older adults were represented predominantly in relation to the lockdown measures and as members of a homogeneous group. They were mainly evaluated negatively as a vulnerable, passive, and at risk group who lacked truthfulness and exhibited unusual behaviour. They were also found to be not among the intended readers of the newspaper reports. This resulted in the infantilisation of older adults and the removal of their agency. Our findings point to the linguistic choices realising these discursive practices in the Turkish context. We argue that these findings follow a trend of representation of older adults in discursive practices and that these practices are instrumental in forming ageist stereotypes and reinforcing age-related bias.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simla Course
- English Language Teaching Department, Akdeniz University, Antalya, Turkey.
| | - Fatma Şeyma Koç
- English Language Teaching Department, Akdeniz University, Antalya, Turkey
| | - Fatma Özlem Saka
- English Language Teaching Department, Akdeniz University, Antalya, Turkey
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Fealy G, Di Placido M, O'Donnell D, Drennan J, Timmins F, Barnard M, Blake C, Connolly M, Donnelly S, Doyle G, Fitzgerald K, Frawley T, Gallagher P, Guerin S, Mangiarotti E, McNulty J, Mucheru D, O'Neill D, Segurado R, Stokes D, Ryder M, Üzar Özçetin YS, Wells J, Čartolovni A. 'Ageing well': Discursive constructions of ageing and health in the public reach of a national longitudinal study on ageing. Soc Sci Med 2024; 341:116518. [PMID: 38141382 DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2023.116518] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2023] [Revised: 12/08/2023] [Accepted: 12/13/2023] [Indexed: 12/25/2023]
Abstract
Established in 2006, the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA) investigates the health, economic and social circumstances of a nationally-representative sample of people aged fifty years and older in a series of biennial data collection waves. Irish newspapers have been reporting the results of TILDA for over a decade and a half, and their texts represent reports of scientific research distilled through the pen of journalists. In their totality, their texts constitute a public discourse on ageing and health. Using critical discourse analysis, we examined the discourse within the texts of a purposive sample of two national daily newspapers. As sites of public discourse, newspapers reflect social life and are influential in forming and legitimating public attitudes. Like other sites of discourse, their language-in-use is contextually located, is rarely neutral and may employ strategies to discursively construct, sustain and privilege particular social identities, including ageing identities. Discursively constructed as 'ageing well', our analysis of newspaper texts revealed a discernible meta-discourse on ageing and health in which ageing was framed as a life course stage that may be cultivated, diligently self-nurtured and exploited for its positive aspects. When considered in light of literature on health and social inequalities, the consequences of this broadly positive ageing discourse can, somewhat perversely, frame older adults in unintended negative ways, including homogenising them and attributing to them capacities for ageing well that they may not possess. Discursively constructing older adults as a social and economic resource can also impose unrealistic expectations on them and may legitimise exploitation and demonstrate how normative ideologies of ageism and ableism are conveyed through legitimising language. Despite these potentially unintended consequences, the available media resources associated with TILDA may represent one of the most important contributions of the study, in terms of informing positive public attitudes towards ageing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerard Fealy
- UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems, University College Dublin, Ireland.
| | - Matteo Di Placido
- Department of Culture, Politics and Society, University of Turin, Italy.
| | - Deirdre O'Donnell
- UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems, University College Dublin, Ireland.
| | - Jonathan Drennan
- UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems, University College Dublin, Ireland.
| | - Fiona Timmins
- UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems, University College Dublin, Ireland.
| | - Marlize Barnard
- UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems, University College Dublin, Ireland.
| | - Catherine Blake
- UCD School of Public Health, Physiotherapy and Sports Science, University College Dublin, Ireland.
| | - Michael Connolly
- UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems, University College Dublin, Ireland; Our Lady's Hospice and Care Services, Dublin, Ireland.
| | - Sarah Donnelly
- UCD School of Social Policy, Social Work and Social Justice, University College Dublin, Ireland.
| | | | - Kelly Fitzgerald
- UCD School of Irish, Celtic Studies and Folklore, University College Dublin, Ireland.
