https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3214-2196
Abstract
Ageism is oftentimes sugarcoated within humor. Paper birthday cards are 1 delivery approach in which ageist messages are perpetuated and reinforced through humor.
A convenience sample of birthday cards (k = 227), all indicating a decade of age, were acquired from 7 national retail stores in Colorado Springs, CO. The decades sampled ranged from 21 to 100. With a predeveloped codebook, 3 raters coded the decade birthday cards on various variables, including age group, ageist tone, and humor.
Birthday cards intended for age 30–60 contained significantly more ageist messages compared to cards intended for age 21 and age 70–100, which did not show a significant difference from each other. Additionally, birthday cards with humor showed more ageist messages than cards without humor. Characteristics of decade birthday cards were also explored.
Consumers need to learn to evaluate these ageist messages in birthday cards to reduce the perpetuation of damaging stereotypes.
Worldwide, cultures create and perpetuate the use of stereotypes that are commonly expressed in communication. Despite being common, “-isms,” such as racism and sexism, are generally considered taboo in day-to-day conversation. Such stereotypes are widely considered inappropriate and unacceptable in polite company. However, compared to racism and sexism, ageism is more socially accepted than other forms of “-isms.” Ageism has been defined as pervasive, negative attitudes and behaviors directed toward another person based on chronological age (Ellis & Morrison, 2005; Gendron et al., 2016). In Western culture, older adults are frequently stereotyped in a negative manner as being unhealthy, unattractive, senile, forgetful, asexual, slow, inactive, rigid, poor, and/or isolated (Bowd, 2003; Ellis & Morrison, 2005; Hummert et al., 1995).
Age-related stereotypes can occur subtly on a microlevel or overtly on a macrolevel (Gietzen et al., 2023). Microlevel ageism may appear to be well-intentioned, such as referring to an older woman as “young lady” (Gendron et al., 2016). Microaggressions can also occur as negative assumptions about age, such as when an older adult goes to the doctor for a routine visit and poor health is assumed (Gendron et al., 2016). Macrolevel ageism exists in language such as “antiaging,” which suggests aging is negative and is something to be avoided, or in referring to a lapse in memory as a “senior moment” (Gendron et al., 2016). The volume of ageist messages in Western culture suggests that political correctness is not given to older adults in the same manner it is with other marginalized populations (Gendron et al., 2018).
Ageism is different from other types of “-isms.” Instead of discriminating against an individual who is different from oneself in ways that cannot be changed (e.g., skin color), ageism is the paradoxical discrimination toward an individual’s future self (Jönson, 2013). Ageist beliefs can also be internalized by older adults, leading them to apply such beliefs to themselves and/or their peers. Social identity theory (SIT) posits that individuals categorize and compare others who belong to the “outgroup” (i.e., a group different from one’s own identified group) to enhance their own self-image (Ellemers & Haslam, 2012; Jönson, 2013). Ageism could be partly explained by SIT such that younger adults categorize current cohorts of older adults as different from their own future selves, which creates social distance, perpetuates ageism, and justifies the social power of younger people in society (Bowd, 2003; Jönson, 2013). Highlighting an example of SIT-related ageism, Gendron and colleagues (2016) conducted a content analysis of 354 tweets (i.e., comments posted on the social media site, Twitter) created by younger adults who volunteered as companions of older adults. They evaluated tweets for age-biased language and age discrimination. Gendron and colleagues reported several broad themes in the messages, including negative age-related assumptions, views of older adults as different from younger cohorts, beliefs that certain actions and behaviors are outside of the norm for older adults (e.g., sexual activity), the idea that “old” is negative and “young” is positive, frequent infantilization of older adults, and expressions of internalized ageism. After a lifetime of hearing social messages that older adults belong to a marginalized outgroup, ageist stereotypes have the potential to become internalized (Gendron et al., 2016). Views on aging that are internalized in early adulthood have a negative influence on one’s overall health, sense of self, and well-being in older age (Bowd, 2003; Gendron et al., 2016).
