Publication Date

8-2025

Advisor(s) - Committee Chair

Qin Zhao, Robert Welsh, Michelle Durham, Amanda Hanson

Degree Program

Department of Psychology

Degree Type

Doctorate

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to examine how young adults’ beliefs about aging moderate the effects of mortality salience on their ageism attitudes. Past research suggests that ageism is, in part, due to the presence of elderly people reminding people of their own aging process and mortality (Martens et al., 2004). Little is known, however, about how individuals’ beliefs about aging may moderate the impact of mortality salience on their attitudes toward aging. Some people tend to perceive aging-related changes as relatively fixed (i.e., essentialist belief), whereas others perceive them as relatively malleable (nonessentialist belief). Would a more malleable view of aging reduce the negative impact of mortality salience on young adults’ ageism attitude? The present study investigated this question by manipulating mortality salience and measuring essentialist belief about aging and ageism attitudes in a college-student sample. The results did not show a significant main effect of mortality salience priming on ageism attitudes. Beliefs about aging did not moderate the impact of mortality salience either. A significant effect of belief about aging on positive affect was observed, indicating that stronger essentialist belief about aging predicted less positive affect. The implications of the results and future research directions were discussed.

Disciplines

Clinical Psychology | Developmental Psychology | Psychology | Social and Behavioral Sciences | Social Psychology

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