JOURNAL OF SOCIAL ISSUES

The Intergroup Time Bias and Its Implications for Medical Healthcare
Do Bú EA, da Silva RP, Pereira CR, Torres ARR, Madeira AF, Vala J and Hagiwara N
The Intergroup Time Bias (ITB) is an unobtrusive yet impactful form of discrimination, characterized by the unequal allocation of time, favoring White individuals compared to Black individuals. This biased time allocation has significant implications for racial inequities in critical social domains, including healthcare. Across three studies, we demonstrate the ITB as a pervasive factor contributing to racial healthcare disparities. Study 1 ( = 166 patients, = 9 physicians) examined real-world clinical interactions in Brazil, revealing that White physicians consistently spent more time with White patients than Black patients across multiple medical specialties. Study 2 ( = 210) extended these findings to Portugal through a vignette study, where White medical trainees spent significantly more time to clinical tasks involving a White (vs. Black) patient, leading to enhanced diagnostic accuracy and more comprehensive clinical recommendations for the White patient. Study 3 ( = 99) explored additional ITB consequences, specifically medical trainees' written email communication to patients in Portugal, using the same clinical scenario as Study 2. Consistent with Study 2, trainees spent significantly more time on clinical tasks involving a White (vs. Black) patient, which translated into higher quality written communication for the White patient. Notably, trainees who scored high on implicit racial bias but low on explicit racial bias (i.e., aversive racists) showed stronger ITB than those with high implicit and explicit racial bias (i.e., prejudiced) or low implicit and explicit racial bias (i.e., non-prejudiced). This research represents work in T1, with a goal to establish proof of concept, through observational and experimental studies, on the critical role that ITB plays in contributing to racial healthcare disparities. Future T2-T4 research is needed to understand how the ITB manifests in multiple aspects of patient care in the actual clinical settings, test interventions to reduce it, and refine these interventions for broader effectiveness.
Identity Safety in Cancer Screening: Building a Basic Research-to-Clinic Translation of Social Identity Theory
AuBuchon KE, Emenyonu M, Muthenini N, Graves KD and Arem H
Environmental cues can signal identity threat (e.g., potential discrimination) or identity safety (e.g., belonging) to socially marginalized people. However, scant research has examined safety and threat cues in healthcare. In our T1-T2 concurrent triangulation mixed-methods study, participants (age 35-60; ~25% each cisgender Black women, Black men, Latina, Latino) completed quantitative (n=288) and qualitative (n=80) surveys. Participants rated their past healthcare experiences and future cancer screening intentions, analyzed via multiple regression. Participants responded to short answer questions about their healthcare experiences to identify cues to identity threat and/or identity safety, analyzed via grounded theory. Identity safety related to prostate, breast, and colorectal cancer screening intentions controlling for mistrust and past discrimination. Qualitative results concurred, indicating that interpersonal cues and environmental features cue safety or threat. Our findings support that Black and Latine people value identity safety in cancer screening, and future interventions could test promoting safety cues to promote cancer screening.
The damaging legacy of damage-centered LGBTIQ+ research: Implications for healthcare and LGBTIQ+ health
Cipollina R, Ruben MA, Maroney MR, Fu C, Gonzalez A, Fogwell NT, Bettergarcia J and Levitt HM
Research on LGBTIQ+ populations has focused primarily on identifying problems in the community (e.g., health disparities) and their predictors (e.g., minority stressors, discrimination). Scholars have argued that the approach of highlighting "damage" or deficits has been helpful for advocacy but has also harmed this community by perpetuating stereotypes (e.g., LGBTIQ+ individuals are unhealthy), ignoring or devaluing positive LGBTIQ+ experiences, and contributing to negative interactions in healthcare settings. To evaluate the extent to which a damage-centered approach dominates the body of available research, the authors of this article conducted a content analysis of articles related to LGBTIQ+ health published in the (JSI). The content analysis of 45 years of published manuscripts (1978-2023) revealed a strong emphasis on damage-centered themes. In response, this article advocates for structural changes that may lead to an increase in research that focuses LGBTIQ+ experiences more holistically, with the overarching goal of reimaging LGBTIQ+ research. Such suggested changes include concentrated research funding and publishing opportunities, medical training that emphasizes a strengths-based focus, and function-oriented and autonomy-promoting LGBTIQ+ research. This article suggests strategies to improve patient-provider interactions in healthcare and enhance the overall well-being of LGBTIQ+ communities. It advocates for a deliberate expansion towards a more holistic, less damage-centered body of research in LGBTIQ+ psychology.
