This article is about the differences and similarities in the perception that young people make about older ones, this from 3 basic concepts: older people, older woman and older men. The analysis stands over the gerontology field, which highlights that lot of the handicaps of the older people comes from their social exclusion and from an unfavourable cultural context, rather than from the state of their organisms or metal condition. How gender might be involved in the configuration of these exclusions is the object of this research, which one was made with 682 young, female and male, college students, who answered a differential semantic test. The results show a generalized and consistent negative image about older people, in both sexes over the three concepts. Even there are some differences between sexes in the perception of growing old, these are not significant, so, the conclusion is that the social images about growing old, transcend gender differences, showing the strength that they have in the construction of images that may be affecting the expectations of the older people, in the present and or in the future.
Keywords:
Chile, youngs, gender, social images, gerontophobia
Author Biographies
Anahí Urquiza Gómez, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Universidad de Chile
Antropóloga Social - Universidad de Chile. Magíster en Antropología y Desarrollo - Universidad de Chile
Programa Pulso, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales - Universidad de Chile
Marcelo Arnold Cathalifaud, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Universidad de Chile
Antropólogo Social - Universidad de Chile. Doctor en Ciencias Sociales - Universidad de Bielefeld. Alemania
Observatorio Social de la Vejez y Envejecimiento en Chile, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales - Universidad de Chile
Daniela Thumala Dockendorff, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Universidad de Chile
Psicóloga - Universidad de Chile. Magíster en Antropología y Desarrollo - Universidad de Chile
Directora Ejecutiva. Fundación Soles
Alejandra Ojeda Mayorga, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Universidad de Chile
Socióloga - Universidad de Chile. Magíster en Antropología y Desarrollo - Universidad de Chile
Urquiza Gómez, A., Arnold Cathalifaud, M., Thumala Dockendorff, D., & Ojeda Mayorga, A. (2008). Are there differences in how men and women observe male and female older adults?. MAD, (18), 1–19. Retrieved from https://revistaderechoambiental.uchile.cl/index.php/RMAD/article/view/13902
