Carrie Andreoletti

Bright, bad, babyfaced boys: appearance stereotypes do not always yield self-fulfilling prophecy effects.

Three studies tested the hypothesis that babyfaced adolescent boys would compensate for the undesirable expectation that they will exhibit childlike traits by behaving contrary to it. Studies 1 and 2 revealed that babyfaced boys from middle- and lower class samples, including a sample of delinquents, showed higher academic achievement than their mature-faced peers, refuting the stereotype of babyfaced people as intellectually weak. In the lower class samples, this compensation effect was moderated by IQ and socioeconomic status (SES), variables that influence the ability to overcome low expectations. Study 3 showed that babyfaceness also can produce negative compensatory behaviors. Low-SES babyfaced boys were more likely than their mature-faced peers to be delinquent, and babyfaced delinquents committed more crimes, refuting the stereotype of babyfaced people as warm, submissive, and physically weak.

Susceptibility and Resilience to Memory Aging Stereotypes: Education Matters More than Age

The authors examined whether the memory performance of young, middle-aged, and older adults would be influenced by stereotype versus counterstereotype information about age differences on a memory task. One hundred forty-nine adults from a probability sample were randomly assigned to a control group or to age-stereotype conditions. As predicted, counterstereotype information was related to higher recall compared to stereotype and control groups. This was true across all age groups, but only for those with more education. Both stereotype and counterstereotype information were related to lower recall compared to the control group across age groups for those with lower education. Results suggest those with more education are more resilient when faced with negative age stereotypes about memory and respond positively to counterstereotype information. In contrast, those with less education show greater susceptibility to the detrimental effects of age stereotypes and respond negatively to both stereotype and counterstereotype information about memory aging.

Age differences in the relationship between anxiety and recall.

The present study examined the relationship between anxiety and recall performance as well as whether this association varied by age. One hundred and ninety-five young, middle-aged, and older adults studied and recalled a list of 30 categorizable words. Anxiety was measured before memory testing using a cognitive-specific anxiety measure (PIC) and after testing with a state measure (STAI). Based on previous research it was expected that older adults would show more anxiety related to cognitive testing than younger adults, but our results revealed no significant age differences in anxiety. There was, however, a negative relationship between cognitive-specific anxiety and memory, such that greater anxiety was related to poorer recall, but this was so only for middle-aged and older adults. This suggests that middle-aged and older adults may be more influenced by anticipatory cognitive-specific anxiety than younger adults. Although many factors may contribute to memory decline, our results suggest that managing anxiety may be a promising avenue for minimizing episodic memory problems in later life.

Sadness prediction and response: Effects of age and agreeableness

Research has suggested that both age and personality play a role in emotional experience and regulation, but these variables have not been considered together to determine the relative contribution of each. This study simultaneously examined age and agreeableness differences in the experience of sad stimuli. Participants were 46 younger adults (age, M = 22.04 years, SD = 5.41 years) and 48 older adults (age, M = 74.23, SD = 7.82 years). Participants were asked to predict how sad stimuli (i.e., sad photos) would make them feel and were then measured on their actual reaction to the stimuli (reactivity) as well as on their emotional recovery. Agreeableness, but not age, was related to predicted levels of sadness, such that the more agreeable, the higher the predicted sadness (β = 0.37). In contrast to expectations, prediction accuracy was not related to age or agreeableness. For emotional reactivity, agreeableness (β = 0.16), but not age, was related to reactivity to sad stimuli (i.e., more agreeable, higher reactivity). Finally, age (β = 0.14) was significantly related to emotional recovery such that the older adults reported lower levels of sadness at posttest than did the younger adults. Similarly, people who were more agreeable also reported better emotional recovery (β = 0.15). These relationships were not affected by depression or pretest sadness ratings. Overall, these findings suggest distinct roles for age and agreeableness in predicting different components of the emotion regulation process. An individual with advanced age, high levels of agreeableness, or both may be well-positioned for resilience throughout the emotion regulation process.