Thwarted Belonging Needs: A Mechanism Prospectively Linking Multiple Levels of Stigma and Interpersonal Outcomes among Sexual Minorities
Lattanner MR and Hatzenbuehler M
The association between stigma and adverse interpersonal outcomes is well established. However, the mechanisms underlying this association have yet to be comprehensively conceptualized and tested, in part because research has neglected to evaluate stigma across multiple levels. To address this gap, we examined whether stigma-measured at individual, interpersonal, and structural levels-prospectively affects loneliness and social support by thwarting fundamental belonging needs, using a longitudinal sample of 315 gay men. Results indicated that thwarted belonging needs prospectively mediated the association between interpersonal discrimination, internalized homonegativity, and concealment motivation and changes in loneliness and lack of social support. When indirect pathways were tested simultaneously, discrimination was uniquely associated with reductions in social support via thwarted belonging needs. In addition, the prospective association between objectively-measured structural stigma (at the state and county levels) and loneliness and lack of social support was serially mediated by perceptions of structural stigma and thwarted belonging needs. To guide future work, we propose a model outlining pathways by which stigma, across multiple levels, may lead to adverse interpersonal outcomes by increasing relationally-oriented biological, motivational, cognitive, affective, and behavioral mechanisms that affect belonging needs.
Multidimensional Discrimination Distress, Controlling Parenting, and Parent-Adolescent Attachment Relationships: Racial/Ethnic Differences
Kazmierski KFM, Borelli JL and Rao U
Parents have multifaceted identities, across dimensions like race/ethnicity, gender, and class, which shape their experience of discrimination. However, little is known about how distress from such multidimensional discrimination influences parenting behavior and parent-adolescent relationships. We tested associations between mothers' multidimensional discrimination distress and parental control (overcontrol and conditional regard) and daughters' attachment, among 82 African American (AA), Hispanic/Latina (HL), and non-Hispanic White (NHW) mother-adolescent daughter dyads in the United States. Additionally, we examined whether these associations vary by race/ethnicity. Mothers reported their distress due to multidimensional discrimination and adolescents reported mothers' overcontrol, mothers' conditional regard, and adolescents' attachment to mothers. Across racial/ethnic groups, more multidimensional discrimination distress was associated with more maternal overcontrol. Additionally, racial/ethnic groups differed in associations between discrimination, maternal conditional regard, and adolescent attachment, such that AA mothers were buffered from the deleterious effects of discrimination on conditional regard and adolescent attachment. HL mothers were buffered from effects on adolescent attachment and conditional regard for anger expression, but not fear expression. Findings suggest that stigmatized racial/ethnic groups may rely on adaptive cultural practices to parent effectively in the face of multidimensional discrimination distress, but these resources may not be available to NHW mothers.
Associations between social network characteristics and sexual minority disclosure concern among Black men who have sex with men living with and without HIV
Eschliman EL, Poku OB, Winiker AK, Latkin CA and Tobin KE
In addition to the pervasive anti-Black racism faced by Black people in the United States, Black men who have sex with men (BMSM) face sexual minority stigma and, among BMSM living with HIV, HIV-related stigma. These multilevel social forces shape social networks, which are important sources of resources, support, and behavior regulation. This study quantitatively examined the relationship between social network characteristics and sexual minority stigma (e.g., homophobia, biphobia), assessed by reported concerns around disclosing one's sexual minority status, among BMSM in Baltimore, Maryland in 2014 ( = 336). A majority of participants (63.7%) reported experiencing medium or high levels of sexual minority disclosure concern. In a multiple linear regression model, participants with higher sexual minority disclosure concern reported lower network density and having fewer good friends who are gay or bisexual men. Stratifying the same multiple linear regression model by HIV status supports the importance of an intersectional understanding of sexual minority and HIV-related stigma. These findings can help health-related programs address the complex relationships between sexual minority stigma, social networks, and HIV status within this multiply-marginalized and high-priority population.
