Date of Award

Spring 5-18-2019

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

MAE - Master of Arts in Expressive Therapies

Department

Expressive Therapies

Advisor

Elizabeth Kellogg

Abstract

Ageism is not always explicit. Like racism, sexism, or any other form of prejudice and discrimination, ageism can also take on a subtle, quiet tone that results in making a human being feel inferior. This paper discusses ageism as directed toward the older population and offers expressive arts therapies solutions that bring social awareness to the topic of ageism to people of all ages, as well as empower those who have experienced its effects. It also talks about self-directed ageism and how expressive arts therapies can prevent or repair certain perspectives of self and others to reduce undesired feelings such as loneliness. Reverse ageism does exist, though it’s not as widespread of an issue as traditional negative ageism. While this paper will give mention to reverse ageism, the focus is ageism as it’s received by the older population. This paper also examines the topic of ageism in general, how ageist behavior affects people both physically and mentally, and how social activism using expressive therapies within our communities can help change perspectives on aging. Ageism isn’t just about people acting negatively towards older people, it exists across the lifespan and is a perception that a person might be too old or too young to do something (Officer & de la Fuente-Núñez, 2018).

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Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

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