Ageism is a prejudice according to which people are classified and judged solely on the basis of their chronological age (Berger, 2008). Our Western culture has incorporated ageism into our daily lives, and we may not be able to identify ageist behavior when it occurs. Older adults are often assigned negative labels such as senile, sad, lonely, poor, asexual, sick, dependent, demented, and disabled. (McGuire, Klein, Shu-Li, 2008) It is inevitable that we will experience a decline in physical and mental abilities. However, the timing, quality and degree of the aging process are highly variable and very different for each individual. General assumptions and stereotypes about aging are harmful to individual older adults and do not benefit society. After World War II ended in 1945, veterans returned home to marry and start families, resulting in a “baby boom.” This generation, nicknamed “Baby Boomers,” was born between 1946 and 1964. In 2011 this generation will begin to reach age 65, which is a crucial age for older adults. In 2050, the number of Americans age 65 and older is projected to be 88.5 million, more than double the projected population of 40.2 million in 2010. Baby boomers are largely responsible for this increase of the elderly population, as they will begin to cross this category in 2011. (US Census Bureau, 2010). As our population shifts towards an older demographic, ageism will weigh heavily on our society and the importance of researching, discussing and finding solutions to ageism will come to the forefront. By definition, ageism is a form of discrimination that can occur at any age. However, it is the elderly population that is most affected. Only a few men......middle of paper......70802042123.Palmore, E. (2004). Research note: Ageism in Canada and the United States. Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology, 19(1), 41-46. Retrieved from the Academic Search Premier database.Palmore, E. (2005). Three decades of research on ageism. Generations, 29(3), 87-90. Retrieved from the Academic Search Premier database. Ryan, E., Jin, Y., Anas, A., & Luh, J. (2004). Communicative beliefs about youth and old age in Asia and Canada. Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology, 19(4), 343-360. doi:10.1023/B:JCCG.0000044688.27282.7b.US Census Bureau (2010), The Next Four Decades: The Older Population in the United States from 2010 to 2050, retrieved from http://www.census.gov/prod/ 2010pubs /p25-1138.pdfZhou, L. (2007). What college students know about older adults: A cross-cultural qualitative study. Educational Gerontology, 33(10), 811-831. doi:10.1080/03601270701364545.