A mixed-methods study of relationship stigma and well-being among sexual and gender minority couples
Gamarel K, Farrales W, Venegas L, Dilworth SE, Coffin LS, Neilands TB, Johnson MO and Koester KA
Research has documented associations between relationship stigma, relationship quality and adverse health outcomes among sexual and gender minority couples. However, this work focused primarily on one aspect of an individual's or a couple's identity rather than understanding the intersections of multiple, stigmatized social identities. As part of a larger project focused on testing the efficacy of a couples-based intervention to improve HIV medication adherence, 144 couples completed measures of relationship stigma, relationship quality, mental health, and substance use. A subset of 25 participants completed in-depth interviews to better understand the phenomenon of relationship stigma and its impact on their relationships. Quantitative results demonstrated that greater relationship stigma was associated with reduced relationship satisfaction and commitment, as well as greater closeness discrepancy and depressive symptoms. Qualitative findings provided nuanced insights into forms of relationship stigma that often intersected with other types of stigma and related forces of social and structural violence. Results also demonstrated the differential impact that relationship stigma had on couples and the ways in which individuals make adjustments to cope with or actively combat societal stigma. Findings illustrate the importance of attending to intersecting forms of stigma in addressing the well-being of sexual and gender minority couples.
Intergenerational contact during and beyond COVID-19
Drury L, Abrams D and Swift HJ
Intergenerational contact is crucial for promoting intergenerational harmony and reducing ageism. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted and changed the nature and frequency of intergenerational contact. In addition, research suggests that both ageism towards older adults and intergenerational threat regarding succession and consumption, have increased. Through the lens of the Temporally Integrated Model of Intergroup Contact and Threat (TIMICAT; Abrams & Eller, 2016), we explore the implications of these changing dynamics on ageism towards older adults during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. Our review reveals that research into intergenerational contact needs to articulate both the time course and salience of contact and threats before making predictions about their impacts on prejudice. The implications of understanding how contact and threat combine to affect ageism for policy and practice are discussed in relation to employment, education, and intergenerational contact programs. We highlight that policy makers play a key role in promoting intergenerational harmony through the reduction of narratives that inflame intergenerational tensions and threat.
Intersections of ageism toward older adults and other isms during the COVID-19 pandemic
Ramirez L, Monahan C, Palacios-Espinosa X and Levy SR
The COVID-19 pandemic is a significant global issue that has exacerbated pre-existing structural and social inequalities. There are concerns that ageism toward older adults has intensified in conjunction with elevated forms of other "isms" such as ableism, classism, heterosexism, racism, and sexism. This study offers a systematic review (PRISMA) of ageism toward older adults interacting with other isms during the COVID-19 pandemic. Articles were searched in 10 databases resulting in 354 ageism studies published between 2019 and August 2022 in English, French, Portuguese, or Spanish. Only 32 articles met eligibility criteria (ageism together with other ism(s); focus on the COVID-19 pandemic); which were mostly review papers ( = 25) with few empirical papers ( = 7), reflecting almost all qualitative designs ( = 6). Articles discussed ageism with racism ( = 15), classism ( = 11), ableism ( = 9), sexism ( = 7), and heterosexism ( = 2). Authors represented numerous disciplines (gerontology, medicine, nursing, psychology, social work, and sociology) and countries ( = 14) from several continents. Results from this study underscore that ageism intersects with other isms in profoundly negative ways and that the intersections of ageism and other isms are understudied, requiring more research and intervention efforts.
Exploring the experiences of pregnant women in the U.S. during the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic
Williams CE, Berkowitz D and Rackin HM
In this paper, we integrate the stress process model with symbolic interactionism to frame our analysis of interviews with 35 women who were pregnant and/or gave birth during the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic. We detail three stressors, highlight their variation, and discuss how they coped with these stressors. Women reported having to navigate contradictory information about the public health crisis, but Black participants simultaneously endured added strain from a heightened awareness of racialized violence. To cope with an overabundance of precarious and contradictory messages, some women sought out information (i.e., information gatherers), others eschewed information (i.e., information avoiders), and most established protective "bubbles." Next, women experienced disruptions in pregnancy rituals but coped by reframing their expectations. This stressor, however, was less acute for women with a prior birth. Third, women shared feelings of social isolation and reduced social support, which were intensified if pregnancy complications occurred. Women coped by relying on telecommunication and at-home monitoring devices. Our study shows how pregnant women experienced and coped through adversity to mitigate stressors amid pandemonium.
