Different dimensions of ageist attitudes among men and women

Background: Ageism, a form of prejudice in which one relates negatively to people due to their age, exists hroughout life. However, no attempt has been made to compare ageist attitudes across the life cycle, from oung adulthood to old age. Consequently, the current study examined age and gender differences in ageism hroughout adulthood.
Methods: 955 Israeli participants (age range: 18-98 years) were divided into three age-groups: young (18-39), iddle-aged (40-67), and old (68-98), and were administered the Fraboni Scale of Ageism. Age and gender ifferences were examined both for the three groups and for subgroups within the older adult cohort.
Results: Multivariate analysis of variance revealed that middle-aged participants were significantly more ageist han younger and older groups. Across all age groups, men exhibited more avoidance and stereotypical ttitudes toward older adults than women. Among the old age group, participants aged 81-98 held more geist stereotypes and reported more avoidance of older adults than those aged 68-73. Within the older adult ohort, gender was a significant predictor for ageist attitudes among those aged 68-73 and 81-98, but not for
people aged 74-80.
Conclusions: Ageism demonstrates a changing pattern across the life span. While gender differences remain table, ageist attitudes toward growing old as we age ourselves are constantly changing. In order to gain a etter understanding of ageism as a general and global phenomenon, we need to consider the role of such atitudes in different stages of life