Perceived youth: appraisal and characterization.
Results from a mail survey of respondents aged sixty to ninety-four suggest that psychographic dimensions of youthfulness and identification with old age constitute effective inner-age research variables, especially to those seeking to study older populations. The two specific dimensions explored are: "perceived youth," a magnitude measure of the proportional discrepancy between chronological and cognitive ages; and "feeling-old," which inversely measured youth through reliance on a six-point Likert agree/disagree statement: "I feel old...." In addition to the obvious inverse relationship between these inner-ages, research established trait covariation relative to an increase in perceived youth coincidental with a rejection of a feeling-old identity, corresponding to increases in "happiness, own-health rating, being venturesome, giving advice, self-esteem, social activity, and keeping-in-shape," as well as decreases in "taking advice, being a homebody, and having health worries."
Barak
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Department of Marketing & International Business, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY 11550, USA.
Rahtz
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D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D001290:Attitude; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010555:Personality Inventory; D012649:Self Concept; D012933:Social Identification; D013240:Stereotyping