The impact of COVID-19 and housing insecurity on lower-income Black women
Versey HS and Russell CN
During the COVID-19 pandemic, multiple groups faced increased risks for negative health and mortality. Using an intersectional framework, the current study explores how the global pandemic impacted lower-income women living in the United States through access to housing. Findings indicate several challenges  remaining stably housed during the pandemic. Major themes included: (1) High-Risk Survival Economies, (2) Landlord Stress, Deception, and Exclusion, (3) Landlord Harassment, (4) Low Levels of Formal and Informal Support, (5) Housing as a Health Risk Factor, and (6) Resilience. These themes are explored through four in-depth narrative accounts. Implications for health and policy are discussed. Future research that examines and engages with both direct (e.g., material scarcity) and indirect (e.g., discrimination) pathways that connect housing to health are strongly encouraged.
"Me Cuesta Mucho": Latina immigrant mothers navigating remote learning and caregiving during COVID-19
Bruhn S
Before the pandemic, immigrant mothers from Latin America in the United States typically shouldered the weight of caregiving for children, maintained jobs, and managed transnational care responsibilities. But as COVID-19 erupted across the globe, the combination of gendered roles and a collapsing economy ruptured the already fragile arrangement of childcare and paid labor for Latina immigrant mothers. In this article, I examine how school closures intersected with Latina women's identities and social positions as immigrant mothers who suddenly confronted job loss, illness, and increased familial responsibilities. I show how Latina immigrant women renegotiated relationships to schooling, becoming teachers overnight in an unfamiliar system. Mothers shifted educational aspirations for their children to prioritize safety, as they managed increased stress and conflict while schools remained remote. I demonstrate how the breakdowns in care infrastructure forced mothers to rethink the elusive balance between paid labor and childcare, especially for those who were undocumented. Throughout, I explore how immigrant women's intersecting identities left them vulnerable to structural racism and exclusionary immigration policies. Despite the multiple layers of struggle, women continued to support their children's education and socio-emotional well-being, even in the face of multiple levels of gendered, racialized inequalities.
Ageism toward older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic: Intergenerational conflict and support
Sutter A, Vaswani M, Denice P, Choi KH, Bouchard J and Esses VM
A cross-national representative survey in Canada and the U.S. examined ageism toward older individuals during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, including ageist consumption stereotypes and perceptions of older people's competence and warmth. We also investigated predictors of ageism, including economic and health threat, social dominance orientation, individualism and collectivism, social distancing beliefs, and demographics. In both countries, younger adults were more likely to hold ageist consumption stereotypes, demonstrating intergenerational conflict about the resources being used by older people. Similarly, young adults provided older people with the lowest competence and warmth scores, though adults of all ages rated older individuals as more warm than competent. Particularly among younger individuals, beliefs about group-based dominance hierarchies, the importance of competition, and the costs of social distancing predicted greater endorsement, whereas beliefs about interdependence and the importance of sacrificing for the collective good predicted lower endorsement of ageist consumption stereotypes. Support for group-based inequality predicted lower perceived competence and warmth of older individuals, whereas beliefs about interdependence and the importance of sacrificing for the collective good predicted higher perceived competence and warmth of older individuals. Implications for policies and practices to reduce intergenerational conflict and ageist perceptions of older individuals are discussed.
Do Immigrants' Health Advantages Remain After Unemployment? Variations by Race-Ethnicity and Gender
Zheng H and Yu WH
Immigrants tend to display more favorable health outcomes than native-born co-ethnics. At the same time, they face considerable employment instability. It is unclear whether immigrants' job conditions may compromise their health advantage. Using U.S. National Health Interview Survey data, this study shows that the experience of unemployment reduces immigrants' health advantage, but unemployed foreign-born Blacks, White women, and Asian women still have lower mortality rates than their native-born employed counterparts. Overall, unemployment is less detrimental to immigrants than to natives, and immigrants' "survival advantage after unemployment" persists as their duration of residence extends. We further find substantial heterogeneity in the unemployment effect within immigrants. Asian immigrants display a much sharper gender difference in the mortality consequence of unemployment than other immigrants. Asian men's worse general health and substantially higher smoking rate, especially among the unemployed, lead them to fare much worse than Asian women following unemployment.