Humor is one method of communication used to discuss topics typically undesirable in general conversation. For example, racism, sexism, and ageism are considered taboo in polite conversation, but frequently appear in jokes. Legitimizing taboo topics through humor may increase stereotypical prejudice against marginalized groups (Bowd, 2003; Ford et al., 2014). Previous research suggests that acceptance of humorous messages increases social tolerance of sexism (Ford, 2000), racism (Ford et al., 2014), and ageism (Gendron et al., 2016; Hummert et al., 1995). The acceptance of humorous messages is problematic because within society, individuals may measure themselves against the given message. Specific to ageism, if a humorous message highlights negative features of older adults (e.g., physical, cognitive, or social decline), shame related to aging may increase (Ellis & Morrison, 2005). Highlighting the relationship between humor and ageism, Bowd (2003) conducted a content analysis of 4,200 narrative jokes classified according to stereotypic themes. He found that 146 narrative jokes related directly to old age, the most common of which related to the sexuality of older adults as abnormal.
Indeed, humor can serve as a subtle conduit for ageism. Discrimination and stereotypes, including ageism, can manifest in both overt and covert ways (Ng, 2007). Blatant forms of ageism may involve displaying a coffin on a birthday card, implying death, or portraying older adults as perpetually grumpy. On the other hand, subtle forms of discrimination, often referred to as microaggressions, are more difficult to identify. They can take the shape of “concerns” or be masked as humor. In the context of ageism, subtle expressions may involve making jokes about older adults’ forgetfulness on a birthday card.
Using jokes to evaluate ageism may highlight the cultural acceptance of aging as a negative occurrence. However, jokes are generally depersonalized and are directed broadly at a population rather than an individual. Humor in print media, such as in birthday cards, may be reflective of attitudes toward aging as the humorous message is given directly from one person to another. Because it is difficult to detach oneself from the message on a greeting card, messages on the birthday cards may be perceived as personal and receivers of the birthday cards with ageist jokes may internalize the ageist messages (Zeman & Zeman, 2017). In that sense, humorous birthday cards may provide better insights into culturally accepted age-related attitudes than an examination of jokes alone (Dillon, 1981; Ellis & Morrison, 2005).
Within published research, only a limited number of studies to date have examined the content of ageist messages contained in birthday cards. Demos and Jache (1981) conducted a content analysis of 195 paper birthday cards in Morris, MN. They found that 80% of the cards evaluated contained negative themes such as: physical appearance (e.g., wrinkles, graying and loss of hair, changes in body shape, and hearing loss), diminished physical and cognitive capability, limited sexuality, age concealment, aging as a state of mind, aging as an experience of others, and aging as a mortal concern. Dillon and Jones (1981) also conducted a content analysis of 240 paper birthday cards. Of the 65 cards with an aging theme, 90% contained negative age-related messages such as: age as a loss, concealing one’s own age, sympathy for those who age, and not showing physical signs of aging.
Ellis and Morrison (2005) evaluated the content of 150 paper birthday cards. They found that the messages within the text of the cards were more likely to be negative, but the messages (e.g., cognitive and physical decline with age) conveyed by the images were more often neutral (e.g., cartoons or drawings). Ellis and Morrison (2005) found that, specific to the images presented on birthday cards, more ageism was directed at younger age groups than older age groups. Their results may reflect the idea that age-related humor is more culturally accepted for middle-aged adults than it is for those in older cohorts. The study conducted by Ellis and Morrison (2005) contained several flaws, however. First, although both authors rated a small sample of the birthday cards to establish interrater reliability (IRR), only one of the two researchers coded the remaining cards. Idiosyncrasies and biases may be present due to this research design. Further, Ellis and Morrison (2005) only evaluated cards that were intended for people turning 40 years and older, leaving birthday cards below 40 years of age unexplored.
More recently, in a class setting, Sawchuk (2018) integrated the topic of ageism by having seven groups of college students analyze 105 birthday cards that contained themes related to aging or old age. Even though their findings were comparable to Ellis and Morrison (2005), it is important to note that Sawchuk’s study (2018) was descriptive and qualitative in nature and did not explore the relationships between variables. Furthermore, although the birthday cards analyzed in Sawchuk’s study (2018) contained themes about old age, the specific age groups these cards were intended for were not specified.
