title: Examining positive and negative perceptions of older workers: a meta-analysis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This article presents an updated meta-analysis of field and laboratory studies that examine the influence of age on a number of evaluative workplace outcomes (advancement, selection, general evaluations, interpersonal skills, and reliability).  Method. A random effects meta-analytic procedure was used.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In line with the perspective that perceptions of older workers are multidimensional, the observed meta-analytic correlations indicate that age has medium-sized negative effects on majority of the outcomes investigated (r(advancement) = -.21, r(selection) = -.30, r(general evaluations) = -.24, and r(interpersonal skills) = -.23, and a medium-sized positive effect on perceptions of reliability (r(reliability) = .31). Additionally, evidence of moderation by study design for the selection outcome is presented, such that within-subjects designs elicit stronger effects of age than between-subjects designs.  Discussion. The present study demonstrates that it is likely that older workers are not viewed entirely negatively or entirely positively in the workplace; rather, the perceptions of older workers are more are varied, and even positive in some cases.
authors: Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan, USA.
authors: Anne C
authors: AC
authors: Bal
authors: Abigail E B
authors: AE
authors: Reiss
authors: Cort W
authors: CW
authors: Rudolph
authors: Boris B
authors: BB
authors: Baltes
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D007588:Job Satisfaction; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009784:Occupational Diseases; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D011287:Prejudice; D012938:Social Perception; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D017132:Workplace / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*