Older adults' perceptions and experiences of ageism during the COVID-19 pandemic
McDarby M, Ju CH, Picchiello MC and Carpenter BD
The current study investigates older adults' perceptions of ageism in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using tenets of Stereotype Embodiment Theory and the Behaviors from Intergroup Affect and Stereotypes Map framework, we sought to (a) examine whether older adults experienced ageism as self-relevant during the pandemic and (b) understand whether older adults experienced certain media messages and interpersonal behaviors during the pandemic and interpreted them as being motivated by potentialpaternalistic age stereotypes. Older adults aged 65 and older recruited from the community ( = 73) participated in a semi-structured interview about their perspectives on ageism toward older adults during the pandemic. Participants also completed an online survey about their experiences with a range of messages and interpersonal behaviors throughout the pandemic. We thematically analyzed interview data and identified three primary themes: self-relevance of age stereotypes; awareness of negative, overgeneralized portrayals of older adults; and defenses against self-relevance of age stereotypes. Survey responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics and frequency counts and suggest that participants attributed messages and behaviors potentially imbued with paternalistic ageism as motivated primarily by care and concern for older adults. The findings add to the field's understanding of older adults' experiences and perceptions of ageism in the media and in interpersonal behaviors in the context of COVID-19.
Two sides of the same coin: A mixed methods study of Black mothers' experiences with violence, stressors, parenting, and coping during the COVID-19 pandemic
Hassoun Ayoub L, Partridge T and Gómez JM
Due to systemic and structural inequities, the COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately impacts the Black community, along with ongoing anti-Black racism and violence. Violence against women in the home, particularly Black women, was prevalent during shelter in place, along with the additional family responsibilities of Black mothers. Crenshaw's theory of intersectionality (1991) provides a foundation for examining Black mothers' experiences during shelter-in-place mandates. This mixed-methods study aimed to quantitatively assess violence victimization, acknowledged racial inequities, depression and anxiety, while qualitatively examining Black mothers' experiences in parenting during shelter-in-place orders. Participants ( = 127; M = 32.4 years) were mothers who self-identify as Black or African American living in a Midwestern US city. Results showed that Black mothers who perceived greater COVID-19 inequities in the Black community reported increased parental stress, decreased emotional support, greater exposure to physical or sexual violence, and higher symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression. Qualitative results yielded numerous themes, including the integrative theme of , highlighting both positive parenting experiences and significant stressors for Black mothers. The implications point to the need for intersectional and feminist approaches to interventions and initiatives that support Black women as humans, mothers, souls, and spirits.
Age discrimination, the right to life, and COVID-19 vaccination in countries with limited resources
Lloyd-Sherlock P, Guntupalli A and Sempé L
This paper seeks to develop and apply a simple yardstick based on remaining life expectancy to assess whether specific health policies unfairly discriminate against people on the basis of their age. This reveals that the COVID-19 vaccine prioritization policies of several countries have discriminated against older people. Conversely, the exclusion of older people from COVID-19 vaccine testing is shown to be non-discriminatory, as is some degree of age prioritization for limited acute COVID-19 care. Age discrimination in vaccine prioritization is shown to be embedded in wider ageist attitudes in health policy, which give the lives of older people a lower social value than the lives of people at younger ages.
The impact of COVID-19 on domestic violence agency functioning: A case study
Lipp NS and Johnson NL
Initial evidence suggests that rates of intimate partner violence (IPV) increased at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, much of the prevalence research has focused on survivors' experiences of IPV during the initial lockdown period from March to June 2020. The current study adds to this initial research by centering the experience of a domestic violence agency located in the United States, 3-months prior to, during, and after the COVID-19 lockdown. The results suggest a similar pattern across service utilization (e.g., total clients served, calls, safe house capacity) and survivor demographics (e.g., race/ethnicity, cisgender women and men), with an initial decrease in service utilization from pre-lockdown to lockdown and an increase, surpassing pre-lockdown, post-lockdown. The only deviations from this pattern of service utilization were for sexual minority individuals, whose service utilization continued to decline post-lockdown and Asian American/Pacific Islander and trans/gender-nonbinary survivors who rarely utilized services across the time period. Additionally, the domestic violence agency relied heavily on their existing finances, well-rounded staff training, and staff wellbeing throughout the pandemic. The unique challenges that COVID-19 provided demanded flexibility, increased technological utilization, and additional funding particularly for safe housing. Implications for future research, intervention, and policy change are provided below.
