Portrayal of the Elderly in the Media: A Literature Review and Implications for Educational Gerontologists

Vasil, Latika; Wass, Hannelore

doi:10.1080/0360127930190107

Cited by 100 publications

(68 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…Older women are widely underrepresented in Western cultural images (Chrisler & Ghiz, 1993), in print media as well as on television (e.g., Vasil & Wass, 1993;Vernon, Williams, Philips, & Wilson, 1991); the present study suggests that this is true for magazine images as well, and that when older women are presented, they not portrayed in the same way as younger women-they are shown as heavier and with more of the body covered. Thus, larger body ideals portrayed in the media, in combination with increased weight with age, may contribute to similarities in body satisfaction of women over the lifespan.…”

Section: Limitations and Future Directionsmentioning

confidence: 60%

Women, Weight, and Age: Social Comparison to Magazine Images Across the Lifespan

Bessenoff

Priore

2007

Sex Roles

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The finding that rates of body dissatisfaction in women remain relatively stable across the adult lifespan may be due to older women having fewer but heavier agerelevant comparisons in the media. To examine this, magazine images that depict women's full bodies were coded for age, body size, and clothedness. Analyses suggest that overall, older women are not well represented in this medium. In addition, magazines aimed at younger women depict younger and thinner models than do those magazines with a larger percentage of older readers. Moreover, across magazines, younger models are thinner and less clothed than older models. Thus, larger body ideals portrayed in the media, in combination with increased weight with age, may contribute to similarities in body satisfaction over the lifespan.

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Section: Limitations and Future Directionsmentioning

confidence: 60%

Women, Weight, and Age: Social Comparison to Magazine Images Across the Lifespan

Bessenoff

Priore

2007

Sex Roles

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“…Of course this case also highlights how difficult courts would find it if they had to uphold only maximal autonomy, especially in light of increasing fiscal constraints on social care provision: [11]. 20 A continuous feature of empirical research in this area suggests that older people are continuously homogenized and misrepresented, or portrayed negatively in popular culture in many countries [82,84]. 'Unhappiness and depression gave way to fear, itself accompanied by a decision to do or say nothing that would inflame the situation further' [8, p.193].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ageism and Autonomy in Health Care: Explorations Through a Relational Lens

Pritchard‐Jones

2014

Health Care Anal

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“…Marketers take a similar view of the elderly, imagining them as a homogenous group that differs qualitatively from younger consumers in both abilities and preferences. Just as media stereotypically portray the elderly (Vasil and Wass, 1993), marketers tend to portray them similarly in advertisements (McConatha, Schnell, and McKenna, 1999). Marketing scholars and practitioners routinely group the elderly into one catch-all category of persons 65 years of age and older, which may include as much as a 40-year span because of increases in longevity (i.e., grouping consumers aged 65 years with those older than 100 years).…”

Section: Stereotypesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Decision making and brand choice by older consumers

et al. 2008

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Older adults constitute a rapidly growing demographic segment, but stereotypes persist about their consumer behavior. Thus, a more considered understanding of age-associated changes in decision making and choices is required. Our underlying theoretical model suggests that ageassociated changes in cognition, affect, and goals interact to differentiate older consumers' decision-making processes, brand choices, and habits from those of younger adults. We first review literature on stereotypes about the elderly and then turn to an analysis of age differences in the inputs (cognition, affect, and goals) and outputs (decisions, brand choices, and habits) of the choice process.Keywords: older consumers, decision making, choice 2 Older consumers represent an increasingly large and financially powerful part of the population worldwide. We propose that age-associated changes in cognition, affect, and goals intermingle to influence older consumers' decision-making processes and choices and thus distinguish these processes as different from those used by younger adults. This review attempts to achieve a more considered understanding of age differences in the inputs (cognition, affect, and goals) and outputs (decisions, brand choices, and habits) of choice processes. For example, extant literature focuses largely on the ways in which one input (e.g., memory) affects a single output (e.g., brand choice). We organize the review around stereotypes, inputs, outputs, and further research, but we expressly highlight the complex interrelationships among these concepts. StereotypesSection Author: Michael I. Norton People tend to possess stereotypical views of the elderly, regarding them as kindly, warm, and friendly but simultaneously incompetent, ineffective, and helpless (Fiske, Cuddy, Glick, and Xu, 2002)-beliefs that are evident across cultures (Cuddy, Norton, and Fiske, 2005). Marketers take a similar view of the elderly, imagining them as a homogenous group that differs qualitatively from younger consumers in both abilities and preferences. Just as media stereotypically portray the elderly (Vasil and Wass, 1993), marketers tend to portray them similarly in advertisements (McConatha, Schnell, and McKenna, 1999). Marketing scholars and practitioners routinely group the elderly into one catch-all category of persons 65 years of age and older, which may include as much as a 40-year span because of increases in longevity (i.e., grouping consumers aged 65 years with those older than 100 years). Such a broad grouping for a different cohort, say from 10 to 50 years of age, would seem ridiculous and demonstrates the 2 heterogeneity in preferences and needs within such a wide grouping. Even if fewer preference changes occur in later life, the heterogeneity in preferences, needs, and wants among consumers aged 65 to 100 years are likely considerable.Furthermore, despite the substantial overlap in abilities, preferences, and goals between older and younger consumers, substantial differences also mark them. For example, the elder...

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Portrayal of the Elderly in the Media: A Literature Review and Implications for Educational Gerontologists

Cited by 100 publications

References 34 publications

Women, Weight, and Age: Social Comparison to Magazine Images Across the Lifespan

Women, Weight, and Age: Social Comparison to Magazine Images Across the Lifespan

Ageism and Autonomy in Health Care: Explorations Through a Relational Lens

Decision making and brand choice by older consumers

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