Present Study
The present investigation built on the aforementioned studies by evaluating paper birthday cards at milestone years beginning at age 21, coding for a greater number of variables, applying inferential statistics, and using a more comprehensive set of card characteristics to better understand the patterns of ageist messages. Identifying specific characteristics predictive of ageism may offer direction for further studies.
Based on outcomes from prior research, the following research questions were addressed: (1) Do ageist messages occur in milestone birthday cards prior to age 40? (2) What is the distribution of ageism across milestone birthdays? (3) What milestone decades use humor in birthday cards more or less often? (4) Does humor predict the presence of ageist messages in paper birthday cards? (5) What common card characteristics influence interpretation of a card’s message as ageist?
Method
Sample
Past mixed-method content analyses with paper birthday cards used variable sample sizes ranging from 150 cards (Ellis & Morrison, 2005) to 240 cards (Dillon and Jones, 1981). For the present study, a convenience sample of birthday cards was acquired from seven different retail stores in Colorado Springs, CO: Safeway, Walmart, Target, Albertsons, Walgreens, King-Soopers, and the Hallmark Store leading to a final sample size of 227 cards. Samples were collected in 2017 and 2018. Popular retail stores were intentionally selected due to their presence across the United States. For example, in the United States, Hallmark has over 2,000 stores (Hallmark Gold Crown® Stores, 2017) and WalMart has over 4,700 stores (Walmart: Our Locations, 2020). Because these stores are ubiquitous, the sample of birthday cards gathered in Colorado Springs is most likely representative of the birthday cards available nationwide.
The birthday cards targeted for the study were those that indicated a decade birthday. Decade cards were chosen over non-age-specified cards to create a manageable sample size and to create a clear age-specific variable. This selection method made it possible to capture the relationship between age and ageism in greeting cards illustrated across the life span. The decades sampled ranged from 21 to 100 years of age. Because age 21 is considered an important milestone in the United States due to the legal implications, greeting card companies create significantly more options to mark the occasion of a 21st birthday than a 20th birthday. Thus, cards intended for people turning 21 years old were used in the analysis rather than for people turning 20 years old. Camera phones were used to photograph the birthday cards. Every card was photographed so that all writing and images on the front, back, and interior of the card were visible. All the photographs were compiled into a computer database and assigned an arbitrary number for coding purposes. Duplicate cards were deleted to prevent the same card from being coded more than once.
Coded Variables
Stereotypes can be presented visually in multiple ways, including written text and images (e.g., canes, rocking chair, Grim Reaper). Therefore, variables were carefully selected to capture the relationship between humor and ageism as well as characteristics of milestone birthday cards. The 15 variables chosen for coding were: age group, type of humor, time perspective, number of colors, color palette, word count, price, type of image, positive words, negative words, font style, masculine/feminine traits, positive aging stereotype, negative aging stereotype, and overall tone. Each selected variable was detailed in the codebook (see Supplementary Table 5).
Age group
Age group was coded as a manifest continuous variable with cards representing decades from 21 to 100 years of age. Prior research reported that ageist messages were uncommon prior to age 30 (Dillon & Jones, 1981); thus, birthday cards for those turning 21 years of age were deemed an appropriate reference group.
Humor
As previously mentioned, humor is commonly used to transmit ageist messages (Bowd, 2003). The presence of humor was treated as a latent categorical variable and categorized based on types of humor, including slapstick, irony, satire, and other (Buijzen & Valkenburg, 2004).
Time perspective
Focusing on one’s past rather than the future is a subtle form of ageism (Ellis & Morrison, 2005). To evaluate the time focus of cards, a latent categorical variable was used and based on whether cards were past-focused, present-focused, future-focused, or had more than one time focus.
Color
Color palette (warm vs cold) has been used in advertising targeting specific consumer groups. Lichtle (2007) found that younger people tend to prefer warm colors (red, orange, yellow), whereas older individuals prefer a colder palette (green, blue, purple). Color palette was treated as a latent quantitative variable using a 5-point Likert-type scale from 1 (very warm) to 5 (very cold). In addition to color palette, the number of colors in the card were coded as a manifest quantitative variable.
