Aging in Times of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Avoiding Ageism and Fostering Intergenerational Solidarity

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Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences
cite as: J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci, 2020, Vol. XX, No. XX, 1–4
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Editorial
Aging in Times of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Avoiding
Ageism and Fostering Intergenerational Solidarity
Liat Ayalon, PhD,1, Alison Chasteen, PhD,2, Manfred Diehl, PhD,3, Becca R. Levy, PhD,4
ShevaunD. Neupert, PhD,5, Klaus Rothermund, PhD,6 Clemens Tesch-Römer, PhD,7
and Hans-Werner Wahl, PhD8,*
1School of Social Work, Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel. 2Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Ontario,
Canada. 3Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Colorado State University, Fort Collins. 4Social and
Behavioral Sciences Department, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, Connecticut. 5Department of Psychology,
North Carolina State University, Raleigh. 6Department of Psychology, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena, Germany. 7German
Centre of Gerontology, Berlin, Germany. 8Network of Aging Research, Heidelberg University, Germany.
Authors are listed in alphabetical order but contributed equally to this work.
*Address correspondence to: Hans-Werner Wahl, PhD, Network Aging Research, Heidelberg University, Bergheimer Strasse 20, 69115
Heidelberg, Gemany. E-mail: wahl@nar.uni-heidelberg.de
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed many aspects of the
world, including how older persons are treated. We believe
that research evidence from the behavioral sciences of aging
can help address the pandemic in ways that can benet the
health and well-being of individuals across the lifespan.
We think that there are three primary ways that evidence
from behavioral sciences can make a difference. First, with
the pandemic there has been a parallel outbreak of ageism.
What we are seeing in public discourse is an increasing por-
trayal of those over the age of 70 as being all alike with
regard to being helpless, frail, and unable to contribute to
society. These views are being spread by social media, the
press, and public announcements by government ofcials
throughout the world (see Table 1 for examples). This is
problematic for a number of reasons. Behavioral scientists
know that older adults are an extremely heterogeneous
group (Fingerman & Trevino, 2020). They differ in life ex-
periences, cultural backgrounds, genetics, and health his-
tories. Further, the process of aging itself is highly diverse
and context-dependent; this is a fundamental insight of
biological, behavioral, and social aging research (Kornadt
& Rothermund, 2015; Wahl & Gerstorf, 2018). In addi-
tion, innumerable older persons defy the image of being
frail and helpless, with countless older adults making val-
uable contributions to society (Corporation for National
and Community Service, 2016; Diehl, Smyer, & Mehrotra,
in press).
We know from stereotype embodiment theory that
negative age stereotypes can be internalized by people
of all ages and when these views become self-relevant,
inuencing older persons’ beliefs about their own aging,
they can detrimentally impact health (Levy, 2009). Indeed,
extensive experimental, longitudinal, and cross-cultural re-
search has shown that negative age beliefs adversely affect
a wide array of health outcomes (e.g., Chasteen, Pichora-
Fuller, Dupuis, Smith, & Singh, 2015; Levy, Slade, Kunkel,
& Kasl, 2002; Levy et al., 2016; Siebert, Braun, & Wahl,
2020) as well as emotional responses to stress (Bellingtier
& Neupert, 2018) of older persons. In addition, ageism,
which includes negative age stereotypes, can have detri-
mental effects at the societal level. For example, in terms of
the health care costs, ageism can have substantial economic
costs for countries, which could compound the economic
strains of the pandemic (Levy, Slade, Chang, Kannoth, &
Wang, 2020).
The second way that evidence from the behavioral
sciences of aging can contribute to the response to the
pandemic is by highlighting the value of strengthening
solidarity between the generations. The distinction be-
tween young and old, as well as language about “walling
off the old” that is stressed in current public discourse
reinforce our already age-divided societies (Hagestad
& Uhlenberg, 2005). As older adults are portrayed
as susceptible to the negative effects of the COVID-19
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outbreak, younger people tend to view themselves as im-
mune to the virus and, thus, engage in risk behaviors with
consequences that ultimately will need to be addressed by
an already stressed health care system. The growing divi-
sion between young and old also allows younger people
to direct their anger and resentment about the situation
towards older adults, who are clearly portrayed as the
out group. In the future, this age division and negative
portrayal of older adults and aging may affect younger
people’s aging process as they too internalize negative
messages about old age and aging in the context of the
current pandemic (Levy, 2009). As behavioral scientists,
it is our responsibility to stay alert to these dynamics and
to educate the public about their dangers. Rather than
pitting generations against each other, we should facili-
tate intergenerational exchange and solidarity.
