2986 School of Social and Behavioral Science, Mercy College, New York, USA.
Department of Sociology and Gerontology, Miami University, Oxford, USA.
Int J Aging Hum Dev. 2020 Dec;91(4):404-420. doi: 10.1177/0091415020912930. Epub 2020 Mar 30.
Despite robust literature on people's attitudes toward aging, far less is known about attitudes toward one's own aging, especially among college students. We examined college students' self-perceptions of the challenges of aging using essays from a "When I'm 75" assignment implemented at the beginning and end of the semester in an introductory gerontology course. Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis was used to analyze 24 students' perceptions of their own aging at age 75. The superordinate theme, challenges of aging, was identified along with five subordinate themes: deterioration, age-related impairments, mental health, loneliness and loss, and experiencing ageism. Findings suggest that after completing the course, students both demonstrated an understanding of realistic age-related changes and had (contradictory) stereotypical ideas of what it would be like to be 75. Findings have implications for research that continues to evaluate self-perceptions and contributes to the development of pedagogical strategies and tools that promote students' optimal aging.
尽管有大量关于人们对衰老态度的文献，但对自身衰老态度的了解却少得多，尤其是在大学生中。我们使用一门老年学入门课程在学期开始和结束时实施的“当我 75 岁时”作业中的文章，来研究大学生对衰老挑战的自我认知。采用解释现象学分析方法分析了 24 名学生对自己 75 岁时的衰老看法。超主题“衰老的挑战”与五个子主题一起确定：恶化、与年龄相关的障碍、心理健康、孤独和失落以及经历年龄歧视。研究结果表明，在完成课程后，学生不仅对现实的与年龄相关的变化有了了解，而且对 75 岁时的情况有了（矛盾的）刻板印象。这些发现对继续评估自我认知的研究以及促进学生最佳衰老的教学策略和工具的发展具有意义。
