Elderly Social Issues

Discrimination and stigmas are also social problems related to ageism. Many view the elderly in a negative light. Most assume the elderly are incapable, senile beings, when in reality, this isn’t true. There are different stages of elderly, the “young-old” and the “old-old”. The young-old are considered those between the ages of 65 and 75. These individuals are still active and healthy individuals who are capable of many things. The “old-old” are those who are about the age of 75, frail, and need assistance (Jug 2018). The labeling and stigmas surrounding the elderly force these individuals into retirement. In many cases, they are coerced through benefit packages. This is certainly a problem because it adds to the issue of labor shortage,

However, the most sustainable are ones that will remove stigmas and help to integrate the elderly into society. Many have different theories as to what type of solutions should occur. One theory is the disengagement theory, which pushes for “older people to disengage from their previous roles and to take on roles more appropriate to their physical and mental decline” (Saylor). This theory takes on a very functionalist perspective. The next theory that is suggested is the Active theory. This approach pushes for older people to remain active and as a result, they will benefit themselves and their society. Finally, there is the Conflict theory. This is where older people are “devalued” and are considered no longer useful to society

However, sustainable change begins by bringing together the private, public, and the civil society. In the private sector, there should be laws the prohibit companies from coercing old people into retirement. Moreover, there has been discussions about increasing the retirement age. While this would save the government money, I do not believe this is a fair decision. According to Boccia from the Heritage Foundation, life expectancy is disparate, for instance, the rich live longer than the poor (2015). If they did increase the retirement age, it should be correlated with life expectancy. Moreover they government could dedicate more resources to improving the health care industry. If health care was more accessible and more geared towards the elderly, then it would increase their mobility, thus allowing them to remain active members of society. In turn, this would allow the government to gain more income tax and it could reduce the dependency ratio. Furthermore, in Japan, they have formulated “long-term care insurance”, which is supposed to help families with the cost of elderly care. Finally, the government should provide courses that help remove the stigma that surrounds ageing. Today’s society has become obsessed with the young. If the government promoted the elderly, then more organizations would strive to accommodate the