Neiman Marcus!

So last wednesday I went to Neiman Marcus right after school. Although I went with my mom I didn't want to enter the store with her just in case that affected my results. So as I walked into the entrance not one worker was in sight. I became part of a group of costumers that consisted of all elderly women and a few men. Many of the workers where really on the floor interacting with shoppers but as soon as I made my way by a group of employees all I received was stares and heard one of them whisper as I walked by "Are schools already out? Or is she just buying presents?" I was a little thrown back at this side remark only because of the fact that that one person only thought that I was there for those reasons, and still being noticed by them not one came up to me. As I was about to start heading to the door a woman came up to me and asked if I was buying for my mother and if I needed help with what to get her...really? Being at this store for this long thats all I got? Ageism I think really struck me at this store because of the age grouping they tend to focus on. It was definitely surprising to realize things i have probably been facing for awhile. The outcome of this store compared to last week's definitely changed and is bringing many curious hypothesis' for my next store visit.

Step one, complete

On Friday I finally started my project at the mall. I went to a very teen oriented store, Forever 21, to see what reactions I would get from the workers. Before I went in I saw that it was pretty crowded so I kept that in consideration, but what for. As soon as I stepped in the store a worker automatically greeted me, but what was more interesting was that a younger girl and her mom walked in before me and, spotted by the worker, weren't greeted...interesting. I realized so many little things I use to categorize as normal within the behavior of worker to costumer and specifically targeted costumers. Since I got such a quick reaction I'm interested to see how the following store will compare!

So here is the plan...

I am really excited to finally start the project! This weekend I will be going to the mall and stopping at Forever 21 and that will be my first step of viewing ageism from a different perspective. I also decided to go to Neiman Marcus next week right after school when it is less crowded and mostly filled with older shoppers. Next will be the Apple Store which I plan to visit either early Friday evening or Saturday morning when the teenagers aren't primarily inside. I have saved Toys R Us for last because with the big holiday coming up I know it will be getting busier as it approaches usually with moms on a mission to check off their kids christmas list, and I think because of this it may change the reaction I will receive. I'm anxious to see what different types of attention I get in these stores and share it with you!

My Final Project Over View

For my final project on ageism I have decided to go with the project I had posted about earlier. This project will include me going to different types of stores including Toys R US, Forever 21, Neiman Marcus, and Apple. I have chosen these four stores because each target a different age group. The timing of my experiment in each will vary for Toys R Us I will be waiting till it get closer to the holidays due to the fact that their biggest product genre of toys will be the most wanted. I will be going to Forever 21 during the weekend at night when teens usually tend to go to the stores. At Neiman Marcus I will probably wait to go early during the week days when elderly shoppers go. And finally I will be going to the Apple store at any given time because it usually is crowded 24/7. The reason I have chosen to do this experiment is to witness ageism in our everyday life and to become a victim of it in a very low circumstance. I will be taking my phone to keep data so that it doesn't raise any suspicion. Hopefully all goes well!

the start of something new

For the upcoming project in Sociology I am going to see how my topic of ageism occurs in our everyday lives. Although I have mostly talked about how ageism affects the working field, now I am going to be primarily focusing on how it affects everyone throughout their daily lives. I will be putting myself as the victim to see how I am treated in various stores ranging from stores that appeal more to the older crowd to stores that appeal to children. Being that shopping is something we, especially as women, tend to do a lot I think it will be interesting to see how I will encounter ageism, and the various tales it will hold.

Yesterday I had a doctors appointment and while I was waiting a woman around her late 30's early 40's came in for an appointment as well. While we both sat in the waiting room she was called and a woman within her early 20's came out in her scrubs and clipboard. The patient hesitantly stood up and went to the office window. As the nurse stood there I heard the woman ask for another nurse because being that she is not a child she would like a more upper level nurse assisting her. Annoyed the secretary couldn't do much but just shake her head and asked her to wait. Whispering under her breath the secretary told the nurse to take me. As she called my name I could here her voice shaking and quiet. I stood up, and as I passed the woman I of course gave her one of the "looks" that women across the globe have excelled in accomplishing. Once I got into the room I couldn't help but address the situation. She began telling me that this was her first job but not her first insult, she never thought people would be so picky when it came to age in a health office. She continued talking about how her college professor warned them in a joking matter about this but I just stood there in disbelief. How can people be so rude to do something like this especially to someone that holds the future? Once she finished with her tests she walked out and thanked me for my understanding and hoped that she performed her tasks as i had hoped. Once she walked out I staid baffled at the fact that this young woman, who performed like any other nurse I have ever had, had just been belittled of her abilities. If only the woman in the waiting room did not read a book by its cover she would have had the opportunity to meet such a skilled professional. 

Don't judge a book by it's cover...

This video definitely made me laugh, it not only gave us a view on how people are treated but a perspective to a brighter change against ageism. A lot of people seem to loose respect toward people once they hit a certain age or think we know more then they do. But to be honest we don't. People today in our society that have lived longer lives seem to hold the most history. I believe they are a source of knowledge and definitely a spark of spirit. Just because they may not have the same physical appearance doesn't mean they don't hold inside the same thing... don't just a book by its cover right? Then why not put that into action? Ageism doesn't only happen in the workplace it happens daily in our lives, people are constantly putting elders down judging them to be useless or handicap. These men and women hold so much more then what they may appear to be. Ageism is a harsh thing that constantly is shutting down lively spirits and helpful characters like these people shown in this video.

