Back to Search

"Old oxen cannot plow": Stereotype themes of older adults in Turkish folklore

Title	"Old oxen cannot plow": Stereotype themes of older adults in Turkish folklore
Author	Marcus, Justin, Sabuncu, Neslihan
Publication Date:	2015
Publication Place	- Oxford Publishing
Subject	Ageism, Age stereotypes, Causes of ageism, Turkey, Folklore, Grounded Theory
Type	Periodical
Language	English
Digital	Yes
Manuscript	No
Library:	Özyeğin University
Library Asset ID	1758-5341
Record ID	92eeaf9d-ac96-48f3-9fda-42b2c97d1a1c
Library Location	Undergraduate English Program, Psychology
Date	2015
Notes	Due to copyright restrictions, the access to the full text of this article is only available via subscription.
Sample Text	Purpose of the Study: Although much research has established the nature of attitudes and stereotypes toward older adults, there are conflicting explanations for the root cause of ageism, including the sociocultural view and interpersonal views, that age bias against older adults is uniquely a product of modernity and occurs through social interactions, and the evolutionary view and intraindividual views, that age bias against older adults is rooted in our naturally occurring and individually held fear of death. We make initial investigations into resolving this conflict, by analyzing literature from a society predating the Industrial Revolution, the society of Ottoman Turks. Design and Methods: Using Grounded Theory, we analyzed 1,555 Turkish fairy tales of the most well-known older adult in Turkish folklore, Nasreddin Hoca, for stereotype themes of older adults. Using the same method, we then analyzed 22,000+ Turkish say-ings and proverbs for the same themes. Results: Results indicated older adults to be viewed both positively and negatively. Positive stereotypes included wisdom, warmth, deserving of respect, and retirement. Negative stereotypes included incompetence, inadaptability, and frailty/nearing of death. Older females were viewed more negatively relative to older males. Implications: Results indicated views of older adults to parallel those found in contem-porary research. Results have implications for the design of interventions to reduce age-ism and on the cross-cultural generalizability of age-based stereotypes.
DOI	10.1093/geront/gnv108

View in source Özyeğin University Özyeğin University - Historical works, archives, and periodicals search engine

Özyeğin University

"Old oxen cannot plow": Stereotype themes of older adults in Turkish folklore

Author Marcus, Justin, Sabuncu, Neslihan

Publication Date 2015

Publication Place - Oxford Publishing

Subject Ageism, Age stereotypes, Causes of ageism, Turkey, Folklore, Grounded Theory

Type Periodical

Language English

Digital Yes

Manuscript No

Library Özyeğin University

Library Asset ID 1758-5341

Record ID 92eeaf9d-ac96-48f3-9fda-42b2c97d1a1c

Library Location Undergraduate English Program, Psychology

Date 2015

Notes Due to copyright restrictions, the access to the full text of this article is only available via subscription.

Sample Text Purpose of the Study: Although much research has established the nature of attitudes and stereotypes toward older adults, there are conflicting explanations for the root cause of ageism, including the sociocultural view and interpersonal views, that age bias against older adults is uniquely a product of modernity and occurs through social interactions, and the evolutionary view and intraindividual views, that age bias against older adults is rooted in our naturally occurring and individually held fear of death. We make initial investigations into resolving this conflict, by analyzing literature from a society predating the Industrial Revolution, the society of Ottoman Turks. Design and Methods: Using Grounded Theory, we analyzed 1,555 Turkish fairy tales of the most well-known older adult in Turkish folklore, Nasreddin Hoca, for stereotype themes of older adults. Using the same method, we then analyzed 22,000+ Turkish say-ings and proverbs for the same themes. Results: Results indicated older adults to be viewed both positively and negatively. Positive stereotypes included wisdom, warmth, deserving of respect, and retirement. Negative stereotypes included incompetence, inadaptability, and frailty/nearing of death. Older females were viewed more negatively relative to older males. Implications: Results indicated views of older adults to parallel those found in contem-porary research. Results have implications for the design of interventions to reduce age-ism and on the cross-cultural generalizability of age-based stereotypes.

DOI 10.1093/geront/gnv108