Ruth Lamont said that the study evidence highlighted that even 'subtle differences' in the way people behave toward older people - such as being patronising or speaking slowly - could be enough to make them underperform when others are testing their abilities, either formally or informally.
Researchers have previously concluded that stereotype threat affects the major social categories of gender and ethnicity, but this new meta-analysis, which looked at evidence from over a decade of research, highlights the need to be just as concerned about age stereotypes, Ruth Lamont suggested.
The research team further conclude that the vulnerability of some older adults to ABST when they perform memory, cognitive or physical tasks has important social, economic and clinical implications which will become more relevant given an increasingly aging population and workforce.