Assignment 1: Discussion—Understanding Ageism

Myths and negative stereotypes about the elderly population have negative effects on the assessment and treatment of elderly clients. The most common untrue myths are that most aged individuals are irritable, angry, or unhappy; that older drivers have more vehicle accidents compared to younger drivers; that most live alone; or that aged individuals are more likely than younger people to be victims of crime (Palmore, 2005).

A counselor’s attitude toward the elderly can negatively affect his/her treatment of elderly clients. The degree to which a counselor can be free of such stereotypes against the elderly will improve the care the client will receive.

For this week’s discussion read about ageism in your text along with in the lecture notes and take the Age Implicit Association Test (IAT) at https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/demo/, which measures the degree to which humans prefer young versus old faces. Then discuss the following:

• What did the Web site indicate was your outcome? Did you have a strong or weak preference for young faces?
• What have you learned about your own biases and how to decrease them, if necessary?
• Suppose a counselor has IAT results indicating a very strong preference for young faces and also has a likely corresponding tendency toward age discrimination. What steps could he/she take to lower the tendency toward age discrimination in order to be a more effective provider of services to elderly clients? Give at least two steps.

Write your initial response in a minimum of  200 words. Apply APA standards to citation of sources.

By Saturday, May 26, 2017.

Discussion Grading Criteria and Rubric

Read the following instructions carefully. Write a paper totaling 1500 words, answering questions from Section A (750 words total) and questions from Section B (750 words total). Please include little to no quoted material in your paper. The point is to get you to describe and characterize the material, not to just import the words of others. If you must quote, just include a parenthetical citation at the end of the quote, like this: “(Author Name, Book Title, Page Number).” There is no need to provide a bibliography. Do not go significantly over or under the word limit. The word “significantly” here is a judgment call on my part, but in order to be on the safe side, keep it to no more than 100 words over or under the limit. Refer to Class Schedule for due date. An assignment link will be created on Blackboard and you will be able to upload it closer to the deadline. A late penalty will be applied to any paper turned in after this time. The penalty is: one third of a letter grade deduction for each day the paper is late. So, for example, if a paper is turned in at 8:15 AM the following morning, and if the paper without the late penalty is given the grade of B, it will become a B- due to its being turned in one day late. Answer one question from Section A and one question from Section B. Section A — Answer one from the following options: 1. Describe Thomson’s arguments for the permissibility of abortion. Then attack them. Describe Marquis’ argument for the immorality of abortion. And then attack his argument. In this debate, which of the two thinkers gets it right? Finally, why do you think abortion is such a thorny issue? 2. Focus on two types of killing: euthanasia and capital punishment. Describe what each of these are, and give reasons for and against the rightness of both. Ultimately, tell me if society should allow these practices. Section B — Answer one from the following options: 1. Why should society allow individuals to use drugs? Contrastingly, why should society not allow individuals to use drugs? Describe and then attack the argument that drugs are harmful to the user. In the end, is this a good argument? Describe and then attack the argument that drugs are harmful to the user’s friends and family. In the end, is this a good argument? Should the government allow us to make choices that cause ourselves great harm? 2. What are some reasons for and against eating meat? After running through a list of reasons in favor of it and reasons against it, determine the strongest argument on each side. Then tell me whether you are convinced by either argument, and why or