Intergenerational programming during the pandemic: Transformation during (constantly) changing times
Jarrott SE, Leedahl SN, Shovali TE, De Fries C, DelPo A, Estus E, Gangji C, Hasche L, Juris J, MacInnes R, Schilz M, Scrivano RM, Steward A, Taylor C and Walker A
Intergenerational programs have long been employed to reduce ageism and optimize youth and older adult development. Most involve in-person meetings, which COVID-19 arrested. ​​Needs for safety and social contact were amplified during COVID-19, leading to modified programming that engaged generations remotely rather than eliminating it. Our collective case study incorporates four intergenerational programs in five US states prior to and during COVID-19. Each aims to reduce ageism, incorporating nutrition education, technology skills, or photography programming. Authors present case goals, participants, implementation methods, including responses to COVID-19, outcomes, and lessons learned. Technology afforded opportunities for intergenerational connections; non-technological methods also were employed. Across cases, programmatic foci were maintained through adaptive programming. Community partners' awareness of immediate needs facilitated responsive programming with universities, who leveraged unique resources. While new methods and partnerships will continue post-pandemic, authors concurred that virtual contact cannot fully substitute for in-person relationship-building. Remote programming maintained ties between groups ready to resume shared in-person programming as soon as possible; they now have tested means for responding to routine or novel cancellations of in-person programming. Able to implement in-person and remote intergenerational programming, communities can fight ageism and pursue diverse goals regardless of health, transportation, weather, or other restrictions.
Reducing ageism toward older adults and highlighting older adults as contributors during the COVID-19 pandemic
Lytle A and Levy SR
The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated ageism (stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination) toward older adults in the United States, highlighting the belief that older adults are a burden. Prior to the pandemic, a growing body of research sought to reduce ageism using the PEACE (Positive Education about Aging and Contact Experiences) model. Extending that research, participants were randomly assigned to watch three videos (less than 10 min total) that challenged stereotypes about aging and older adults, depicted positive intergenerational contact, and highlighted older adults as contributors to society (experimental condition) or three videos on wallpaper (control condition). Experimental participants (undergraduate students in Study 1 and a national community sample of young adults in Study 2) reported increased endorsement of older adults as contributors to society and positive stereotypes of older adults. In addition, in Study 2, negative stereotypes of older adults and views of intergenerational conflict were also reduced among experimental (vs. control) participants. These promising findings show that relatively brief ageism reduction interventions are effective during the pandemic and for the first time, that the perception of older adults as contributors to society can be increased. Future directions and implications for social policies are discussed.
Is Protecting Older Adults from COVID-19 Ageism? A Comparative Cross-cultural Constructive Grounded Theory from the United Kingdom and Colombia
Derrer-Merk E, Reyes-Rodriguez MF, Salazar AM, Guevara M, Rodríguez G, Fonseca AM, Camacho N, Ferson S, Mannis A, Bentall RP and Bennett KM
The COVID-19 pandemic impacted people's lives all over the world, requiring health and safety measures intended to stop the virus from spreading. This study explores whether an unintended consequence of these measures is a new form of ageism. We explore, using qualitative methods, the experiences of older adults living through the pandemic in the United Kingdom and Colombia. Although there were some small differences between countries, for the most part, the experiences were similar. We found that older adults reported that they were seen as a homogenous group and experienced both benevolent and hostile ageism and a loss of autonomy as a consequence of COVID-19 protection measures. Participants from both countries expressed anger and frustration, and increased anxiety, and felt that their individuality was ignored. We recommend that policy-makers, the media, and wider society consider the impact of such health and safety measures on older adults in preparing for future pandemics and health challenges.
Perceptions of societal ageism and declines in subjective memory during the COVID-19 pandemic: Longitudinal evidence from US adults aged ≥55 years
Cohn-Schwartz E, Finlay JM and Kobayashi LC
The cognitive health of older adults since the COVID-19 pandemic onset is unclear, as is the potential impact of pandemic-associated societal ageism on perceived cognition. We investigated associations between perceptions of societal ageism and changes in subjective memory over a 10-month period during the COVID-19 pandemic. We collected longitudinal data from monthly online questionnaires in the nationwide COVID-19 Coping Study of US adults aged ≥55 from April 2020 to January 2021 (N = 4444). We analyzed the data using multivariable longitudinal multilevel models. We identified an overall decline in subjective memory, especially in the initial months of the pandemic. Adults who perceived that societal respect for older adults decreased during the pandemic experienced more rapid declines in their subjective memory. These findings suggest that aging adults perceived a decline in their memory, especially during the initial months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Societal interventions to combat ageism may help improve subjective memory and could decrease risk for cognitive decline among middle-aged and older adults.