| | - Timmy Frawley
- UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems, University College Dublin, Ireland.
| | | | - Suzanne Guerin
- UCD School of Psychology, University College Dublin, Ireland.
| | - Emanuela Mangiarotti
- UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems, University College Dublin, Ireland; Department of Political and Social Sciences, University of Pavia, Lombardy, Italy
| | | | - Doreen Mucheru
- UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems, University College Dublin, Ireland.
| | | | - Ricardo Segurado
- UCD School of Public Health, Physiotherapy and Sports Science, University College Dublin, Ireland.
| | | | - Mary Ryder
- UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems, University College Dublin, Ireland.
| | | | - John Wells
- School of Health Sciences, South-East Technological University, Ireland.
| | - Anto Čartolovni
- School of Medicine, Catholic University of Croatia, Croatia.
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Werner P, AboJabel H. The Conceptual and Methodological Characteristics of Ageism During COVID-19: A Scoping Review of Empirical Studies. THE GERONTOLOGIST 2023; 63:1526-1535. [PMID: 35932468 PMCID: PMC9384679 DOI: 10.1093/geront/gnac118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Printed and social media, as well as professional and scholarly platforms, have extensively discussed the proliferation of ageism during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. However, no study has systematically examined the body of knowledge on the topic. Framed around the characteristics of ageism in general, the aim of this review was to identify and characterize the conceptual and methodological underpinnings of the global, peer-reviewed, and empirical literature on ageism during COVID-19. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS We conducted a scoping review in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, using PubMed, CINAHL, AgeLine, and PsycINFO. Quantitative and/or qualitative, English-language, and peer-reviewed articles were included. Data were tabulated and synthesized. RESULTS Thirty six articles examining ageism during the COVID-19 pandemic met inclusion criteria. Most were quantitative (64%) and cross-sectional (81%). The level, correlates, and consequences of ageism during the pandemic were similar to the ones reported before it. Studies about ageism during COVID-19 had similar conceptualization and measurement problems to those before the pandemic. DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS Empirical studies did not find ageism during COVID-19 to be a unique phenomenon, as suggested by the media. More theoretically sound and methodologically rigorous studies, using longitudinal designs and validated unique measures are needed to examine this unique phenomenon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Perla Werner
- Department of Community Mental Health, University of Haifa, Mt. Carmel, Haifa, Israel
| | - Hanan AboJabel
- Department of Community Mental Health, University of Haifa, Mt. Carmel, Haifa, Israel
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Vulnerability in context; hard numbers, tricky words and grey areas for gerontology. J Aging Stud 2023; 65. [PMCID: PMC10036039 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaging.2023.101131] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/25/2023]
Abstract
At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Portuguese government identified those aged 70 or more as a risk group, placing a special duty of protection on them to shelter-at-home. This paper asks how Portuguese municipalities, using Facebook posts, communicated the risk to older adults and to what extent ageist stereotypes were found in the language and frames employed. Over 3800 Facebook posts made by Portuguese municipalities concerning older adults and COVID-19 published between March and July 2020 were analyzed. Language counts for age-related words were used in a first round of content analysis followed by a process of thematic analysis. Findings indicate that the language used to address Portuguese older adults could be understood as ageist in terms of homogenizing older people as a fixed group. The communication of risk was often conflated with the vulnerability narrative already observed in the extant literature. However, context- and culture-specific themes of ‘solidarity’, ‘inter-relatedness’, ‘duty of care’ and ‘support for those living in isolation’ were also found. The study highlights the extent to which language, culture and context are intertwined with our understanding of age, aging and ageism. It provides a culturally-specific case study, which challenges both gerontological interpretations of vulnerability and neoliberal frames which focus responsibility on the individual regardless of age. We argue that these alternative frames echo the emerging discourse of mutual aid and solidarity, providing a wider context for addressing vulnerability in a health crisis.