Images
While alcohol images may be more prevalent on birthday cards intended for individuals turning 21 (Christodoulou & Lac, 2021), birthday cards for older ages tend to be more celebratory, serving as a way to commemorate and celebrate life. Images were treated as a latent categorical variable and included celebratory, animal, person, alcohol, generic graphic image, and other.
Font style
Font style can influence the way one perceives information. For example, in a study examining restaurant menus, more formal font styles (e.g., cursive) led to consumers perceiving the restaurant as more upscale (Magnini et al., 2016). For this study, font style was treated as a latent categorical variable and coded as informal, formal, or a combination of font styles.
Word count
Higher word counts may be necessary on birthday cards to effectively convey specific messages, such as ageism. The word count of the cards included all words on the front cover, interior, and back cover that were a part of the intended message. Word count was treated as a manifest quantitative variable.
Price
Birthday cards that contain humorous messages may be more expensive compared to those without humor. Because more efforts are put into creating the humorous content, it may be reflected in the price of the product. Price shown on the cards was also included as a manifest quantitative variable.
Masculine/feminine traits
Masculine/feminine traits were investigated because conflicting reports were found in the literature where Ellis and Morrison (2005) found birthday cards gender neutral and Sawchuk (2018) found them gender-specific. The masculine/feminine trait was coded as a latent quantitative variable, with anchors of one representing masculine traits, three as neutral, and five as feminine traits. The overall birthday card was considered when deciding this variable.
Negative stereotypes
Negative stereotypes associated with aging were coded as a latent categorical variable. Stereotypes reported in prior literature (Demos & Jache, 1981; Dillon & Jones, 1981; Ellis & Morrison, 2005) were used: referencing physical decline, cognitive decline, the aging process as negative, implying a gap in understanding between generations, old age as the loss of youth, implications that the future is bleak, age denial, and negative personality traits related to old age (e.g., rigidity in thinking, grouchiness).
Positive stereotypes
Positive age-related messages and stereotypes were also coded as a latent categorical variable. Positive aspects of aging reported in prior literature (Demos & Jache, 1981; Dillon & Jones, 1981; Ellis & Morrison, 2005) were used: referencing age as a celebration-worthy milestone, implications that improvement occurs with age, age as a matter of mind, and positive personality traits associated with old age (e.g., wisdom, patience, and warmth).
Number of positive and negative words
The number of positive and negative words present in the cards were also counted as they may inform the overall tone and represent ageism. These two variables were manifest quantitative variables.
Tone/ageism
Finally, the overall tone of each card was rated on a 5-point Likert-type scale (1 = very negative to 5 = very positive) with lower scores representing a more negative tone, indicative of greater levels of ageism. This variable was a latent quantitative variable.
Procedure
This study followed recommended guidelines for conducting a quantitative content analysis including the coding, analysis, and interpretation of results (see Crano et al., 2014). Three coders were trained through two rounds of pilot testing. Pilot testing was performed using 10 cards with a nondecade birthday. Each of the coders rated five cards in each round of pilot testing and independently recorded their ratings. After each round, the ratings were discussed and debated, leading to improvements in the codebook. Operational definitions of the variables were redefined after each round of pilot testing to increase IRRs. No formal statistics were performed for the pilot testing; discussing the ratings as a group was sufficient to produce a usable codebook.
Coders worked independently to rate all the birthday cards included in the study. They were instructed to read the card in its entirety before coding any of the variables and cards were coded one at a time. After coding was completed, all responses were compiled into a single database.
IRRs were performed using SPSS (Version 24). Fleiss’ Kappa was used to examine the categorical variables: age group, humor, time perspective, type of image, font style, positive aging stereotype, and negative aging stereotype. The Fleiss’ Kappa value was 1.00 for age group, 0.45 for humor, 0.27 for time perspective, 0.77 for font style, 0.32 for positive aging stereotype, and 0.49 for negative aging stereotype. Fleiss’ Kappa values between 0.40 and 0.59 are considered “fair” and less than 0.40 is considered “poor” (Fleiss et al., 1981). Because the humor and time-perspective variables fell in this range, they were both recoded as categorical binary variables to reflect either the presence (coded as 1) or absence (coded as 0) of humor and a time perspective. Both positive and negative aging stereotypes were excluded from further analysis due to low IRR. When discrepancies were present for the categorical variables, they were resolved by a majority decision. If all coders indicated a different value, a die was rolled to resolve the discrepancy.