Physical Appearance and Control Beliefs in Young, Middle-Aged, and Older Adults

The authors investigated whether general and domain-specific control beliefs were related to stigmatizing physical appearance qualities in young, middle-aged, and older adults. Being babyfaced, unattractive, or short was associated with diminished control beliefs in young and middle adulthood, whereas being overweight was not. Those who were less attractive, more babyfaced, shorter, or heavier sometimes perceived more rather than less control than their more favored peers, suggesting that individuals whose appearance creates social barriers may compensate with greater efforts to control their social environment. One notable age difference was that high babyfaceness was associated with diminished control beliefs at younger ages but with higher control beliefs in older adulthood.

Some Relations between Clinical and Environmental Psychology

Toward assessing some relations between clinical and environmental psychology, this article focuses on problems of mutual interest for scholars in both subfields. Broad definitions of both clinical psychology (i.e., as a content area dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders as well as a more general method for research and practice) and environmental psychology (i.e., as a content area that treats the environment as consisting of physical, interpersonal, and sociocultural aspects as well as a more general perspective on all organism-environment functioning) are used. Empirical studies described include the relocation of a psychiatric therapeutic community (physical aspect of environment), social networks and people-place relationships in boys with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (interpersonal aspect of environment), and systemic issues in families practicing open versus closed adoption (sociocultural aspect of environment). General implications for problem, theory, method, and practice are also discussed.

Bridging the Generation Gap: Intergenerational Service-Learning Benefits Young and Old.

ABSTRACT Intergenerational service-learning is commonly used in aging courses. Although benefits are well documented for college students, fewer studies have examined benefits for older adults. This article discusses the development and implementation of an intergenerational program designed as a brief service-learning experience to reduce age-related stereotypes and increase generativity in older adults. Young adults enrolled in an aging course and older adults from a local assisted-living community met three times to discuss a variety of topics and get to know one another. Results showed a significant reduction in ageism on the Fraboni Scale of Ageism for young adults. Descriptive data suggested an increase in generativity on the Loyola Generativity Scale for older adults. Qualitative data suggested that all participants gained a greater appreciation for one another and recognized how much they had in common. Limitations, challenges, and lessons learned are also discussed. Intergenerational service-learning, even in small doses, shows promise for bridging the generation gap.

Gender, Race, and Age: The Content of Compound Stereotypes Across the Life Span.

While stereotypes about gender, race, and age (particularly old age) have been studied independently, few have examined the content of compound stereotypes that consider the intersection of gender, race, and age. Using a within-subjects design, we examined stereotypes as a function of target gender (male, female), race (Black, White), and age across the life span (adolescent, young adult, middle-aged, young-old, and old-old). Participants rated 20 target groups on 10 attributes representative of either an agentic (e.g., ambitious) or communal (e.g., considerate) orientation. Participants were presented only with categorical information (e.g., Black, 85-year-old, males), and ordering of categorical information and target groups was counterbalanced across participants. We hypothesized differential effects of target gender and race as a function of age. Multivariate analyses of variance on each attribute revealed significant main effects that supported traditional stereotype research, but significant interactions revealed a more complicated picture. Overall, results showed that while gender stereotypes about agency and communion generally hold up across the life span, they are more applicable to White than Black targets. Results also supported the notion that we hold unique stereotypes based on multiple social categories rather than simply perceiving one social category as more salient than another, which was best exemplified in the case of Black female targets that were less likely to be perceived in gender stereotypic ways across the life span. We suggest stereotype research needs to shift to accommodate for the complexity and diversity of real people.

Participation in intergenerational service-learning benefits older adults: A brief report

ABSTRACT Most research on intergenerational service-learning has focused on the benefits for college students, with fewer studies examining the benefits to older adults. The present study was designed to assess the impact on older adults of participating in Working Together: Intergenerational Student/Senior Exchange, a brief intergenerational service-learning program that brings together college students and older adults as equal partners to promote intergenerational understanding and communication. Older adults from an assisted living community met up to six times with students enrolled in aging-related courses to discuss a variety of topics and get to know one another. Results showed brief intergenerational service-learning benefits older adults with significant increases in generativity from pre-to post-program assessment. Additionally, a large percentage of the participants expressed interest in participating again and a willingness to refer others to the program. Limitations and future directions are discussed.