021 Chapter 2 Background Overview • • • • Ageism can have serious consequences for older people’s health and wellbeing. Ageism among aged care and community workers is a particularly serious concern due to its potential to directly impact the health, wellbeing and quality of life of the older adults they support. While educational and intergenerational programs have been shown to be effective in reducing ageism, most of the existing research has been based in the United States or in formal education settings. This research contributes to filling the current gaps in research and practice, by evaluating the effectiveness of a one-off educational intervention in reducing age-based stereotyping and prejudice among those working in aged care and community settings. 2.1 Ageism against older adults Australia, like most countries, has an ageing population. Currently there are an estimated 4.4 million people aged 65 years and over, which is approximately 17% of the population, or one in six Australians.19 This number is projected to double to 8.9 million by 2060–61, when it is expected that 23% of the population will be aged 65 years and older.20 Despite the rising number and proportion of older people in the population, older adults are often invisible to society. Interviews with older adults describe experiences marked by a lack of recognition – not feeling valued as people or for their contribution to society.21 This form of invisibility-based stigmatisation, which manifests as indifference and inattention towards older adults,22 was also evident in the Commission’s What’s age got to do with it? research. This research found a lack of identification of older adults with meaningful life roles by younger generations, who tended to perceive older adults as ‘nice, frail onlookers to life’, rather than active participants in society.23 The World Health Organization (WHO) defines ageism as ‘stereotypes (how we think), prejudice (how we feel), and discrimination (how we act)’ towards people on the basis of their perceived chronological age.24 There are several ways in which ageism is expressed, including: • • • against ourselves (self-directed) between individuals (interpersonal) on institutional or cultural level through established laws, rules, policies, norms, and practices.25 While ageism can be directed towards any age group, it tends to affect older people most severely. Ageist stereotypes of older adults may be prescriptive (how older adults should be), or descriptive (what older adults allegedly are).26 Prescriptive stereotypes stem from beliefs about how older people behave; they have been shown to exist in the domains of succession, consumption, and identity.27 Succession-based stereotypes involve beliefs that older people should step aside from desirable positions and resources to make way for younger people. Consumption-based beliefs are concerned with over-use of shared resources by (and for) older people, such as the idea that older people are a burden on health or social welfare systems. And identity-based prescriptive stereotypes relate to the idea of ‘acting one’s age’, that is, the idea that older people should not engage in activities or roles that are usually associated with young people.28