Older people's experiences of and reactions to ageism

There is substantial literature documenting the pervasiveness and harmfulness of ageism to older adults and society. Anti-ageism interventions are being developed and evaluated. However, most interventions target younger people and service providers, not older adults themselves. In this study, we aim to build knowledge about how older people understand, experience, and react to ageism with the goal of advancing anti-ageism interventions.

We conducted 9 focus groups with 58 people who were 60 years of age or older. Participants were 64% female, 64% Caucasian, and 33% African American. The modal age group was 75 to 79 years. A thematic content analysis was used to identify themes and representative quotes.

5 themes emerged. Not all older people are familiar with the concept of ageism, and some report they have not experienced it. Once primed, most participants could identify experiences of interpersonal ageism in employment, health care, media, families, and community settings, like stores and restaurants. Internalized ageism was less familiar to participants. Reaction to these experiences depended on the circumstances, and reactions ranged from doing nothing to making complaints. Participants generated suggestions for potential interventions.

Focus group participants recognized experiences of interpersonal ageism and had ideas about how to confront it. They had a harder time understanding and giving examples of internalized ageism. Increasing awareness and building skills to respond to interpersonal and internalized ageism emerged as a priority in intervention development.