Abstract
Modernization theory has often been used to explain country differences in levels of ageism. The commentary at hand questions its usefulness in the analysis of ageism today for two reasons. First, modernization theory was developed to discuss social status of older people, not ageism. Second, social policies and management practices that emerged with industrialization are being rolled back over the last decades. We therefore argue for the reconsideration of the relationship between modernization and ageism and to re-assess it in order to better explain country differences in ageism in the 21st century.
Highlights
Modernization theory is one of the main theories explaining ageism at the macro-level
The border between the work and retirement phases of the life course fades, rolling back age segregation and improving intergenerational contact carrying the potential to reduce ageism. This argument is supported by the finding that a high labor market participation of older people is correlated with a high social status of older people (Vauclair et al, 2014)
There are a number of reasons to argue that the modernization hypothesis of ageism may not be congruent with recent socio-economic developments
Summary
Modernization theory is one of the main theories explaining ageism at the macro-level. The status of older individuals would decrease as societies go through periods of social change, they argue; as mobility and urbanization increase; as agriculture becomes less important as an economic activity decreasing the status connected to owning land acquired throughout life; as the extended family gives way to the nuclear family as the bedrock of society; and as ceremonialism decreases and literacy increases, challenging the status of older people as the bearers of wisdom and knowledge on how things should be done. They contend that with the introduction of retirement, the welfare state took away the productive and reproductive roles of older people in society making them essentially obsolete and reducing their social status, in Western society where individuals’ status would mainly be dependent on their productive capacity
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