We can draw on the considerable body of research that
shows that even with physical distancing, there are nu-
merous ways to strengthen social contacts between mem-
bers of different generations. These ways include, but are
not limited to, the use of online services like Zoom or
FaceTime, phone calls, letters and engaging in common ac-
tivities such as reading the same book or watching the same
show and then discussing it. Physical distancing does not
need to bring about emotional distancing. As soon as inter-
generational contact becomes individualized (e.g., within
families, personal contacts to older neighbors) rather than
taking place in public discourse, negative effects of social
Table 1. Illustrations of Older Adults’ Portrayal as Helpless, Frail, and Unable to Contribute to Society in Various
MediaReports
Source URL Main message Country in focus
Ottawa Citizen https://ottawacitizen.com/opinion/
columnists/harden-during-covid-19-ask-
seniors-to-stay-home-but-dont-abandon-
them/
Harden: During COVID-19, ask seniors
to stay home—but don’t abandon them
Canada
UUTISET https://yle./uutiset/osasto/news/
nland_urges_over_70s_to_stay_
indoors/11265277
Finland urges over 70 to stay indoor Finland
Google https://verfassungsblog.de/
grenzen-der-solidaritaet/
Professor in law science says: Every life
has equal value, but that civil society
should invest the same energy (…) to
provide additional months or years
to a 95-year old (…) is much of an
imposition for common sense.
Germany
India Today https://www.msn.com/en-in/health/
familyhealth/coronavirus-in-india-how-
to-protect-elderly-people-from-covid-19/
ar-BB11rLrg
Coronavirus in India: How to protect
elderly people from Covid-19
India
Calcalist (in Hebrew) https://www.calcalist.co.il/internet/
articles/0,7340,L-3800532,00.html
Social isolation and protection of older
adults in Israel
Israel
Haaretz https://www.haaretz.com/us-news/.
premium-in-u-s-coronavirus-crisis-will-
trump-save-the-elderly-or-condemn-them-
to-death-1.8687478
In Italy’s Coronavirus Crisis, the Elderly
Are Left to Die. Will Trump Let America
Follow?
Italy
CNA International
Edition
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/
singapore/covid-19-loneliness-isolation-
among-elderly-safe-distancing-12611158
COVID-19: Ensuring the elderly don’t
become isolated during the outbreak
Singapore
Euronews https://www.euronews.com/2020/03/11/
spain-warns-elderly-to-keep-away-from-
grandchildren-as-covid-19-cases-soar
Spain warns elderly to keep away from
grandchildren as COVID-19 cases soar
Spain/ United States
BBC News https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-51895873 Coronavirus: isolation for over 70
within weeks
United Kingdom
USA Today https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/
nation/2020/03/24/covid-19-texas-
ofcial-suggests-elderly-willing-die-
economy/2905990001/
Texas’ lieutenant governor suggests
grandparents are willing to die for US
economy
United States
Metro https://metro.co.uk/2020/03/25/dj-says-
elderly-people-sacrice-coronavirus-save-
economy-12454758/
DJ says elderly people should sacrice
themselves to coronavirus to save the
economy
United States
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categorization, stigmatization, prejudice, and stereotyping
are strongly reduced and replaced by norms of solidarity
and relatedness (e.g., Bengtson & Putney, 2006). Fostering
this form of personal contact between old and young is an
important means to overcome intergenerational tensions
and ageism resulting fromit.
