Many adults, from midlife through older adulthood, regularly experience ageist biases.

Research shows that people with positive beliefs about aging enjoy physical and cognitive health benefits.

Age-belief journaling effectively reveals society's bias toward youth.

As Baby Boomers, Gen Xers, and Millennials get older—with better healthcare and new psycho-social research and understandings—there are many opportunities to redefine how they describe themselves and the behaviors they choose in each season of their lives (Berns-Zare, 2025; Attia, 2023).

What words come to your mind as you consider growing older? Do negative terms like over-the-hill, old guard, weakened, ancient, or elderly come to mind? How about positive terms, such as evolved, adulting, seasoned, prime of life, mature, midlife, or older adult? Do you think about possibilities for living your best life, aging with vitality, and embracing your wisdom years? Or do you dread “getting old”?

Robert Butler, MD, first used the term ageism in 1968 when he defined it as systematic stereotyping and discrimination against older adults based solely on their age (Goudarzian, 2024). Many factors contribute to ageism, including psycho-social, economic, systemic, and cultural influences.

The focus of this post is to chip away at falsehoods and biases about getting older, and invite you to question labels and stereotypes you attribute to aging at midlife and beyond. Importantly, research now shows that shifting the lens through which you view the changing seasons of your life can contribute to a better quality of life and to living longer with greater well-being.

Many adults, from midlife through older adulthood, regularly experience ageist biases. These biases have external sources, such as other people, ads, and the news. And there are internal biases, such as how we regard our own process of maturation. Reexamining and rewiring our perceptions and understandings can help us embrace broader, more vibrant possibilities as we navigate the seasons of our adult lives.

Reasons to let go of ageist biases

Science is redefining what aging means: With a multitude of discoveries in recent years, science is changing contemporary understandings about what aging is and how to age well, strengthening vitality, wellbeing, happiness, and purpose. Thus, getting older is being redefined in the 21st century. And it’s becoming increasingly clear that our beliefs about the process of aging can impact how well we live.

One of the top researchers on how beliefs about aging impact how well we live is Becca Levy, PhD, professor of psychology and epidemiology at Yale University. In an interview for the American Medical Association’s Moving Medicine, Levy describes how she first became interested in beliefs about aging when she visited Japan while she was in graduate school (AMA, 2022). There, she noticed wide differences between how elders were perceived and treated in Japan, in contrast to the U.S. Levy notes that in Japan, older adults are celebrated and embraced on many levels, including centenarians, those 110 years old and older. Levy hypothesized that these cultural differences in meanings and messages about aging might be impacting longevity and wellness.

Beliefs about aging affect health outcomes: Levy and other researchers have found ways to study whether beliefs about aging within a culture can impact aging, health, and well-being. Levy has conducted studies looking at people longitudinally, over time, and across cultures. Her findings show that beliefs about aging influence outcomes—that people with more positive beliefs about getting older show advantages and improvements in physical health, cognitive health (such as thinking, learning, remembering), and mental health (emotional, social, psychological wellbeing) (AMA, 2022).

The power of age-belief journaling

Levy suggests an “age liberation movement,” noting that looking at ways to change how American culture views aging could help to reduce negative age beliefs. One of the evidence-based strategies she has studied is age-belief journaling. To try this for yourself:

Part 1 – For one week, pay attention to all the messages about aging that you notice, whether positive or negative. For example: ads, social media, merchandising, magazines, television, podcasts, etc. Write down the messages, and whether they are positive or negative.

Part 2 – For negative messages, consider whether there could have been a different way to portray that older person or image, and note it.

Part 3 – Notice situations when older adults are absent or not included in messaging. Levy says that if certain groups are not included in messaging or media, this can lead to marginalization of the group or demographic, such as regarding them as insignificant or unimportant.

How have stereotypes about aging affected your thoughts and ideas about growing older?

Disclaimer: This post is for informational purposes only. No content is a substitute for consulting with a qualified mental health or healthcare professional.

© 2026 Ilene Berns-Zare, LLC, All Rights Reserved.

American Psychological Association (2022). How positive age beliefs can support positive health outcomes with Becca Levy, PhD. https://www.ama-assn.org/public-health/population-health/how-positive-age-beliefs-can-support-positive-health-outcomes-becca

Attia, P. (2023). Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity: Rethinking Medicine to Live Better Longer. New York, NY: Harmony Books.

Berns-Zare, I. (2025). You’re Not Too Old, and It's Not Too Late: Weekly Inspirations for Meaning, Mindfulness, and New Possibilities at Midlife and Beyond. Hollister, CA: MSI Press.

Goudarzian, A.H. (2024). A concept of ageism from older adults’ perspective: a hybrid model. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11305742/

Levy, B. (2022). Breaking the Age Code: How Your Beliefs About Aging Determine How Long and How Well You Live. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers.

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