Constructions of sexuality in later life: Analyses of Canadian magazine and newspaper portrayals of online dating

Ageism and Sexuality

“…Images of older people relating to specific advertisements, such as pensions or health care products are associated with notions of burden frailty, loneliness or vulnerability (Media and diversity in an ageing society, [2002][2003][2004], which reflect stereotypical expectations about later life (Prieler 2012;Williams et al 2010) and convey them to society. A discourse analysis of how Canadian newspapers and magazines portray and construct older people's sexuality is a good example (Wada et al 2015). The dominant, idealized notion of remaining young-looking, physically attractive and sexually active was highlighted, which marginalized older people who chose not to conform to that ideal or were unable to do so.…”

Tensions and contradictions: Women’s stories of ageing and sexuality in the context of the past

“…There is general agreement that in the late 20th-century gerontological thinking about sexuality and ageing shifted and the idea of the 'sexy senior', that is, of the older person who remains sexually active, emerged (Gott, 2005;Hinchliff and Gott, 2008;Katz and Marshall, 2003;Vares, 2009). Key to this new stereotype is an association between remaining sexually active and ageing well (Gott, 2005;Wada et al, 2015). This idea would seem to fit well with Third-Age identities yet, as Marshall and Katz (2012) have argued, reinforces gendered and heteronormative expectations of sex.…”

Online Dating Profiles and Problems in Older Adults: A Review

“…The data from these four studies are seemingly consistent including that older people are less willing to date people of other races and they are not wanting to have a financial burden [2,[11][12][13]. Further, women have consistently held a stronger preference for men who are taller than them.…”

“…The data from these four studies also have the limitations that the older adults from some online data sites may not be representative of other dating sites or of older singles in general, inasmuch as older people use the Internet less often [2,[11][12][13]. Once again, the samples were more educated and higher socioeconomic status and perhaps even healthier than older singles who are not online daters.…”

“…Logistic regression analysis suggested that low disease was characteristic of the younger profiles, while the older profiles were characterized by active life engagement, especially among older women. In another study, the same research group reviewed 144 newspaper and magazine articles about older people and their online dating profiles that were published between 2009 and 2011 [12]. Sexuality was idealized in 13% of the articles on "older adults and online dating" including sexual attractiveness and optimal sexual engagement.…”