Journal Article Summary
Reducing Negative Aging Stereotypes in Older People
Introduction
Ageism is a growing significant complication within today’s society. Ageism can be
ultimately defined as prejudice of one age group over another age group (Doncel-Garcia, et al.,
2022). Within the older community, ageism can have a negative effect on their overall physical,
psychological, and social health. However, adjusting stereotypes, prejudice, and behavior, to a
positive view of aging can have the potential to improve older adult’s overall health.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to address the issue of ageism regarding older adults and how
to reduce these negative stereotypes. These negative stereotypes concerning age can be
associated with a variable that is mostly associated with the perception of a person’s age which
would be their education level (Doncel-Garcia, et al., 2022). There are additional significant gaps
within the literature regarding ageism interventions among older adults.
Hypothesis
The hypothesis of this study is to analyze educational interventions within the aging of
older adults to reduce negative stereotypical perspectives toward this community (Doncel-Garcia
et al., 2022).
Methodology
Sample
The participants in this study consisted of fifty-six community-dwelling older people.
These participants were chosen based on several different criteria. One criterion is that the older
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individual had to be 60 years or older in age (Doncel-Garcia, et al., 2022). The second criterion
was that the older participants had to be suffering from some kind of cognitive impairment while
not reporting any severe functional impairment. Participants were volunteers from three different
community centers and did not receive any compensation for their participation within the study
(Docel-Garcia, et al., 2022).
Procedures
In the study conducted, participants partook in three structured individual interviews. The
first interview was completed one week before the intervention where the participants completed
the mini-cognitive examination, the negative Barthel index, the stereotypes toward aging
questionnaire, as well as provided their sociodemographic variables (Doncel-Gracia, et al.,
2022). Following this, the second and third interviews were conducted one week after the
intervention along with a one-month follow-up. The study conducted was a randomized-
controlled experiment, which randomly assigned one-on-one to an experimental group, where
the participant engaged in a one-hour session of aging content combined with viewing a video
that discussed ageism (Doncel-Garcia, et al., 2022). Within the one-hour session the participants
were educated on demographic aging in their community, the definition of what ageism is, as
well as the consequences that ageism has on an elder’s overall health. Following this, the
participants viewed two separate videos involving positive and negative aging examples within
media proceeded by a debate and question/answer session (Doncel-Garcia, et al., 2022).
Measures
Several measures went into this study which included age stereotypes, sociodemographic
variables, and two screenings for cognitive and functional impairment. Age stereotypes were
gauged using the CENVE to evaluate the cognitive dimension of ageism through the perception
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of aging and the negative stereotypes of aging (Doncel-Garcia, et al.,). The sociodemographic
variables collected from participants included age, sex, marital status, education level, number of
children/grandchildren, participation in community center activities, religion, the medication
they take, their chronic diseases, and finally their time as a caregiver (Doncel-Garcia, et al.,
2022). The first screening for cognitive and functional impairment is the MEC in which items are
dispensed in orientation, fixation, concentration, calculation, memory, language, and
construction. The second screening for cognitive and functional impairment is the Barthel index
which evaluated 10 daily activities that incorporated bathing, dressing, grooming, going to the
bathroom, walking, stairs, moving from the bed to the chair, bladder and bowel control, and
lastly feeding (Doncel-Garcia, et al., 2022).
Results
This study found several captivating results after the research was conducted. One result
is that in the experimental group, intervention ultimately improved the perception of aging after
measurement and follow-up (Doncel-Garcia, et al., 2022). Another result showed that in the
experimental group, perceptions that were more positive of health were contained within the
POST measurement along with the follow-up (Docnel-Garica, et al., 2022). With concern to the
experimental group, it is concluded that there were more positive motivational-social scores in
the after measurement in comparison to the before measurements. However, there was no
difference between these matters in the follow-up (Doncel-Garcia, et al., 2022). Referring to the
character-personality scores, the experimental group notably improved within the POST
measurement and the follow-up allowing for improvement to remain stable compared to the PRE
measurement (Doncel-Garcia, et al., 2022).
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Practical Significance
This study is crucial because it allows for a deeper understanding of the negative
stereotypes regarding older people and how to reduce these said stereotypes. Many times within
research, older people are excluded from studies regarding anti-ageism educational interventions
that contradict stereotyping based on age (Doncel-Garcia, et al., 2022). Studies like this can help
society become more aware of this issue and ultimately help reduce the discrimination and
stereotypes of older people when it comes to anti-ageism research in the future. Overall, this
study highlights the importance of older people’s stereotypes when it comes to educational
interventions and how we can go about reducing the negative stereotypes surrounding this
population.
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References
Doncel-García, B., Lizaso, I., Fraile-Bermúdez, A. B., Mosquera-Lajas, Á., Santamaría-
Trincado, B., Sanz, B., & Irazusta, J. (2022). Reducing negative aging stereotypes via
educational intervention in older people: A randomized controlled study. Research on
Aging, 45(5–6), 475–485. https://doi.org/10.1177/01640275221126100
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