The third way that evidence from the behavioral sciences
of aging can contribute to a more balanced discourse about
the COVID-19 pandemic is through enriching discussions
about the signicant ethical questions that have been raised
by this outbreak. There is no doubt that this pandemic will
strain and even overburden the health systems in many
countries. Situations have already arisen where resources
were not sufcient for all individuals in need. Hence, dif-
cult decisions have had to be made: Who should be treated
rst (or at all)? Ethics-based rules for triage situations have
to be developed in order to avoid ad hoc decisions of the
health professionals on the frontline who are under enor-
mous pressure to help everybody in need. Making triage
decisions means, in the extreme, to help one person live
and let another person die. We fear chronological age will
become an accepted criterion in the very near future for
such decisions—which would be the most blatant expres-
sion ofageism.
Conclusions and Recommendations
Despite recent efforts to combat ageism (Ofcer & de la
Fuente-Núñez, 2018)and to foster intergenerational soli-
darity, we see currently a worldwide and full-blown emer-
gence of ageism and intergenerational division. At times of
scarce resources, intergroup conicts are likely to emerge
(Stephan & Stephan, 2017). Because behavioral scientists
know about the risks inherent in such intergroup conicts,
the current emergency situation is exactly the time when
we need social and intergenerational solidarity the most
(Durant, 2011). In the following, we offer a few recom-
mendations that may be helpful in navigating the current
pandemic.
Arguing Against AgeCutoffs
One major step to tackle the current pandemic of ageism
and intergenerational divide is to avoid the use of ar-
bitrary age cutoffs. It is indeed far from clear at present
how the association between older age and symptom se-
verity and mortality from the COVID-19 can be explained
(https://www.statnews.com/2020/03/30/what-explains-
coronavirus-lethality-for-elderly/; download on April 8,
2020). Chronological age should not be a sole criterion for
determining risk or access to medical care (Swiss Academy
of Medical Sciences, 2020). Instead, we should acknowl-
edge and stress the complex intersectionalities that may
put some people at a greater risk for the direct and indi-
rect negative consequences of COVID-19. Although older
adults might be more susceptible to COVID-19 in general,
we also have to acknowledge the multiple negative effects
that COVID-19 has on younger people. In fact, recent re-
search suggests that younger adults are at greater risk of
psychological distress and loneliness during COVID-19
lockdowns than older adults. Further, those with more neg-
ative aging attitudes were also more likely to report higher
distress and loneliness during the lockdown (Losada-Baltar
etal., 2020).
Stressing RiskFactors
We know that it is not only chronological age, but also
the presence of chronic illness and comorbidities that make
individuals more vulnerable to COVID-19. We also know
that during emergency situations, older adults with cog-
nitive or physical impairments face even greater risks for
having their autonomy compromised and their human
rights violated (United Nations Human Rights Ofce of the
High Commissioner, 2020). We urge specic attention and
protection for those who are most likely to be classied as
vulnerable or at-risk.
Pointing Out Consequences of Physical Distancing
Given the promotion of physical distancing practices
and the increasing reliance on digital technology to
manage daily functioning, limited access to technology
or limited ability to use technology might become major
risk factors for depression and loneliness. These fac-
tors may be especially risky for some older adults by
preventing them from accessing goods and services and
obtaining the social support they may need during the
outbreak. Thus, taking into account the “digital divide”
that may exist for disadvantaged older adults also de-
serves attention.
Influencing Public Discourse
As behavioral scientists, we should use research evidence to
inform the current public discourse and make it more effec-
tive and useful for older adults and society at large. An im-
portant means to avoid confrontational discourse is to refrain
from broad age-based categorizations, resulting in sweeping
generalizations and a lack of differentiation. Ageism and cate-
gorization can be overcome by stressing that we are all in this
together rather than emphasizing age as the critical variable,
by individualizing communication and interaction, by drawing
on personalized rather than generalized messages, and by
invoking references to individual people. There is enough re-
search evidence to guide current efforts to identify at-risk indi-
viduals in a more rened and effective way, aside from looking
only at chronologicalage.
In conclusion, in this editorial, we have been concerned
with the effects of the COVID-19 public discourse on the
lives of older adults, and the solidarity between genera-
tions. We believe that behavioral scientists have a respon-
sibility to participate in the current public discourse to
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correct misperceptions, over-generalizations, and ethically
questionable suggestions.
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