Aging as a mythological cognitive construction: A case of elderly self-identity in the rural elderly-service stations in Beijing
The traditional Chinese practice of venerating the elderly within family discourse has significantly eroded, impacting self-identity. This paper explores the symbolic perception of aging among the elderly in Chinese society and their interaction with aging myths. Aging encompasses physiological changes (M. Kaeberlein et al., 2015) and holds mythological significance, turning into aging symbols. Changes like grey hair, wrinkles, and decreased mobility have cultural and social significance, including feelings of being undervalued, unproductive, and dependent (Thornton, 2002).
This study investigates the construction of aging myths in rural areas of developing societies. Six semi-structured focus group interviews were conducted at five elderly care stations in Beijing, involving 11 individuals aged 60-90, structured by gender, education, and age. Coding of the 150,347-word corpus identified 69 initial categories, from which four main categories emerged: social cognition, interpersonal relationships, emotional attitudes, symbols, resulting in 17 axial codings.
An attitude-changed model of the aging’s mythological framework, based on selective codings, was developed. Respondents’ affective attitudes toward aging were reshaped by stereotypes and myths, compelling them to accept aging identity perceptions. Attitudinal equilibrium is achieved when cognitive perceptions of interpersonal and social interactions align with aging myths.
Results indicate that aging myths significantly impact social cognition, identity construction, and interpersonal dynamics as the elderly enter specific age groups, reshaping their relationship with society. The elderly who increasingly embrace aging symbols fall into two categories: Equilibrium and Disequilibrium. Equilibrium occurs when attitudes align with aging symbols. Conversely, disequilibrium occurs. Two paths to restore equilibrium were identified:
The study lacks an examination of how myths about aging are constructed and developed through historical, cultural, and social factors, resulting in an incoherent logical framework.