Human Concepts of Aging :: Sociology Age Agism Stereotype

In this essay about aging, I will focus not precisely on the stereotypical view of what aging locoweed mean to most, unless also the broader focus on the many ways aging can be defined. The essay will look at what aging successionnt to dissimilar purifications and historical periods and take a broad overview of the concept from different perspectives. Moreover it will also discuss social factors relating to aging. It will acquaint the significant changes of aging historically and various underlying factors as to the changes. Finally, I will discuss what the changes suggest for our future.What does the concept of aging mean?ageing is defined into a definition as Changes that significantly decrease the luck of survival caused by processes within the individual that are universal, inevitable and permanent (Schulz & Ewen, 1993 p. 5). However it is a narrow definition of what aging means as there is not one person who would define aging in the same manner. Most of what we think and know about aging are opinions that reflects the stereotyped and exaggerated attitudes about decline and fall that are so common in the western culture. Even though it can be defined in biological terms aging also has some other perspective, an entirely social construction and the way we perceive age varies from culture to culture and from one historical period to another (Coleman & O Hanlon, 2004). Defining what is grey-haired to oneself depends on who we are and our own social position. According to the NSW Department 1989 base of the Healthy Older People Project, age is defined differently gibe to the individual. For example a medical professional would state post-menopausal women and retired men as being old. To a fifteen-year-old, parents, grandparents and 30 year olds would be seen as old, and sick elderly people are viewed as old(a) than healthy older people. This shows that there is not one ideal for what old and age is vatic to mean. Since 1900 life expectancy at birth has increased by more than than 20 years for females and males. This therefore has influenced our definitions of old age. NSW Health Department (1989) categorised old into companys. assemblage one young old 60 years and over. Group two Old old 75 years to 84 years and group three, the oldest, being 85 years and over.Moreover although old can be defined to Australians somewhat differently depending on the individual it also cant be forgotten that our Australian Indigenous population vary what old age is once again.