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Negative ageism and compassionate ageism in news coverage of older people under COVID-19: how did the pandemic progression and public health responses associate with different news themes? AGEING & SOCIETY 2023. [DOI: 10.1017/s0144686x22001490] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/02/2023]
Abstract
Abstract
Previous studies have found negative ageing narratives in the media during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, few have focused on compassionate ageism and how the news responded to the progression of the COVID-19 pandemic. We investigated (a) media themes of negative and compassionate ageism and (b) their relationships with COVID-19 parameters and the public health response. The sample included 1,197 articles relevant to COVID-19 and older people in Hong Kong published between January and December 2020. We used thematic analysis to identify themes from the news articles and structural equation modelling to explore these themes' relationship with the number of older people infected, effective reproduction number, number of COVID-19 deaths and public health response parallel in time. Pandemic-related variables were lagged for a day – the time needed to be reflected in the news. Two negative ageism themes portrayed older people as vulnerable to COVID-19 but counterproductive in combating the pandemic. Two compassionate ageism themes depicted older people as a homogenous group of passive assistance recipients. The theme blaming older people was associated with the number of confirmed infections (β = 0.418, p = 0.002) but vulnerability of older people was not associated with pandemic-related variables. The theme helping older people was negatively associated with the percentage of older people in confirmed infections (β = −0.155, p = 0.019). The theme resources available was negatively associated with confirmed infections (β = −0.342, p < 0.001) but positively associated with the Containment and Health Index (β = 0.217, p = 0.005). Findings suggested that negative and compassionate ageism were translated into narratives about older people in the media as the pandemic evolved but did not address the actual risk they faced. Media professionals should be aware of the potential negative and compassionate ageism prompted by the news agenda and promote adequate health behaviours and responses.
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Umer H. Stability of pro-sociality and trust amid the Covid-19: panel data from the Netherlands. EMPIRICA 2023; 50:255-287. [PMID: 36685483 PMCID: PMC9838336 DOI: 10.1007/s10663-022-09557-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/22/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
The Covid-19 has impacted most spheres of life and continues to influence the future course of socio-economic decisions. The effects of pandemic and virus contraction on the stability of social preferences are however relatively less know. This study examines the effects of the Covid-19 on pro-sociality and general trust by using the LISS panel data (time frame: 2019-2020) from the Netherlands. The fixed effects panel regressions show that pro-social behavior and general trust do not differ pre-and-after the Covid-19. The article further analyzes the stability of pro-sociality and general trust among people who unfortunately contracted the Covid-19 virus and the uninfected ones (time frame: 2019-2020) using difference-in-differences (DD) method to infer a causal effect of infections on preferences. The DD analysis also leads to insignificant causal effect of virus contractions on pro-sociality and trust. However, the sub-group analysis shows a positive causal impact of infections on trust for respondents above 60 years. Overall, both fixed effects regressions and DD analysis suggest that pro-sociality and to a large extent general trust in the Netherlands are stable despite the negative Covid-19 shock.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hamza Umer
- Hitotsubashi Institute for Advanced Study (HIAS), Hitotsubashi University, Tokyo, Japan
- Institute of Economic Research (IER), Hitotsubashi University, Tokyo, Japan
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Sánchez-Román M, Autric-Tamayo G, Fernandez-Mayoralas G, Rojo-Perez F, Agulló-Tomás MS, Sánchez-González D, Rodriguez-Rodriguez V. Social Image of Old Age, Gendered Ageism and Inclusive Places: Older People in the Media. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:17031. [PMID: 36554910 PMCID: PMC9778791 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph192417031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2022] [Revised: 12/09/2022] [Accepted: 12/10/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Ageism promotes the exclusion of older people from society by generating a negative image that they also internalize. The aim of this article is to investigate older people's social self-image, through statements broadcast on a national Spanish radio program aimed at this group. A qualitative analysis was conducted for a random sample from the sound archive for the Radio Nacional de España program Juntos Paso a Paso (Together, Step by Step) (2008-2021), using codes based on the pillars and determinants of active ageing and the three dimensions of ageism. Intercoder agreement was calculated. There were significant findings regarding ageism, gendered ageism and ageing in place, with differences according to size of municipal area. The program in question can be considered a viable secondary source for the research aim. Ageism is most commonly manifested through implicit opinions and invisibilization in family and social contexts. Care activities play a notably central role in responses related to gendered ageism. In relation to ageing in place, older people prefer their habitual environment when they have moderate care needs and accept moves to nursing homes when their needs increase.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Sánchez-Román
