According to a new Harris Interactive survey, North Americans see their elders in a more positive light than Asians do. This certainly goes against the stereotype we've known for generations about the veneration of Japanese and other Asians for their aging relatives.
Humphrey Taylor, guest blogger on The Boomer Blog, wrote that the survey of 4000 Americans admired people over age 64. International studies indicate that Americans stigmatize their aging population less than 20 other countries they studied, including Latin Americans and Eastern Europeans.
How do we account for this discrepancy in our perceptions? Is there so much discrimination against aging people in the US? People who lose their jobs in their 50s and 60s still find it more difficult than 30-somethings to get re-employed. But, it's good news to hear that times are a-changing.
Studies of aging cited by gerontologist Dr. Gene Cohen demonstrate the ways that the aging brain compensates and even gets better! See my previous blog posts from December 2007. Especially so for educated people who continue to use their brains for creative tasks, such as learning new things, they seem to create more dendrites and neural connections that keep the mind fresh and vital.
Since so many older baby boomers have gotten smitten with self-care through exercise and continuing to participate in athletic activity, they look and feel younger.
So, no wonder that 4000 Americans admire their elders these days. Their elders are getting younger in mind, body, and spirit. See my post about neoteny last month.
What attitudes do you hear from younger people about "60 is the new 40?"
According to a new Harris Interactive survey, North Americans see their elders in a more positive light than Asians do. This certainly goes against the stereotype we've known for generations about the veneration of Japanese and other Asians for their aging relatives.
Humphrey Taylor, guest blogger on The Boomer Blog, wrote that the survey of 4000 Americans admired people over age 64. International studies indicate that Americans stigmatize their aging population less than 20 other countries they studied, including Latin Americans and Eastern Europeans.
How do we account for this discrepancy in our perceptions? Is there so much discrimination against aging people in the US? People who lose their jobs in their 50s and 60s still find it more difficult than 30-somethings to get re-employed. But, it's good news to hear that times are a-changing.
Studies of aging cited by gerontologist Dr. Gene Cohen demonstrate the ways that the aging brain compensates and even gets better! See my previous blog posts from December 2007. Especially so for educated people who continue to use their brains for creative tasks, such as learning new things, they seem to create more dendrites and neural connections that keep the mind fresh and vital.
Since so many older baby boomers have gotten smitten with self-care through exercise and continuing to participate in athletic activity, they look and feel younger.
So, no wonder that 4000 Americans admire their elders these days. Their elders are getting younger in mind, body, and spirit. See my post about neoteny last month.
What attitudes do you hear from younger people about "60 is the new 40?"