who wants to age? maybe you will

8/11/2019 Who Wants to Age? Maybe You Will

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Who Wants to Age?Maybe You Will

David Agogo, George R. Milne & Charles ScheweUniversity of Massachusetts, Amherst

Presented at

Association for Marketing & Health Care Research Conference, 2013


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Contents

Aging DefinedSuccessful Aging: An Oxymoron?What is Changing?A New Paradigm of AgingImplications for Health Care MarketingLimits?


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Aging Defined

ChronologicalNumber of years lived

Most generally acceptable

Not indicative of actual aging

BiologicalProgrammed Theories

(Limiting Biological Clock)Non-Programmed Theories(Wear & Tear, Oxidation, etc)

CognitiveFeel-Age, Look-Age, Do-Age,

Interest-AgeLearning new things (neural

plasticity)

Barak & Schiffman, 1981; Cabezaa et al, 2002;

SocialDisengagement Theory

Activity TheoryContinuity Theory

Cumming & Henry, 1961; Havighurst, 1961; Atchley, 1989


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Aging Defined

And, indeed, when I reflect on this subject I findfour reasons why old age appears to beunhappy: first, that it withdraws us from active

pursuits; second, that it makes the body weaker;third, that it deprives us of almost all physical

pleasures; and, fourth, that it is not far removedfrom death.

Marcus Tullius Cicero,Cato Maior de Senectute - 44BC


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Successful Aging: An Oxymoron?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/5257300.stm http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/7605418/Extreme-sports-killing-the-elderly.html http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/

In the UK (2009) 20% of injuries from extreme sportssuffere d by persons aged 70 or over (5% in 2006)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/5257300.stmhttp://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/7605418/Extreme-sports-killing-the-elderly.htmlhttp://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/7605418/Extreme-sports-killing-the-elderly.htmlhttp://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.swrnn.com/2012/04/20/60-skydivers-set-world-record-in-lake-elsinore/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/7605418/Extreme-sports-killing-the-elderly.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/7605418/Extreme-sports-killing-the-elderly.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/7605418/Extreme-sports-killing-the-elderly.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/7605418/Extreme-sports-killing-the-elderly.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/7605418/Extreme-sports-killing-the-elderly.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/7605418/Extreme-sports-killing-the-elderly.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/7605418/Extreme-sports-killing-the-elderly.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/7605418/Extreme-sports-killing-the-elderly.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/7605418/Extreme-sports-killing-the-elderly.htmlhttp://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/17/90-year-old-man-skydives-for-his-birthday/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/5257300.stm


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What is Changing?

Growing percentage of aging individuals active inexercise and sportsPersons 45-64 active in sport has doubled since 1993 (SBRNET,

2011)Persons 55+ increased membership in health clubs by 314%(IHRSA, 2012)

Increased evidence of aging individuals learning newthings

Over half persons 65+ use internet & email (Pew, 2012)Increase in level of socialization among aging individuals

Persons 50+ fastest demographic on leading online dating siteMatch.comIncidences of STDs have tripled among persons 45-64 (CDC,2010)

Difference between expectations and reality of behavioramong aging individuals

Older people are not as bad off as young people think they are

(Pew)


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A New Paradigm of Aging

Perceived Age & Chronological Age (PACA) Model

+ Feel Younger

- Feel Older

Chronological Age

Perceived Age

Factors IncreasingPerceived Age

Factors ReducingPerceived Age

Older individuals with more positive self-perceptions of aging,measured up to 23 years earlier, lived 7.5 years longer than thosewith less positive self-perceptions of aging (Levy et al, 2002)


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A New Paradigm of Aging

Factors that mayIncrease Perceived Age Factors that may DecreasePerceived Age Biological Unhealthy dietary habits

smokingLack of exercise

Healthy dietIncreased physical activityHealth enhancing activities

Cognitive Not learning new thingsStopping reading

Expanding cognitiveabilities through learningnew skills

Social Loss of friendshipsNo new friendsIsolation

Expanding & maintaining

social connections


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Implications for Health Care Marketing

PACA Model Applied to Health Care Services

Reparative Care Rejuvenative Care

Doctors prescribingmedication and treatment

Doctors prescribing counter-balancing activities to patients

losing balance

Health Club with Aerobicclasses, weight machines,sauna

Day Spa with nutritionalclasses, acupuncture,complementary alternativemedicine, medical marijuana

There is tremendous potential for Health Care establishments toreach across the line of normal aging


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Implications for Health Care Marketing

Segmenting markets by Perceived Age

The specific dimensions of the age increasing/decreasing factors are: biological, cognitive, andsocial . With this metric, survey research could ascertain

whether each dimension was increasing or decreasingand by what magnitude. These results could be used inthe equation above, and segments formed from theranges of scores . It can be expected that thesesegments will share some unique characteristics .

= +


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Limits?

Limits Biological Major health incident

Cognitive Mild Cognitive Impairment(MCI)

Social Loss of a loved one


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No man is so old that he does not

think himself able to live another year Marcus Tulius Cicero

who wants to age? maybe you will

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