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Research on Aging
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Forever Young?

A Comparison of Age Identities in the United States and Germany

Gerben J. Westerhof

University of Nijmegen, the Netherlands

Anne E. Barrett

Florida State University

Nardi Steverink

University of Groningen, the Netherlands

This study compares age identities of middle-aged and older adults in the United States and Germany. Differences between countries in social systems and cultural meanings of old age are expected to produce different age identities. Data are from respondents between ages 40 and 74 in the United States (MIDUS; n = 2,006) and Germany (German Aging Survey; n = 3,331). Americans and Germans tend to feel younger than their actual age, but the discrepancy is larger among Americans. The bias toward youthful identities is stronger at older ages, particularly among Americans. In both counties, persons with better health have younger identities and role losses are not related to age identities. The study shows that different social and cultural systems produce different subjective experiences of aging. As these differences exist within Western culture, the study makes clear that one should be careful in generalizing findings from aging research across countries.

Key Words: age identity • subjective age • cross-cultural comparison • United States • Germany

Research on Aging, Vol. 25, No. 4, 366-383 (2003)
DOI: 10.1177/0164027503025004002
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