Metamemory and Self-Compassion as Protective Factors in the Relationship Between Benevolent Ageism and Environmental Mastery

• Published in: Journal of applied gerontology Vol. 42; no. 6; pp. 1179 - 1190
• Main Authors: Sublett, Jennifer F., Bisconti, Toni L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.06.2023; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
• Subjects: Age discrimination; Aged; Ageism; Compassion; Humans; Metacognition; Older people; Patronage; Perceptions; Protective Factors; Self compassion; Self Concept; Well being; metamemory; self-compassion; Benevolent ageism
• ISSN: 0733-4648; 1552-4523
• DOI: 10.1177/07334648231163847

The present study examined the interrelationships between benevolent ageism, metamemory, self-compassion, and environmental mastery. By assessing older adults’ perceptions of overaccommodative behaviors, we found greater perceptions of benevolent ageist experiences, or well-intended patronage, related to lower levels of environmental mastery, effectively managing one’s own affairs, in a sample of 202 older adults. Additionally, this relationship is mediated by metamemory, or self-perceptions of memory abilities, as greater perceptions of benevolent ageism experiences indirectly predicted less environmental mastery through having decreased metamemory confidence. Finally, this mediated relationship is moderated by self-compassion, or kindness and acceptance towards oneself, in that self-compassion interacts with benevolent ageism to predict metamemory, which in turn predicts environmental mastery. Self-compassion is part of a growing literature on intervening variables that helping professionals can teach older adults to mitigate the relationship between ageism and their overall well-being alongside efforts to diminish the pervasiveness of ageism in society.