Men always have it easy...

In the article I researched for this week I found a challenge us woman are being faced with. In this generation we are surrounded by leading and inspirational women who have taken new titles such as governor, lawyer, police woman, and several more that where not so long ago given to only men. But in the movement of all this positive advancements we are taking, we are getting set back by ageism. Women now, more then men, have been forced to retire at an age range of 50-64, and not willingly but forced. Females have become faced with a huge increase in job loose due to their age and outsider's views on elders. A huge problem with this has been that these women suffering early job loose, now also deal with the longer life expectancy of their parents. And as we learned women have become more independent which leads to marriage not being such an important deal for them like before. So with the growth of independence there comes a growth of responsibilities, which ageism has made more difficult to handle.

Ageism meets the medical field.

This article about how ageism is affecting the medical field because of young students choices in careers fascinated me. Being that I want me to enter to medical field when I am older it made me realize about how many people I constantly hear say that they want to take on a position where their patience's ages range from a couple of months to 18, what about the rest of them? This article states that many young adults choose to interact with a younger crowd of patience instead leaving the percentage of  professionals that care for the elderly very small. This large difference in choice for a profession has affected hospitals world wide, because along side the continuation of births occurring people are aging and left with now fewer consultants. 
I understand that with elderly patients new topics come about such as health care but the younger generation I would think has a double amount of situations that a health professional would have to deal with like the various shots a new born gets and the on going vaccinations we get to prevent diseases. In my opinion, although I am one of the people who wants to get involved in nursing with infants, the elderly have as much importance in the health point of view. Our life cycle seems to be a never ending circle in my point of view and just as fragile and delicate a baby may seem to us older adults seem to fall right back into that category once the go up in age. The importance in every field of medicine I believe is important and cannot be compared and to have such a negative combination of ageism and career choice is quite horrible.
To look at this article please click here.

Ageism becoming a label

     Ageism has not only become an issue we are facing, but a label many elderly people now carry. Years before our generation, the elderly would be looked upon as a source of knowledge, wisdom, and full spirited. They would be viewed as strong yet lovable people. Others would treasure them like gold... why has this changed throughout time? As you see in the video the older generation holds much more then meets the eye. Just try to associate them as your grandparents, would you treat them badly? How would you feel if someone called them useless or fragile and worn out? Of course our first instinct is to protect them, so why not stand up for every other elder out there?

     Seeing this video truly opened my eyes. It gave me a view of the subject I had never dared to see. I put myself as one of those older people who face this, and it hurt. All these people seen in the video where once young like you and me. Granted they didn't carry around iPhones or do homework on a Mac, but wouldn't that make them more valuable? They went through their life without all these resources and at hand gadgets. These people didn't text or e-mail. It kind of makes you wonder how they got through school and everyday life right? How did they do all this with simple pen and paper? These are the things we should as a younger generation treasure. Just because they may look a certain way doesn't mean we should automatically classify them in our head. These women and men hold inside so many stories and wisdom that we should want to learn. These people hold in them so much potential, yet we constantly shut it down. Hopefully this video gives you a chance to consider this topic more as well.

Real life ageism

My older sister, Jenilee, is a first grade teacher in Union City, a very un developed area. Being so young in this field, she is constantly becoming a victim of ageism. Most of her students parents range between the ages of 17-21, or the children are invloved in a foster home. Many of these parents look at my sister as "unable" or not good enough to teach their child. Being in her twenties, they think that they can take advantage of her or control her. This is a level of ageism because they are disregarding my sister's talent in the teaching field and focusing only on her age. You can see this everywhere from schools to hospitals where other adults lower their standards on young people in the workfield. It saddens me to see this because these exact young adults that they are looking down upon are the next generation of professionals.

Ageism affecting people physically and mentally

 Why is it that city streets, public transportation, or even cars during rush hour are filled with either suited up young men or dressed up young women? Is it because of their ability to excel in the task they are asked to do in the work place or because of their age? More and more elderly people are not seen occupying a job and a startling amount of 63% of people admitted that they have experienced age discrimination. Why is it that now more companies are hiring based off of our age? Due to this act of discrimination it has not only affected the elder's lives but it has also lead to a higher rate of depression and lower health standards. Well if you think about it, wouldn't you be a bit depressed too if you where older and had nothing to do all day with no income coming in? Due to less money being provided to them most of these people had no other choice but to not pay as much attention to their health and not schedule such appointments as their yearly physical. Missing such visits to a doctor less older people where getting prescribed with the necessary medications they needed. 
   Surprisingly the fact that people that experienced this discrimination had a better chance to become depressed cached more attention.  Especially the fact that a survey showed that Black Americans where less likely to be helped due to depression. Being shocked by this point of view on the
subject of ageism has definitely changed my view and appreciation for elderly  workers. Although they may not have the physical attributes younger workers have I think they are more then capable to have the same mental attributes any other worker holds.

Article about ageism

Why ageism?

Hi my name is Julianne and I have chosen to blog about the topic of ageism. The main theme of ageism that I will be discussing is the different point of views on young and older adults in the work field. From teachers to doctors I aim to find and research different stories, and scenarios on the topic. I have chosen this topic because I find it interesting to see how others treat people judging their age while they are working. Some may judge older people to be wise or have more experience, yet some may say that younger adults have fresh and new ideas or aren't as "worn out" as older adults. Throughout this project I will hopefully show each of you a different spectrum of this topic weekly. Hope you will enjoy it!