"You are stealing our present": Younger people's ageism towards older people predicts attitude towards age-based COVID-19 restriction measures
Spaccatini F, Giovannelli I and Pacilli MG
The COVID-19 pandemic emerged to be a fertile ground for age-based prejudice and discrimination. In particular, a growing literature investigated ageism towards older people at the individual and the interpersonal level, providing evidence of its prevalence, antecedents and negative consequences. However, less much is known on the phenomenon at the intergroup level. To fill this gap, the present correlational research investigated the effects of younger people's endorsement of ageism towards older people on the attitude towards COVID-19 restriction measures primarily targeted to older (vs. younger) population. In the autumn of 2020, five hundred and eighty-two Italian participants (83.3% females; = 20.02, = 2.83) completed an online questionnaire. Results revealed that the younger people's endorsement of ageism towards older people increased the attribution of culpability for the severity of COVID-19 restriction measures to older (vs. younger) people, which, in turn positively affected the attitudes towards older (vs. younger) people isolation and support for selective lockdown on older population only. The main contributions of the study, limitations, future research directions, and practice implications are discussed.
Eradicating ageism through social campaigns: An Israeli case study in the shadows of the COVID-19 pandemic
Okun S and Ayalon L
This study examined three social campaigns for the eradication of ageism that were undertaken in Israel during the COVID-19 pandemic (April, 2020-May, 2021). The documentation and analysis of the campaigns were undertaken via the lens of the Theory of Change and Five Key Principles for social campaigns: planning strategically, communicating effectively, fostering community engagement, implementing key activities, and using research. We conducted desk reviews and qualitative interviews with the campaigns' organizers. The Theory of Change implemented by the campaigns targeted self-ageism among independent older people and/or employers of older adults. All campaigns emphasized "active aging" and "successful aging," to decrease (self)-ageism. The focus on one dimension of active and positive aging may result in ageism and exclusion of older people who do not fit into the category of independent and active people. The complex timing of the campaigns had influenced the degree of implementation of the five key principles. The joining of forces of different organizations and the employment of more diverse representations of old age, may facilitate the achievement of campaign goals. Finally, an empirical evaluation of social campaigns' efforts is still necessary to gather evidence about the effectiveness of social campaigns.
Ageism on Twitter during the COVID-19 pandemic
Ng R, Indran N and Liu L
The COVID-19 crisis has sparked a resurgence of scholarly interest in the issue of ageism. Whether the outbreak thwarts or facilitates efforts to combat ageism hinges upon public sentiments toward the older demographic. This study aims to explore discourse surrounding older adults by analyzing 183,179 related tweets posted during the COVID-19 pandemic from February to December 2020. Overall, sentiments toward older adults became significantly less negative over time, being the least negative in April, August, and October, though the score remained below the neutral value throughout the 11 months. Our topic modelling analysis generated four themes: "The Need to Protect Older Adults" (41%), "Vulnerability and Mortality" (36%), "Failure of Political Leadership" (12%), and "Resilience" (11%). These findings indicate nascent support for older adults, though attempts to show solidarity may well worsen benevolent ageism.
Caste and COVID-19: Psychosocial disparities amongst rural Indian women during the coronavirus pandemic
Jiwani Z, Raval VV, Steele M and Goldberg SB
The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated preexisting mental health disparities. In India, marginalization based on caste membership, gender, and rural residence are critical determinants of inequity across the lifespan. Guided by the theoretical frameworks of minority stress and intersectionality, this study examined caste-based disparities in fear of coronavirus (FOC), mental health symptoms, and perceived loneliness amongst rural women in north India during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants ( = 316) completed self-report measures and were classified into three groups based on their responses: General caste (GC, = 124), other backward castes (OBC, = 122), and scheduled caste or tribe (SC/ST, = 71). Using a three-way ANOVA and Tukey -tests, women in SC/ST and OBC groups reported greater FOC (OBC = .37; SC/ST = .40) and greater mental health symptoms (OBC = .58; SC/ST = .43) relative to the GC group. OBC, but not SC/ST, group also reported higher perceived loneliness ( = .32). The results were consistent after adjusting for demographic variables such as wealth and highlight caste as an important social determinant for well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic amongst rural Indian women.
