The status value of age

Status, masculinity, and femininity at the intersection of age and gender

Although men are generally awarded greater status than women, little is known about how gendered ageism may affect the gender gap in status. Using an online survey experiment (N = 2473), this study examines how cultural beliefs about status, masculinity, and femininity are differentially affected by men's and women's age. Findings show that aging has little effect on men's perceived status, but aging drives both upswings and downswings in women's perceived status, giving men status advantages during early and late adulthood. Similarly, whereas aging does not affect men's perceived masculinity, aging drives upswings and downswings in women's perceived femininity, depending on current age. Perceived masculinity is more strongly linked to men's status than perceived femininity is to women's. Findings contribute to research on status and gendered ageism, and shed light on how age and gender combine to influence ubiquitous social judgments that are integral to the reproduction of social inequality.

How Social Influence Processes Generate Cohesion in Task Groups

We introduce a theoretical argument linking group structure to an individual’s cohesion in collectively oriented task groups. We posit that status, the distribution of opinions, and social categories indirectly shape perceptions of cohesion by making individuals working on an uncertain task more or less susceptible to the opinions of others. Specifically, these factors influence how likely one is to succumb to the opinions of others, which in turn influences one’s likelihood of viewing one’s actions as valid or consonant with the expectations of the other members of the group. As this process repeats over time, it accumulates to affect individuals’ expressions of cohesion with group members. Results from a laboratory experiment corroborate this process.

Determinants of role-incongruent knowledge transfer behavior of apprentices and trainers in the context of the German apprenticeship system

What motivates individuals to engage in role-incongruent knowledge transfer? Drawing on role congruity theory, we characterize role-incongruent (“reverse”) knowledge transfer as being based on an incongruity of the functional and social roles of the actors. Further integrating status characteristics theory and relational demography, we propose affect- and cognition-based trust as well as age as determinants of individuals’ engaging in such reverse knowledge transfer. In so doing, we distinguish between the social roles of trainers and apprentices, as these social roles carry implications for which behaviors are regarded as role-congruent or -incongruent. We test the resulting conceptual framework based on individual-level data from 442 participants (338 apprentices and 104 trainers) in multiple organizations within the context of vocational education training. The results largely support our hypotheses: For trainers, affect-based trust in apprentices and own age are positively associated with role-incongruent knowledge seeking, and the latter relationship is positively moderated by apprentice age. For apprentices, affect based trust is positively and cognition-based trust is negatively related to their role-incongruent knowledge sharing, but age has no significant effect. Finally, supplementary analyses document that the antecedents of reverse knowledge transfer differ from those factors that are significantly related to role-congruent knowledge exchange.

Status and competitive choice

In this paper, we extend the logic of existing sociological theory on status to explain how status processes can inform selection in competitive choice situations. We argue that in the absence of knowledge about the specific abilities of others and assuming a desire to win, when given the opportunity to "pick their battles," people will draw on overt status differences as a basis for selecting a competitor from a pool of possible competitors. Results from three studies indicate that, as predicted, status differences affect competitor selection, with individuals choosing to compete against those who are relatively lower status based on diffuse characteristics. Moreover, consistent with expectation state theories, results from two studies show that the expectations that people form for their potential competitors based on status differences mediate this relationship. We conclude by discussing the implications of this research.

Self-harm in midlife: analysis using data from the Multicentre Study of Self-harm in England

BACKGROUND

In England suicide rates are highest in midlife (defined as age 40-59). Despite a strong link with suicide there has been little focus on self-harm in this age group.AimTo describe characteristics and treatment needs of people in midlife who present to hospital following self-harm.

METHOD

Data from the Multicentre Study of Self-harm in England were used to examine rates over time and characteristics of men and women who self-harm in midlife. Data (2000-2013) were collected via specialist assessments or hospital records. Trends were assessed by negative binomial regression models. Comparative analysis used logistic regression models for binary outcomes. Repetition and suicide mortality were assessed by Cox proportional hazards models.

RESULTS

A quarter of self-harm presentations were made by people in midlife (n = 24 599, 26%). Incidence rates increased over time in men, especially after 2008 (incidence rate ratio [IRR] 1.07, 95% CI 1.02-1.12, P < 0.01), and were positively correlated with national suicide incidence rates (r = 0.52, P = 0.05). Rates in women remained relatively stable (IRR 1.00, 95% CI 1.00-1.02, P = 0.39) and were not correlated with suicide. Alcohol use, unemployment, housing and financial factors were more common in men; whereas indicators of poor mental health were more common in women. In men and women 12-month repetition was 25%, and during follow-up 2.8% of men and 1.2% of women died by suicide.

CONCLUSION

Self-harm in midlife represents a key target for intervention. Addressing underlying issues, alcohol use and economic factors may help prevent further self-harm and suicide.Declaration of interestK.H. and N.K. are members of the Department of Health's National Suicide Prevention Advisory Group. N.K. chaired the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guideline development group for the longer-term management of self-harm and the NICE Topic Expert Group which developed the quality standards for self-harm services. N.K. also chairs the NICE guideline committee for the management of depression. All other authors declare no conflict of interest.