Herrick J W
Int J Aging Hum Dev. 1983;16(2):95-123. doi: 10.2190/WB2C-YU97-MJWX-R3AT.
This paper questions the assumption that behavioral, mental, or cognitive incompetence accompanies the biological aging process, a fundamental assumption underlying a great deal of the geropsychological research. Using Kantor's analysis of the history of psychological thought and systems, the philosophical, psychological, social, and cultural-historical bases to this erroneous assumption are investigated. It is concluded that gerontological psychologists have, through their uncritical use of medieval conceptions of behavior, directly contributed to the negative stereotypes of elderly persons found in our society. This has resulted in what is termed "scientific ageism".
行为、心理或认知能力不足伴随着生物衰老过程，而这一假设是大量老年心理学研究的一个基本前提。通过运用坎托对心理学思想和体系历史的分析，探究了这一错误假设的哲学、心理、社会和文化历史基础。得出的结论是，老年学心理学家由于不加批判地采用中世纪的行为观念，直接助长了我们社会中存在的对老年人的负面刻板印象。这导致了所谓的“科学年龄歧视”。
