What are the negative effects of ageism?

The study’s principal author, Levy, stated, “The harmful reach of ageism that our team discovered shows the necessity to combat ageism.” The research is published in the current issue of the PLOS ONE journal. The Yale School of Public Health did the first systematic study about age discrimination and has examined the structural and individual levels of ageism. It reviewed the effect of negative stress-inducing stereotypes from society on seniors’ health.

The Yale researchers have found that ageism was associated with poorer outcomes in various mental health disorders, such as depression, and physical health problems, like reduced life expectancy. The research discovered that when older people internalize unfavourable age stereotypes from society, their life expectancy is shortened. This finding, consistent with other studies in different countries, including Australia, Germany, and China, was first recognized by Levy in previous research.

Levy and her colleagues discovered that ageism affected how older patients received medical care and the duration and frequency of the given therapy. In 85 percent of all relevant investigations, there was evidence of denied access to healthcare treatments. According to the researchers, there was evidence of ageism in medical judgments in 92 percent of international reviews of health care students and professionals. As they say, this trend has gotten worse over time. This comprehensive study also discovered that ageism affects older people regardless of their age, gender, or racial group.