The COVID-19 Pandemic Exposes Limited Understanding of Ageism

ABSTRACT

During the COVID-19 pandemic, justification for orders to shelter in place have emphasized the vulnerability of older people. Although other at-risk groups were sometimes mentioned, the emphasis on older people could have effects on attitudes about aging and older people for decades to come. This essay provides a comprehensive biopsychosocial description of ageism and discusses the pandemic as a “focusing event” that exemplifies the extreme social consequence of ageism for the entire older population. It suggests revisions to the Elder Justice Act and utilization of programs such as the Reframing Aging, Age-Friendly University, and Ageism First Aid initiatives to reduce ageism in the wake of the pandemic.

KEYWORDS:

• Ageism
• aging stereotypes
• aging stigma
• compassionate ageism
• Elder Justice Act
• externalization
• internalization
• politicization
• self-efficacy

Key Points

• COVID-19 has exposed a lack of understanding about what ageism is.

• The case of the Lt. Gov. of Texas illustrates dimensions and constructs of ageism in the context of COVID-19.

• Social policy revisions and initiatives are needed to reduce the prevalence of ageism exemplified by COVID-19.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Funding

No funding was received for this work.