Women, work, and families during the COVID-19 pandemic: Examining the effects of COVID policies and looking to the future
Hayes AR and Lee D
The far-reaching, negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have impacted healthcare, economic, public safety, and social systems globally. The public safety measures put in place in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic, including sheltering in places orders and shutdowns of schools and places of work, negatively impacted the employment status and increased time spent in domestic work and childcare for women. In this paper, we review and analyze the impacts, both direct and indirect, of COVID-related policies on the lives of women. Specifically, we outline how the progression of policies aimed at addressing both public safety and economic recovery during the COVID-19 pandemic affected women's health, paid and unpaid work, and wellbeing. We will focus on the impacts of policies implemented in the United States in comparison to policies that were implemented globally to address similar issues during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Finally, we conclude with recommendations for policies that could prevent similar disparate impacts on women in future crises.
Work from home and parenting: Examining the role of work-family conflict and gender during the COVID-19 pandemic
Bernhardt J, Recksiedler C and Linberg A
Many employers introduced or expanded working from home (WFH) in response to increasing infection rates after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Whether WFH enhances or depletes parents' resources for their children is still an open question. Drawing on contextual models of parenting and demands-resources approaches, we examine how WFH during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic was linked to changes in responsive and harsh parenting, particularly in light of pandemic-related increases in work-to-family conflicts (WFC). We further investigate gender differences in these associations. Our analyses draw on a sample of working parents from a large-scale German family survey conducted in 2019 and a COVID-19 follow-up from 2020. Results from first difference regression models in combination with Heckman's sample selection method revealed strongly gendered patterns of changes in parenting. Specifically, responsive parenting decreased and harsh parenting increased only among mothers who did not work from home. In addition, WFH buffered increased spillovers from WFC on declines in responsive parenting among mothers. In contrast, fathers' parenting remained largely unaffected by pandemic-related changes in their work situation. We conclude that WFH can be a resource gain because it seems to have relieved some pandemic-related parenting strain for mothers. Yet as a consequence, it may have reinforced gendered patterns of childcare. We discuss implications for policymakers and support services for families. We also place a special emphasis on those who are not able to work from home because this seems to have increased the risk that high work demands impaired their parenting during the early stages of the pandemic.
Parental mental health and child anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic in Latin America
Ben Brik A, Williams N, Esteinou R, Acero IDM, Mesurado B, Debeliuh P, Storopoli JE, Orellana ON and James SL
This study examined parents' ( = 10,141, 64% women) reports of their and their childrens' depression, anxiety, and stress in Brazil, Mexico, Colombia and Argentina. The data come from the COVID-19 Family Life Study (Ben Brik, 2020) and cohort recruited between April and December 2020. Participants completed online surveys that included the DASS-21 and the Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale. Our findings indicate that socio-economically disadvantaged families fared worse in mental health during the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic compared with families with more social and economic resources. Mothers reported higher anxiety, depression, and stress compared with fathers. Parents of adolescents and adolescents fared worse than did families with younger children. Parental physical activity was associated with better parent and child mental health of anxiety symptoms. We discuss the need to address the adverse impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health in families in Latin America via coordinated mental health and psychosocial support services that are integrated into the pandemic response currently and after the pandemic subsides.
When family interrupted work: The implications of gendered role perception in the face of COVID-19
Lee SS, Chao MM and He H
During the COVID-19 pandemic, many individuals are confronted with the work-from-home challenge, which often results in work-family interference. Although prior to COVID-19, the influence of traditional gender role expectations was shown to be reduced over time, it is unclear whether and how such traditional worldview might influence judgments towards men and women when family interrupted work under the threat of COVID-19. This study presented and tested competing predictions derived from the gender role theory. An experimental study with 971 adults showed that during (vs. before) COVID-19 pandemic, men were evaluated more negatively when they experienced family interruption to work compared with women. The negative evaluation further led to more punitive reactions and less support at work. The results suggested that gender role expectations reinforced the traditional status quo by punishing status-quo-breakers under the threat of COVID-19.