Intraclass correlation was used for the quantitative variables: number of colors, color palette, word count, price, positive words, negative words, masculinity/femininity traits, and overall tone. The intraclass correlation value was 0.80 for number of colors, 0.85 for color palette, 0.98 for word count, 0.99 for price, 0.94 for positive words, 0.89 for negative words, 0.77 for masculinity/femininity traits, and 0.91 overall tone. All of these values are considered to be either “good” (0.60–0.75) or excellent (greater than 0.75; Cicchetti, 1994). To resolve discrepancies on quantitative variables, a mean score was calculated for each unit.
Results
Descriptive Statistics
All birthday cards (N = 227) were taken into further statistical analysis with no missing values. The frequency distribution of the age variable was as follows: 21 = 10.1%; 30 = 12.3%; 40 = 15.9%; 50 = 21.6%; 60 = 17.6%; 70 = 6.6%; 80 = 8.4%; 90 = 5.3%; and 100 = 2.2%. Among the coded cards, 41.9% displayed humor. For the time-perspective variable, 88.5% showed at least one time perspective. In terms of the theme of the cards, 14.1% had celebratory images; 17.6% had animals; 9.3% had at least a person; 5.3% had alcohol themes; 26% had generic graphic images; 7.9% had images not mentioned above; and 19.8% had no image. Lastly, 70.9% of the cards had words with informal font, whereas 3.5% had formal font. The remaining 25.6% contained both informal and formal fonts. Skewness and kurtosis revealed that all continuous variables were normally distributed (see Table 1).
Descriptive Statistics for Continuous Variables
| Variables | Sample size | Minimum | Maximum | Mean | Standard deviation | Skewness | Kurtosis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Word count | 227 | 4.00 | 102.67 | 28.8811 | 17.58061 | 1.102 | 1.175 |
| Color | 227 | 0.67 | 18.00 | 5.2482 | 2.69027 | 1.185 | 3.263 |
| Palette | 227 | 1.00 | 5.00 | 2.8532 | 1.05501 | −0.016 | −0.905 |
| Masculinity/femininity traits | 227 | 1.67 | 5.00 | 3.3084 | 0.61676 | 0.779 | 1.016 |
| Price | 224 | 2.97 | 7.99 | 4.3054 | 1.04761 | 0.714 | 0.115 |
| Tone | 227 | 1.00 | 5.00 | 3.5815 | 1.12213 | −0.581 | −0.828 |
| Variables | Sample size | Minimum | Maximum | Mean | Standard deviation | Skewness | Kurtosis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Word count | 227 | 4.00 | 102.67 | 28.8811 | 17.58061 | 1.102 | 1.175 |
| Color | 227 | 0.67 | 18.00 | 5.2482 | 2.69027 | 1.185 | 3.263 |
| Palette | 227 | 1.00 | 5.00 | 2.8532 | 1.05501 | −0.016 | −0.905 |
| Masculinity/femininity traits | 227 | 1.67 | 5.00 | 3.3084 | 0.61676 | 0.779 | 1.016 |
| Price | 224 | 2.97 | 7.99 | 4.3054 | 1.04761 | 0.714 | 0.115 |
| Tone | 227 | 1.00 | 5.00 | 3.5815 | 1.12213 | −0.581 | −0.828 |
Descriptive Statistics for Continuous Variables
| Variables | Sample size | Minimum | Maximum | Mean | Standard deviation | Skewness | Kurtosis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Word count | 227 | 4.00 | 102.67 | 28.8811 | 17.58061 | 1.102 | 1.175 |
| Color | 227 | 0.67 | 18.00 | 5.2482 | 2.69027 | 1.185 | 3.263 |
| Palette | 227 | 1.00 | 5.00 | 2.8532 | 1.05501 | −0.016 | −0.905 |
