Older adults feel good about aging in spite of ageism: Research

ISLAMABAD, July 28 (online): A poll of 2,000 people aged 50–80 years reveals their positive views of aging and the negative effects linked to ageism.

The survey found that 67% of respondents report that their feelings about aging have become more positive as they have aged.

88% of those questioned feel more comfortable being themselves now they are older, and 80% feel a strong sense of purpose.

Four questions in the survey captured respondents’ views on aging. People who gave positive answers to all four were more likely to report being in excellent or very good physical health than those with fewer positive views (55% versus 30%). In this same group, 84% reported their mental health as excellent or very good.

The poll presented respondents with nine different types of ageism, and asked them to identify those they had personally encountered. Overall, 40% reported experiencing three or more of these forms of ageism. Broken down, this group included:

49% of people aged 65 to 80, with 35% of those aged 50 to 64
43% of women and 38% of men
50% of those with annual incomes below $60,000, with 33% of those with incomes higher than this

Being retired and living in a rural area were also associated with experiencing more forms of ageism.

Forty-nine percent of those exposed to more than four hours a day of television, the internet, magazines, or all three, reported encountering three or more examples of ageism, compared with 41% of people who consumed such media between 2 and 4 hours a day, and 32% who consumed less than 2 hours per day.