- Grupo de Investigacion sobre Envejecimiento (GIE), IEGD, CSIC, 28037 Madrid, Spain
| | - Gadea Autric-Tamayo
- Grupo de Investigacion sobre Envejecimiento (GIE), IEGD, CSIC, 28037 Madrid, Spain
| | | | - Fermina Rojo-Perez
- Grupo de Investigacion sobre Envejecimiento (GIE), IEGD, CSIC, 28037 Madrid, Spain
| | - María Silveria Agulló-Tomás
- University Institute on Gender Studies and Social Analysis Department, University Carlos III of Madrid, Getafe, 28903 Madrid, Spain
| | - Diego Sánchez-González
- Department of Geography, National Distance Education University (UNED), 28040 Madrid, Spain
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Lea A, Collett J, Cribb L, Zheng Z, Podugu PSDV. A Cross-Sectional Study of Factors associated with Psychosocial Wellbeing Among Older Tai Chi Practitioners. Eur J Integr Med 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.eujim.2022.102214] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
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Drury L, Abrams D, Swift HJ. Intergenerational contact during and beyond COVID-19. THE JOURNAL OF SOCIAL ISSUES 2022; 78:860-882. [PMID: 36711193 PMCID: PMC9874911 DOI: 10.1111/josi.12551] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2021] [Revised: 08/09/2022] [Accepted: 08/09/2022] [Indexed: 05/15/2023]
Abstract
Intergenerational contact is crucial for promoting intergenerational harmony and reducing ageism. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted and changed the nature and frequency of intergenerational contact. In addition, research suggests that both ageism towards older adults and intergenerational threat regarding succession and consumption, have increased. Through the lens of the Temporally Integrated Model of Intergroup Contact and Threat (TIMICAT; Abrams & Eller, 2016), we explore the implications of these changing dynamics on ageism towards older adults during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. Our review reveals that research into intergenerational contact needs to articulate both the time course and salience of contact and threats before making predictions about their impacts on prejudice. The implications of understanding how contact and threat combine to affect ageism for policy and practice are discussed in relation to employment, education, and intergenerational contact programs. We highlight that policy makers play a key role in promoting intergenerational harmony through the reduction of narratives that inflame intergenerational tensions and threat.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisbeth Drury
- Department of Organizational PsychologyBirkbeckUniversity of LondonLondonUK
| | - Dominic Abrams
- Center for the Study of Group Processes, School of PsychologyUniversity of KentCanterburyUK
| | - Hannah J. Swift
- Center for the Study of Group Processes, School of PsychologyUniversity of KentCanterburyUK
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Wider W, Lim MX, Wong LS, Chan CK, Maidin SS. Should I Help? Prosocial Behaviour during the COVID-19 Pandemic. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:ijerph192316084. [PMID: 36498158 PMCID: PMC9741476 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph192316084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2022] [Revised: 10/05/2022] [Accepted: 10/12/2022] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
The Movement Control Order (MCO) enacted during the COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly altered the social life and behaviour of the Malaysian population. Because the society is facing huge social and economic challenges that need individuals to work together to solve, prosocial behaviour is regarded as one of the most important social determinants. Because it is related with individual and societal benefits, participating in prosocial activities may be a major protective factor during times of global crisis. Rather than focusing only on medical and psychiatric paradigms, perhaps all that is necessary to overcome the COVID-19 risks is for individuals to make personal sacrifices for the sake of others. In reality, a large number of initiatives proven to be beneficial in decreasing viral transmission include a trade-off between individual and collective interests. Given its crucial importance, the purpose of this concept paper is to provide some insight into prosocial behaviour during the COVID-19 period. Understanding prosocial behaviour during the COVID-19 pandemic is crucial because it may assist in the establishment of a post-COVID society and provide useful strategies for coping with future crises.