| Masculinity/femininity traits | 227 | 1.67 | 5.00 | 3.3084 | 0.61676 | 0.779 | 1.016 |
| Price | 224 | 2.97 | 7.99 | 4.3054 | 1.04761 | 0.714 | 0.115 |
| Tone | 227 | 1.00 | 5.00 | 3.5815 | 1.12213 | −0.581 | −0.828 |
| Variables | Sample size | Minimum | Maximum | Mean | Standard deviation | Skewness | Kurtosis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Word count | 227 | 4.00 | 102.67 | 28.8811 | 17.58061 | 1.102 | 1.175 |
| Color | 227 | 0.67 | 18.00 | 5.2482 | 2.69027 | 1.185 | 3.263 |
| Palette | 227 | 1.00 | 5.00 | 2.8532 | 1.05501 | −0.016 | −0.905 |
| Masculinity/femininity traits | 227 | 1.67 | 5.00 | 3.3084 | 0.61676 | 0.779 | 1.016 |
| Price | 224 | 2.97 | 7.99 | 4.3054 | 1.04761 | 0.714 | 0.115 |
| Tone | 227 | 1.00 | 5.00 | 3.5815 | 1.12213 | −0.581 | −0.828 |
Correlations
Pearson’s correlations were conducted for continuous variables (see Table 2). Correlation analysis found that ageist messages were associated with more words, r = 0.31, p < .001, higher price, r = 0.19, p = .004, and femininity traits, r = 0.40, p < .001, but not number of colors in cards, r = 0.00, p = .980, or warm/cold palette, r = 0.09, p = .169.
Zero-Order Correlations Among Continuous Variables
| Correlation | 1. | 2. | 3. | 4. | 5. | 6. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Word count | 1 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2. Color | 0.185** | 1 | — | — | — | — |
| 3. Palette | −0.046 | −0.004 | 1 | — | — | — |
| 4. Price | 0.009 | −0.064 | −0.089 | 1 | — | — |
| 5. Masculinity/femininity traits | 0.117 | 0.027 | −0.204** | 0.033 | 1 | — |
| 6. Tone | 0.309*** | 0.002 | 0.092 | 0.191** | 0.395*** | 1 |
| Correlation | 1. | 2. | 3. | 4. | 5. | 6. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Word count | 1 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2. Color | 0.185** | 1 | — | — | — | — |
| 3. Palette | −0.046 | −0.004 | 1 | — | — | — |
| 4. Price | 0.009 | −0.064 | −0.089 | 1 | — | — |
| 5. Masculinity/femininity traits | 0.117 | 0.027 | −0.204** | 0.033 | 1 | — |
| 6. Tone | 0.309*** | 0.002 | 0.092 | 0.191** | 0.395*** | 1 |
Notes: **p < .01. ***p < .001.
Zero-Order Correlations Among Continuous Variables
| Correlation | 1. | 2. | 3. | 4. | 5. | 6. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Word count | 1 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2. Color | 0.185** | 1 | — | — | — | — |
| 3. Palette | −0.046 | −0.004 | 1 | — | — | — |
| 4. Price | 0.009 | −0.064 | −0.089 | 1 | — | — |
| 5. Masculinity/femininity traits | 0.117 | 0.027 | −0.204** | 0.033 | 1 | — |
| 6. Tone | 0.309*** | 0.002 | 0.092 | 0.191** | 0.395*** | 1 |
| Correlation | 1. | 2. | 3. | 4. | 5. | 6. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Word count | 1 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2. Color | 0.185** | 1 | — | — | — | — |
| 3. Palette | −0.046 | −0.004 | 1 | — | — | — |
| 4. Price | 0.009 | −0.064 | −0.089 | 1 | — | — |
| 5. Masculinity/femininity traits | 0.117 | 0.027 | −0.204** | 0.033 | 1 | — |
| 6. Tone | 0.309*** | 0.002 | 0.092 | 0.191** | 0.395*** | 1 |
Notes: **p < .01. ***p < .001.
