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The Social Psychology of Ageing and Ageism

Module description

When you walk down the greetings card aisle of your local supermarket, you will be bombarded with anti-ageing messages telling you that growing older is something to be avoided at all costs. There will be jokes about the inevitable consequences of ageing - #seniormoments, grey hair, and wrinkles. We don’t think twice about it, yet if we saw similar cards mocking someone on the basis of their ethnicity or gender, for example, we would be horrified. This is ageism in plain sight. It’s deemed OK in western society to mock ageing, and this kind of humour normalises prejudice towards ageing. The anti-ageing narrative is everywhere. And this can have extreme repercussions at both a societal and individual level because our (predominantly negative) attitudes towards ageing are formed and internalised at a very young age (around six years) and shape how we view growing older. In this module, we explore the social psychology of ageing, covering recent theoretical approaches to ageing, learning what research can tell us about ways to tackle ageism, and focusing on the often gendered nature of ageing. This module may challenge you to reassess much of what you have absorbed about ageing and hopefully equip you with knowledge and motivation to approach the issue in a more nuanced way. The content will build upon concepts encountered in Social Psychology II, especially those linked to categorization and stereotyping, but much of it will be new to students.

If you enjoyed PSY2203 Social Psychology II, and want to learn more about how ageing and ageism are important topics for us all, whatever our age, then this module should really appeal.

Module aims - intentions of the module

This module analyses the extant literature on ageing and ageism. The module aims to explore in depth both traditional and contemporary approaches to the area. Areas considered include using theoretical approaches to studying ageing, tackling ageism, and gendered ageism. You will examine differing approaches to the study of ageing and ageism and will critically evaluate the contribution of differing methodologies and research outcomes to our understanding of social life in both laboratory and more applied settings. As such, material in this module may be relevant for your future employment settings.

Moreover, through attending the weekly seminars and completing the assessments, you will further develop the following academic and professional skills:

• problem solving (linking theory to practice, developing your own ideas with confidence, showing entrepreneurial awareness, being able to respond to novel and unfamiliar problems)
• managing structure (identifying key demands of the task, setting clearly defined goals, responding flexibly to changing priorities)
• time management (managing time effectively individually and within a group)
• collaboration (respecting the views and values of others, taking initiative and leading others, supporting others in their work, maintaining group cohesiveness and purpose), and
• audience awareness (presenting ideas effectively in multiple formats, persuading others of the importance and relevance of your views, responding positively and effectively to questions).

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Evaluate some traditional and contemporary approaches to the study of stereotyping
• 2. Describe systematically the effectiveness of differing research methodologies and the ability to critically appraise the research
• 3. Communicate your own thoughts and ideas in response to the ideas of others in a succinct and engaging way

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 4. Acquire detailed, systematic and comprehensive knowledge within the discipline, with in-depth specialisation at the forefront of the discipline in certain areas and demonstrate advanced critical understanding of this knowledge and of the limits and provisional nature of this knowledge
• 5. Review and critically evaluate published work and identify the strengths and weaknesses of this work and structure this literature to present logical, coherent and sustained arguments to support conclusions at an advanced level
• 6. Address systematically complex problems which may be framed within unpredictable contexts, think critically, creatively, and independently and fully appreciate the complexities of the issues at an advanced level

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 7. Interact effectively and supportively within a learning group
• 8. Describe your own criteria of self-evaluation and challenge received opinion, reflect on your actions, and seek and make use of feedback
• 9. Select and manage information, and to undertake competently study tasks with minimum guidance
• 10. Manage time effectively to meet deadlines

Syllabus plan

Indicative Syllabus plan

• Introduction: What is ageing and what is ageism?
• Children’s attitudes towards older people: The origins of ageing perceptions
• Stereotype threat and age: Do ageist stereotypes affect how older people function?
• Stereotype embodiment: Does internalizing negative age stereotypes set us up to fear ageing?
• Subjective age: Do our self-perceptions of age affect how we age?
• Ageism in the workplace: Exploring the experiences of older workers
• Gendered ageism, body image and appearance: Is it harder for women to grow old?
• Psychological well-being in later life for women: The midlife, menopause and beyond
• Tackling ageism I: Education and role models
• Tackling ageism II: Intergenerational contact I: Classic research
• Tackling ageism III: Intergenerational contact II: Recent developments (imagined and extended contact) and the future

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Re-assessment notes

Three assessments are required for this module. Where you have been referred/deferred in the examination you will have the opportunity to take a second examination in the August re-assessment period. For a deferred presentation, reassessment will be by arrangement with the module convenor. For a referred presentation, reassessment shall be by individual presentation in the August reassessment period. Where you have been referred/deferred in the essay you will be required to resubmit the essay. If you are successful on referral, your overall module mark will be capped at 40%; deferred marks are not capped.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

Indicative basic reading list:

Most of the research discussed will be drawn from journal articles. The following articles will be good background reading:

• Levy, B. (2009). Stereotype embodiment: A psychosocial approach to aging. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 18(6), 332-336.
• Nelson, T. D. (2005). Ageism: Prejudice against our feared future self. Journal of Social Issues, 61(2), 207-221.
• Swift, H. J., Abrams, D., Lamont, R. A., & Drury, L. (2017). The risks of ageism model: How ageism and negative attitudes toward age can be a barrier to active aging. Social Issues and Policy Review, 11(1), 195-231.

More generalist books on some of the issues covered can be found here:

• Applewhite, A. (2019. This Chair Rocks: A manifesto against ageism. Celadon Books.
• Honore, C. (2018). Bolder: Making the most of our longer lives. Simon & Schuster UK.
• Rausch, J. (2018). The Happiness Curve: Why life gets better after midlife. London: Green Tree.

Key words search

Psychology, ageing, ageism, stereotypes, stereotyping, tackling ageism, gendered ageism