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Affiliation(s)
- Walton Wider
- Faculty of Business and Communications, INTI International University, Nilai 71800, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia
| | - Mei Xian Lim
- Faculty of Business and Communications, INTI International University, Nilai 71800, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia
| | - Ling Shing Wong
- Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, INTI International University, Nilai 71800, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia
| | - Choon Kit Chan
- Faculty of Engineering and Quantity Surveying, INTI International University, Nilai 71800, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia
| | - Siti Sarah Maidin
- Faculty of Data Science and Information Technology, INTI International University, Nilai 71800, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia
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Jeong M, Jen S, Kang H, Riquino M, Goldberg J. Representations of older adults in COVID-related newspaper articles: A comparison between the perspectives of older and younger adults. J Aging Stud 2022; 63:101081. [PMID: 36462935 PMCID: PMC9617660 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaging.2022.101081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2021] [Revised: 10/19/2022] [Accepted: 10/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
During the COVID-19 pandemic, media sources discussed diverse perspectives on aging and older adults, providing opportunities to examine representations of older adults during times of crisis. This study aims to explore representations of older adults during the first month of the pandemic in the U.S. by comparing the perspectives of older and younger adults in national newspapers. A systematic search identified 115 articles published in four major newspapers in the U.S. between March 11 and April 10, 2020, in which older and younger adults were quoted on topics related to the intersection of COVID-19 and aging. Quotes were inductively reviewed using content and thematic analytic strategies. A total of 265 quotes were identified from older adults (n = 104, 39%) and younger adults (n = 161, 61%). We identified three primary themes: impacts on "vulnerable" older adults, debates over the value of older adults' lives, and a counternarrative of resiliency. Older adults were represented as a vulnerable group during the pandemic, in need of protection and support, while debates over the value of their lives similarly evoke images of frailty and dependency. Such depictions frame older adults as a burden on society and reduce their agency and subjectivity. Ageist biases were not only present in quotes from public figures and professionals, but also evident in quotes from older adults themselves. However, older adults also spoke to their own resiliency, survival, and strengths, thereby positioning themselves as elders worthy of respect and able to share wisdom with younger generations. These findings highlight the importance of listening to older adults' voices in order to understand their experiences from their own perspectives through their own agentive positioning and promoting intentionally age-positive and nuanced representations of older adults in public discourse.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mijin Jeong
- University of Kansas, School of Social Welfare, 1545 Lilac Ln, Lawrence, KS 66045, United States of America,Corresponding author at: Clemson University Institute for Engaged Aging, 298 Memorial Dr, Seneca, SC 29672, United States of America
| | - Sarah Jen
- University of Kansas, School of Social Welfare, 1545 Lilac Ln, Lawrence, KS 66045, United States of America
| | - Hyun Kang
- George Mason University, Department of Social Work, United States of America
| | - Michael Riquino
- University of Kansas, School of Social Welfare, 1545 Lilac Ln, Lawrence, KS 66045, United States of America
| | - Jamie Goldberg
- University of Wisconsin - Madison, Sandra Rosenbaum School of Social Work, United States of America
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Fantinati J, Sabin I, Crosignani S, Zilbershlag Y, Cesari M, Dwolatzky T. Tale of two countries: attitudes towards older persons in Italy and Israel during the COVID-19 pandemic as seen through the looking-glass of the media. JOURNAL OF MEDICAL ETHICS 2022; 48:1010-1014. [PMID: 35428736 PMCID: PMC9044513 DOI: 10.1136/medethics-2021-108011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2021] [Accepted: 04/02/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the many challenges and difficulties of healthcare systems caring for older frail people. This public health crisis has indeed jeopardised the concept of the welfare state, in particular the right of older people to uncompromised healthcare. Together with the clinical challenges facing the geriatric patient and the organisational difficulties of the healthcare systems, sociocultural factors may have also played a substantial role in the strategies that countries have applied in coping with the pandemic. In this opinion article, we report attitudes towards the older populations of two countries, Italy and Israel, during the COVID-19 pandemic as viewed through the looking-glass of the media.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacopo Fantinati
- Fellowship in Geriatrics and Gerontology, University of Milan, Milano, Italy