Primary Analyses
Hypothesis 1: ageist messages by milestone birthday year
A one-way between-subjects analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted to examine whether the overall tone of the birthday cards differed based on the intended age of the receiver. A Levene’s test for homogeneity of variance indicated that the variance of overall tone was not statistically equal among age groups and should not be assumed, F(8, 218) = 6.360, p < .001. Based on the corrected model of the omnibus F-test for the one-way ANOVA, overall tone was statistically different among each age group, F(8, 218) = 4.47, p < .001, partial η2 = 0.14. The effect size indicates about 14% of the variance in the overall tone of the card could be explained by the age of the intended receiver. A post hoc test was necessary to determine the pattern of mean differences.
The least significant difference test was used to examine all possible pairwise comparisons. Based on the statistical convention, α = 0.05, birthday cards intended for decade years 30–60 contained significantly more ageist messages than cards intended for decade years 70–100 as well as age 21, which did not significantly differ from each other (see Figure 1 and Supplementary Table 1).
Overall tone among age groups. Lower overall tone indicated more ageist messages and vice versa.
Hypothesis 2: presence of humor by age group
A chi-square test was conducted to examine whether the presence/absence of humor differed based on the intended age of the receiver. The results indicated that the presence/absence of humor was statistically different among each age group, χ2(8) = 41.01, p < .001, Cramer’s V = 0.425. Using the conventional significance level of adjusted residual < 1.96 (equivalent to p < .05), post hoc analysis revealed that the rate of humor presence was significantly higher in 50-year-old birthday cards but significantly lower in 70- to 90-year-old cards (Figure 2).
The ratio of the presence of humor among age groups. Higher ratio indicated a higher likelihood of the presence of humor in decade birthday cards and vice versa.
Hypothesis 3: humor and ageism
An independent t test was performed to examine mean differences in overall tone based on the presence of humor. Levene’s test for homogeneity of variance was significant, F = 34.47, p < .001. Due to the unequal variances, the adjusted t test, which did not assume equal variance, was reported. The mean overall tone of cards was rated significantly lower for those expressing humor (M = 2.56, SD = 0.87) than those not expressing humor (M = 4.31, SD = 0.58), t(153.22) = 17.02, p < .001, d = 2.37, indicating higher levels of ageist messages in cards with humor versus cards without humor.
Exploratory Analyses
Image type and overall tone
A one-way between-subjects ANOVA was conducted to examine the overall tone of the birthday cards based on image types. Levene’s test for homogeneity of variance was significant, F(6, 220) = 3.80, p = .001, and therefore the corrected model was reported. The omnibus one-way ANOVA was statistically significant, F(6, 220) = 15.68, p < .001, partial η2 = 0.30. Overall, cards with images of people and animals contained more ageist messages when compared with cards containing celebratory and generic images (see Supplementary Table 2).
Font style and overall tone
A one-way between-subjects ANOVA was conducted to examine patterns of mean differences in overall tone based on font styles. A Levene’s test for homogeneity of variance was significant, F(2, 224) = 4.19, p = .016; the corrected model was reported. The omnibus one-way ANOVA was statistically significant, F(2, 224) = 11.09, p < .001, partial η2 = 0.09 (see Supplementary Table 3). Overall, cards with informal font types contained statistically more ageist messages compared to combination font types, and marginally more ageist messages than formal font types.
Time perspective and overall tone
An independent t test was performed to examine mean differences in overall tone based on the presence of time perspective. Levene’s test for homogeneity of variance was not significant, F = 0.001, p = .981. The mean overall tone of cards was rated significantly lower for those without a time perspective (M = 2.73, SD = 1.06) than those with a time perspective (M = 3.70, SD = 1.08), t(224) = 4.28, p < .001, d = 0.91, indicating higher levels of ageist messages in cards without a time perspective.
