The Mechanism of Ageism: The Relationship Between Perceived Everyday Age Discrimination and Depressive Symptoms in Later Life

Purpose: As older adults are likely to experience the death of a loved one, deteriorating health, retirement, and changing relationships with others, older adults have a high risk of depression. Social work has provided older adults with a variety of services to enhance their quality of life and mental health status. Because ageism is one form of discrimination that social work has long been concerned with, this study focuses on the relationship between perceived everyday age discrimination and depressive symptoms among older adults.

             This study examined the direct effect of perceived ageism on late-life depression and the mediating effects of self-perception of aging and purpose in life on the relationship between ageism and depression. The stress process model was used to provide an overall idea to explain the effects related to the mechanism of ageism. Cooley’s looking-glass self, Beck’s cognitive theory of depression, and Levy's stress embodiment theory were used to explain the mediating effect of self-perception of aging and purpose in life.

Methods: Secondary analysis was conducted using the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) datasets, a nationally-representative and longitudinal panel study of the U.S. population ages 50 and over. The sample of this study was 3,991 participants, who were older adults ages 65 and over and whose answers were available for the study analyses. With regard to the direct effect of perceived ageism on depressive symptoms, multiple regression analyses were performed controlling for demographic and socioeconomic variables. With regard to the mediating effects of self-perception of aging and purpose in life, structural equation modeling (SEM) analyses using structural regression models were conducted.

Results: The direct relationship between perceived ageism and late-life depression existed (β = .030, p < .05) even after controlling for demographic and socioeconomic variables. That is, older adults who perceive ageism are likely to have a higher level of depressive symptoms than their counterparts. SEM analyses revealed that full mediation effects of self-perception of aging and purpose in life exist. Older adults who perceive ageism are likely to have negative self-perception of aging (β = .226, p < .01), and this negative view of their own aging is likely to increase depressive symptoms (β = .493, p < .01). Additionally, older adults who have a negative view of their aging are likely to have a negative view of their future (β = -.691, p < .01), and this lower purpose in life also increases depressive symptoms (β = -.076, p < .05).

Implications: This study contributes to the existing body of knowledge by providing the information about the relationship between perceived ageism and depression and the mechanism of such a relationship. Additionally, the current study suggests the necessity of anti-ageism policies and social work services and describes possible ways of providing such social policies and social work services at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels. The results of this study imply that more efforts and resources are necessary to reduce age discrimination and its negative effect on depression among older adults.