Age Differences in Health Attitudes and Beliefs: Aging and/or Cohort Effects?

The study examines age differences in selected health attitudes and beliefs. Using one indicator for cohort effects and one indicator of aging effects, an attempt is made to identify the origins of these age differences. The study population is comprised of a random sample of 2603 adults from a large health maintenance organization. The subjects participated in an indepth household interview. Analytic approaches include bivariate to multivariate methods. The findings indicate that there are significant age differences in health attitudes and beliefs and that both aging and cohort contribute to these differences. The findings must be interpreted as only tentative. However, they do highlight the need to examine the degree to which these health attitudes and beliefs are actually predictive of medical care utilization and other health and illness behaviors. The policy and research implications are discussed.