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Age and capacity devaluation: a replication.
Social Science & Medicine (1982)
|January 1, 1984
Summary
Older individuals with work limitations tend to undervalue their remaining work capacities. This age-related capacity devaluation is influenced by societal expectations and norms surrounding aging and disability.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Sociology of Health and Illness
- Rehabilitation Science
Background:
- Previous research suggested capacity devaluation among older disabled men.
- The 1966 study used national survey data to support this hypothesis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To replicate and extend earlier findings on capacity devaluation in disabled older adults.
- To examine the relationship between age and self-reported work disability severity.
- To investigate these dynamics in both men and women using more comprehensive data.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of 1972 national survey data from disabled U.S. individuals aged 20-64.
- Utilized comprehensive measures of functional capacity loss and prior work situations.
- Employed cross-tabular and logit analyses.
Main Results:
- Age independently predicted self-perceived work disability severity for both men and women.
- Capacity devaluation was observed, particularly among less incapacitated, near-aged, blue-collar men.
- The severity of prior job's exertional requirements did not increase capacity devaluation.
Conclusions:
- Older persons with work limitations tend to devalue their residual work capacities.
- Social expectations regarding age-related decline and social sanctions for early withdrawal influence these evaluations.
- Findings support the hypothesis of capacity devaluation extending to disabled women.