Age Flashcards
Why are older women more likely to enter poverty?
Whilst they on average live longer, they receive less earning linked to private pension funds due to spending less time in the labour market
What did the department for work and pensions statistics in 2018 find?
60% of eligible poorer people of pension age claim pension credit which they are entitled to due to unawareness or embarrassment
What did Gratton (2018) find?
Many employers see women above 40 and men above 45 who are no longer considered for promotions or training
What the government’s women and equalities committee find in 2018?
1 million people over 50 had been pushed out of the workplace
What did Lain (2012) find?
Employees working aged 65-69 who had been recruited since 2000 were disproportionately in low paid, part time and requiring few qualifications
What did the CV-library website (2018) find?
Over half of under 18 year olds are not taken seriously at work and 3/4 of 25-34 year olds feel they have been discriminated for being too young
What is minimum wage?
In 2025, 18-20 year old’s minimum wage is £10 and for under 18 year olds, £7.55
What was youth unemployment rate in 2019?
12.2% which is 3 times higher than overall unemployment rate is 3.8%
What did the ONS (2022) find out about individual wealth?
It increases with age peaking at 60-64 as it is nine times higher than the 30-34 age gap with many business tycoons like Rupert Murdoch being over the official retirement age
How many children in the UK live in poverty?
3.5 million
What are its impacts according to end child poverty charity?
Lower birth weight, chronic illness in later life, access to extra curricular activities, educational attainment and risk of homelessness
What did age UK estimate?
16% of pensioners are at risk of poverty with 2 million people anxious about bills and try to reduce them by turning off the heating, go to bed earlier and stay in one room
How age in paper 1 link to this?
Hockney and James and Ray (2006)
What were the NHS accused of?
Institutional ageism by offering lower expectations about their health due to assumptions
What did the health survey for England in 2005 find?
Over half of old people found that half of them descried themselves in good health
How can age be intersectional in terms of health?
- Older women were more likely to have chronic illness but their sense of social capital would be limited as they only previously gained it through work
- Men were more likely to suffer from heart disease and women mobility issues
- Those in a wealthier income bracket were les likely to have anaemia and victim D deficiency due to more fruit and veg in their diet
What did Williams (1990) find?
Old people often expect mental and physical struggled in life so they fail to mention them to doctors when effective treatments exist
What do Marxists believe about young people?
They are an asset to the bourgeoise due to being part of the reserve army of labour for low wages and new skills to the workforce. They do have a sense of rebellion due to a lack of power summarised by Clarke and Hebidge, hall and Jefferson and Bonger
What does Marxist Philipson (1982) argue?
Capitalism’s aim of exploiting workers and consumers neglect old people’s needs as they are a drain to the economy. They are less prepared t take on extra duties for more money. Due to their experiences, older workers are more likely to cost more decreasing their value making age a social construction. They blame this on 1980s retirement policies seeing workers over 50 as redundant and unemployment restricting their opportunities to gain training. Mangers see early retirement policies as an easy solution for personal management
What did Feminist Itzin (199) argue?
Patriarchal societies value women based on reproduction and beauty standards and once menopause set in, it leads to marginalisation and increasing pressures to fight aging
What did Feminist Wolf (1990) argue
Images of beauty are used to oppress and control women. Whilst this can be applied to young women through peers (Lees 1997) it also pressurises old people to maintain their youthful appearance
What did Oakley (2004) find?
The similarities between society’s perception of childhood and women. Both are minority groups who aren’t automatically given full rights often due to a sense of weakness and need of protection. Oakley also believed by comparing them, it conveys a picture of mutual dependence, interdependence and mutual repression as children contribute to women’s oppression and mothers socially controlling children
What functionalist theories link?
Eisenstadt (1956) and Parsons (1962)
How does Parsons recognise the economic roles associated with adulthood?
They are no longer preferred for those in older age groups as they are less physically able to maintain their roles in society thus leading them to lose their status and importance
What did functionalists Cummings and Henry (1961) find?
They coined the terms the disengagement theory to suggest that it is functional that older people will withdraw from the workplace as their competence declines. Men may experience this shift more acutely since they are traditionally more defined in the workplace where as women’s key family-based role will just evolve but nonetheless, they become more distanced from evolved social norms making way for young people
What did Weberian Parkin (1968) argue?
They coined the concept of negatively privileged status groups can apply to older people who are excluded via social closure
What did Weberian Turner (1989) argue?
The status of older people is linked to the values of society. In western societies which value material wealth, both old and young people lack status because they don’t control resources and have low earning potential. However, in societies which value experience, old age may bring status and a source of power
What did Weberian Townsend (1981) argue?
Age intersects with social class as those with little money in their working lives to contribute to a pension, they have to rely on the state pension. It is adequate and doe not reward the full contribution by hard working people throughout their lives so old age is dependent on market position
How does Murray link to age?
- Children who are born into dependency will fall into a poverty cycle by becoming teenage mothers as a replacement for single parenthood and teenage fathers would feel limited responsibility
- Older people can be seen as an economic burden on the state as it questions whether the state has a responsibility to save for retirement. In 1980, Margaret Thatcher’s government which was influenced by the new right abolished the link between state pension and earning that led to a progressing devaluing of the state pension
