Perspectives of Aging   and Ageism

After completing this week’s reading, address the following:

• Watch the AARP video Millennials Show Us What ‘Old’ Looks      Like (Links to an external site.). What did the video exhibit in regards to society’s      attitudes on aging? What did we learn from the video about aging? When      reading Chapter 4, what surprised you in regards to biological aging?
• Watch the AHRC video Power of Oldness (Links to an external      site.).      From the video and your reading so far, present and explain a major      benefit that older people bring to society, including families, workplaces      and communities.
• Aging Simulation Exercise –      After reading about the physical impairments related to age in Chapter 4      of the textbook, visit “Sociology of Aging: Age Related Impairments: A      Simulation Exercise” (available in the online classroom) and select at      least two of the impairments that are listed in the exercise. After      selecting the impairments that you will be simulating, use the household      items that are listed and proceed with carrying out your normal tasks      around your home. Then, describe which impairments you simulated and what      you experienced. Answer the following questions (this part of the      discussion should be a minimum of 300 words):
  • What was it like to complete       your tasks with the selected impairments?
  • What were the difficulties       that you encountered while completing your tasks? Were any of those       difficulties unexpected?
  • After having reviewed Chapter       4, which of the major biological theories on aging do you think best       explains the impairments that you simulated? Be sure to support your       answer.
• In Chapter 5, you read about      “self-concept.” Although self-concept is something that is established      early in life, it changes as one grows older through life experiences. A      great example of strong self-concept would be the self-esteem an athlete      gains by excelling at their sport and being well known for their advanced      abilities. However, as you experienced in the experiment, and athlete can      experience physical aging and injury that can often force them to stop      performing their sporting activity and this can lead to a loss of      self-esteem and self-concept. What activity in later life do athletes      often engage in that can help them regain a positive self-concept? What is      it about this later life activity that so positively impacts self-esteem?

Your initial full post should be at least 600 words in length. Support your claims with examples from the required material(s) and/or other scholarly resources, and properly cite any references. The Scholarly, Peer-Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources table                      offers additional guidance on appropriate source types. For help writing a great discussion post, see this video guide (Links to an external site.).  Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts by Day 7.