GERO 200 Lecture Notes - Lecture 27: Affordable Housing, Ageism, Osteoporosis
Document Summary
With every passing year, the ethnic aged become a larger proportion of aging america. By 2030, minorities with constitute 25% of the elderly population. According to epidemiologists, race, location, and income help predict longevity. Number of non-white elders is growing at a faster rate than number of white elders. Percentage of non-whites within older population will double by 2050. Diversity has become an important issue in aging programs and services. Groups that experience discrimination due to physical or cultural characteristics. Cumulative disadvantage: unequal treatment throughout the life course. Involves a culture and an internalized heritage. Influences the composition and function of support systems. Differences exist between ethnic groups, but also much variation within groups. Are identified by language, physical characteristics, or cultural characteristics. Have experienced unequal treatment based on those characteristics in certain segments of society. Older adults are not a homogenous group. Until recently, study of aging focused on older white americans. Elders identified by physical and cultural characteristics.