| | - Irina Sabin
- Geriatric Unit, Rambam Health Care Campus, Haifa, Israel
- The Ruth and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Silvia Crosignani
- Fellowship in Geriatrics and Gerontology, University of Milan, Milano, Italy
| | - Yael Zilbershlag
- Department of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Health Allied Professions - Ono Academic College, Kiryat Ono, Israel
| | - Matteo Cesari
- Department of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, University of Milan, Milano, Italy
| | - Tzvi Dwolatzky
- Geriatric Unit, Rambam Health Care Campus, Haifa, Israel
- The Ruth and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
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McDarby M, Ju CH, Picchiello MC, Carpenter BD. Older adults' perceptions and experiences of ageism during the COVID-19 pandemic. THE JOURNAL OF SOCIAL ISSUES 2022; 78:JOSI12557. [PMID: 36249554 PMCID: PMC9539012 DOI: 10.1111/josi.12557] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2021] [Revised: 08/17/2022] [Accepted: 08/17/2022] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
The current study investigates older adults' perceptions of ageism in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using tenets of Stereotype Embodiment Theory and the Behaviors from Intergroup Affect and Stereotypes Map framework, we sought to (a) examine whether older adults experienced ageism as self-relevant during the pandemic and (b) understand whether older adults experienced certain media messages and interpersonal behaviors during the pandemic and interpreted them as being motivated by potentialpaternalistic age stereotypes. Older adults aged 65 and older recruited from the community (n = 73) participated in a semi-structured interview about their perspectives on ageism toward older adults during the pandemic. Participants also completed an online survey about their experiences with a range of messages and interpersonal behaviors throughout the pandemic. We thematically analyzed interview data and identified three primary themes: self-relevance of age stereotypes; awareness of negative, overgeneralized portrayals of older adults; and defenses against self-relevance of age stereotypes. Survey responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics and frequency counts and suggest that participants attributed messages and behaviors potentially imbued with paternalistic ageism as motivated primarily by care and concern for older adults. The findings add to the field's understanding of older adults' experiences and perceptions of ageism in the media and in interpersonal behaviors in the context of COVID-19.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meghan McDarby
- Department of Psychological & Brain SciencesWashington University in St. LouisSt. LouisMissouriUSA
| | - Catherine H. Ju
- Department of Psychological & Brain SciencesWashington University in St. LouisSt. LouisMissouriUSA
| | - Matthew C. Picchiello
- Department of Psychological & Brain SciencesWashington University in St. LouisSt. LouisMissouriUSA
| | - Brian D. Carpenter
- Department of Psychological & Brain SciencesWashington University in St. LouisSt. LouisMissouriUSA
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The deprived or the devil? A content analysis of the media representation of older adults under COVID-19 in Hong Kong. AGEING & SOCIETY 2022. [DOI: 10.1017/s0144686x22000587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Older adults have been statistically proved to be at a higher risk of getting severely infected by the coronavirus COVID-19, evoking sweeping narratives of compassionate ageism surrounding them in different discourses. By analysing the media content, scholars from different areas have alerted us about the amplified ageism aroused by the pandemic crisis. However, we are still short of empirical evidence to learn how ageism is constructed in diverse sociocultural contexts in the wake of this global pandemic crisis. This study provides the case of Hong Kong to reflect on how ageism, as a set of social inequalities, is constructed. By examining 814 articles collected from the three most popular newspapers with different political orientations in Hong Kong, this study uses quantitative and qualitative content analysis to examine how older people have been generally represented. Then it further compares how these representations have been influenced by the media's liberal or conservative preferences. Third, it examines the relationship between the political orientation of newspapers and how different forms of ageism are constructed. The findings indicate that despite the liberal or conservative inclination of the three newspapers, they portray the older population as frail, dependent and deprived not only at the biomedical level but in all aspects of life. This study also reveals that the newspapers with a populist inclination in both camps have shown more hostile attitudes in representing compassionate ageism. In contrast, liberal and conservative-leaning media affirmed the government's dominant role in taking full responsibility for caring for the older population. The findings indicate that the polarised ageism frame cannot fully explain the underpinnings of ageism and implied policy processing in different contexts.
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