Age is often not a priority when it comes to DEI efforts, according to a new study from Washington University in St. Louis.
research, Age as a factor in diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in higher education.was conducted between February 2022 and January 2023. Journal of Gerontology and Social WelfareK.
Through a series of focus groups and individual interviews, researchers collected responses about the role age plays in DEI initiatives from 42 DEI staff at 36 higher education institutions, including 14 private schools and 22 public schools across 19 U.S. states. I did.
“Increasing life expectancy requires that education systems reorient themselves towards increasing age and longevity,” the report said. “As people live and work longer, there is a growing need for ongoing education and training. Today, students are more diverse in age, employees are working longer hours, and classrooms and offices are becoming more age-appropriate.”
Research shows that age is a recognized but often unnoticed factor in DEI environments.
Even WashU's Office of Institutional Equity did not prioritize age, said Natalie Galucia, study co-author and director of the university's Harvey A. Friedman Center on Aging.
Dr. Nancy Morrow-Howell, the Betty Bofinger Brown Distinguished Professor of Social Policy at WashU, served as lead author of the study. Sophie Mauk, a former research assistant at the Aging Center, is listed as another co-author.
Responses from DEI staff revealed findings around nine key themes: One of them is that there are a number of reasons as to why age is not recognized as an identity factor in DEI efforts. Because DEI offices are currently under-resourced, it can be difficult to address age issues on top of other issues, respondents said.
People do not consider ageism and ageism to be important topics, despite the research itself showing that ageism is common and widespread. On the contrary, research shows that it is often accepted.
“Participants did not seem to think that age discrimination was an important issue on our college campuses or even in our society. It is a more accepted ‘ism,’” said Michele Dinman, study co-author and project coordinator for the WashU for Life Initiative. said: The Center on Aging said in an email:
Other factors, such as race, tend to take precedence, and responses show DEI professionals are reluctant to shift their focus to other topics.
“Although several focus group participants recognized that this was not a zero-sum situation, there was a theme that focusing on anything other than race and other minoritized identities would be distracting,” the report noted.
Within DEI offices, age issues are typically raised in the legal context of compliance and discrimination laws, but are not actually addressed as part of DEI efforts. Respondents also suggested that this topic may be more relevant and should be addressed in facilities outside of DEI, such as senior centers or continuing education programs.
Research results have shown that issues and thoughts surrounding age may appear differently depending on the environment. “Traditional” four-year institutions of higher education may focus more on young adults, while age diversity may be more standardized at commuter colleges, which may have larger student populations.
The university is a multigenerational place, Galucia said, especially when considering faculty and staff.
“College is still largely viewed as catering to traditionally older students, those still in their late teens and early 20s,” Galucia said.
Respondents noted that even within individual universities, age may be viewed differently in separate departments and programs. According to one interviewee who participated in the study, age inclusion was better in social work and liberal arts compared to medicine, science, and engineering.
Students outside the 'traditional' age group, many of whom are returning to past studies, feel left out in and out of the classroom and face microaggressions from both educators and students, respondents said.
Research suggests that there may be greater differences between faculty, staff, and students based on age. Older faculty were associated with problems with students being stubborn about learning new skills and terminology, such as pronouns.
“The backlash was directed at older faculty, especially older white men. They were up in arms because everything that had been normalized for decades in higher education now seemed to be being challenged as bad., And they could not understand why the students were angry or upset,” the report quoted.
Older faculty and staff may also be dismissive and dismissive of younger faculty members, but vice versa, the report noted. Respondents noted that older employees could be subject to age exclusions and potentially be “kicked out” of their roles.
Nonetheless, research shows that DEI offices at certain institutions have some age-related services, from transition programs and specialized orientation for older students to age-sensitive hiring practices and retirement planning services.
And some institutions have conducted workshops to help foster intergenerational relationships and bridge the gap in understanding between older (faculty and staff) and younger (students) students.
Dinman called for schools to be more proactive in spreading awareness of age as an aspect of identity, age bias and age discrimination.
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