Ageing Stereotypes and Attitudes to ageing among older adults
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The Effect of Depression and Anxiety on Ageing Stereotypes and Attitudes to Ageing among Older Adults
IRAS ID
248356
Contact name
Emma Townsend
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of East Anglia
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 24 days
Research summary
With people living much longer than before, it is increasingly important to understand the individual and shared experience of ageing, to help people age positively. Unfortunately, our society’s social stereotype of ageing is often negative; words such as forgetful, or grumpy can often come up when thinking about older people. As people start to see themselves as 'old', research has found these stereotypes can become internalised, meaning they might see themselves as forgetful, or grumpy, and thus perceive this to be a normal part of ageing.
These stereotypes may lead to positive and negative views of ageing. Research has found people with positive views of ageing have better physical health, and even a longer life. Whereas people with negative views of ageing often have poorer health and are less likely to look after themselves as much.
Most older adults, however, have positive views of ageing. Research has found those between 65-79 years old report the highest level of wellbeing compared to all other ages. The exception seems to be those who suffer with depression and anxiety. This research aims to explore whether those with depression and anxiety have more negative age stereotypes, and negative views of ageing, as this could have important consequences for health.
Older adults will be asked to complete four standardised and validated questionnaires. These will ask questions about their views of ageing, ageing stereotypes, and will find out whether they might suffer with depression and/or anxiety. Responses from those with depression and/or anxiety will then be compared to those without symptoms.
The findings could be helpful for clinicians working with older adults with depression and anxiety. It could also be used to inform policy to build a society in which people look forward to growing older, and remain healthy, capable and active when they get there.REC name
London - Hampstead Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
19/LO/0409
Date of REC Opinion
8 Mar 2019
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion