Advancing the Sociology of Ageism

• Published in: Social forces Vol. 86; no. 1; pp. 257 - 264
• Main Author: Marshall, Victor W.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford The University of North Carolina Press 01.09.2007; University of North Carolina Press; Oxford University Press
• Subjects: Advancing the Sociology of Ageism; Age; Age differences; Age discrimination; Age groups; Aging; Aging (Biology); Attitudes; Behavior; Bengtson, Vern L; Case studies; Civil rights; Coding; Correlation (Statistics); Demographic aspects; Discrimination; Employer Attitudes; Employment discrimination; Employment Level; Gender discrimination; Inferences; Marginality; Mental depression; Mental health; National Surveys; Negative Attitudes; Older adults; Political economy; Psychology; Public Opinion; Qualitative research; Social aspects; Social Characteristics; Social discrimination; Social exclusion; Social psychology; Social structure; Social structures; Social theories; Sociological research; Sociology; State Surveys; Theory; Tone; Websites; United States; Canada; Montreal Quebec Canada
• ISSN: 0037-7732; 1534-7605
• DOI: 10.1353/sof.2007.0104

The methodological range is also broad, with Gee et al. and Yuan using different national-level survey data files for multivariate analyses, Calasanti coding and analyzing qualitative data from websites that deal with 'anti-aging' products, and Rosigno et al. numerically coding, counting and descriptively analyzing a large archive of age discrimination cases, then analyzing qualitative data for a subset. It may reflect the more social psychological or individualistic approach of American sociology, compared to the greater attention to social structure found in European sociology, that the former tend to refer to ageism (an attitude) or age discrimination (a behavior), whereas the latter refer to marginalization, social exclusion and structured dependency - all concepts with a more institutional and structural tone (Townsend 2006).