Perceptions of Aging in Two Cultures: Korean and American Views on Old Age

The current study investigated whether beliefs about aging vary by culture, age, and gender. The Lasher and Faulkender (Int. J. Aging Hum. Dev., 37:247–259, 1993) Anxiety about Aging scale was administered to 153 American and 167 South Korean men and women divided into three age groups: young (18–39), middle-aged (40–59), and older (60–91) adults. Significant cultural differences were found for the total anxiety scale and three of the four subscales. Compared to Americans, Koreans portrayed higher overall levels of anxiety about aging, and greater fear of old people, psychological concerns, and concerns over physical appearance. For Koreans, younger adults had greater fear of old people, whereas among Americans, older adults had greater fear of old people. In both cultures, the older adults had greater psychological concerns and fear of losses than did the younger groups, and American women showed more anxiety about aging and concerns over physical appearance than their male counterparts. Results are discussed in relation to aging in different cultural contexts.