Common card characteristics and overall tone
A single-step multiple regression was performed to determine the relationship between all variables associated with overall tone (as shown on previous results) as predictors (humor, time perspective, age group, word count, price, masculinity/femininity traits, type of images, and font style) and overall tone portrayed in the birthday cards as an outcome while the predictors controlled for each other’s effects on overall tone. Categorical variables with multiple groups, including age group, type of images, and font style were first dummy-coded before use in the regression model. Among the dummy variables, 21-year-old, no image, and formal font style were set as references. No multicollinearity problems were detected for continuous variables (variance inflation factor values ranged from 1.20 to 2.33). The linear regression model explained 71% of the variance of overall tone, R = 0.84, adjusted R2 = 0.67, F(21, 201) = 22.88, p < .001. After controlling for other variables, word count (β = 0.13, b = 0.01, p = .004), femininity traits (β = 0.14, b = 0.25, p = .002), and presence of humor (β = −0.64, b = −1.45, p < .001) were significantly associated with overall tone, whereas time perspective (β = 0.07, b = 0.26, p = .080) was marginally associated with overall tone (see Supplementary Table 4). However, after controlling for other predictors, price did not come out as a significant predictor of overall tone. Therefore, more words, more feminine characteristics, the absence of humor, and the presence of time perspective were associated with more positive tone. In other words, fewer words, more masculine characteristics, the presence of humor, and the absence of time perspective were associated with more ageist messages.
Discussion
The current study investigated ageism in American culture through an examination of decade birthday cards. Results of this study indicated that (1) ageist messages were more present in birthday cards intended for recipients 30–60 years of age compared to cards intended for those 70–100 years of age; (2) humor was also more frequent in birthday cards intended for recipients 21–60 years of age compared to cards intended for recipients 70–100 years of age; and (3) birthday cards with humor showed more ageist messages when compared to cards without humor. It was also found that ageism in decade birthday cards was associated with cards containing a greater number of images of people and animals, informal font type, and masculine characteristics, and those with fewer words and a time perspective (e.g., past or future).
The present study replicated findings from decades ago (Dillon & Jones, 1981; Ellis & Morrison, 2005) that ageism is more blatantly presented between 30 and 60 years of age. Further, we found that humor is a subtle way to hide ageist messages without directly insulting the receiver of the card, between the ages of 30 and 60, but not between the ages of 70 and 100. As an illustrative example, one particular birthday card designed for individuals turning 50 portrayed them as cranky and suggested that a sense of humor may be the first thing to diminish, implying potential cognitive decline. Past studies have pointed out that ageism did not only target older adults; rather, it also affects younger and middle-aged adults (Chasteen et al., 2020). In fact, it is not common to find blatant ageism directed toward older adults; it is generally considered culturally inappropriate, which might explain the present findings (Stanciu, 2020).
Past mixed-method studies on ageism and birthday cards were conducted at least one decade ago (Dillon & Jones, 1981; Ellis & Morrison, 2005). Because American culture has shifted, especially on social issues, a current evaluation of the characteristics of ageist messages in decade birthday cards was warranted. Our findings largely corroborated past findings, implying that despite years of ageism studies, the social atmosphere and bias against aging are still very much present. American culture has progressed with other “-isms,” such as sexism and racism, but prejudice against the concept of “old age” remains largely unabated. What is observed in the present study might reflect the current societal perception of “old age,” which for many people may seem harmless and at times “funny.” Nevertheless, such humor comes with a price. For example, ageism is associated with negative health outcomes (Chang et al., 2020). Considering its negative impact and pervasiveness in the American culture, steps must be taken to combat ageism.
Consumers hold power through purchases they choose to make. If people are buying birthday cards with ageist connotations, card companies will continue making them. As our findings suggest, decade birthday cards intended for individuals between the ages of 30 and 60 contained the most ageist messages. It is highly likely that these cards are purchased by the recipients’ peers, who are young or middle-aged adults. According to the SIT, these younger and middle-aged adults may categorize older adults as an outgroup and find the ageist messages on the birthday cards amusing because they do not personally affect them. This comes at a cost because many are unaware of how humor can mask ageism. However, hope exists. The new generations came of age in a period of historical change; they were instrumental in influencing improvements in racial and gender equality. It is possible these new generations will also be instrumental in bringing about age equality. Refusal to purchase birthday cards that contain ageist messages is one action step that may influence manufacturers to reduce the production of such cards. Being more mindful when purchasing birthday cards can be the first step to recognize and fight ageism. In a more proactive approach, consumers can write to the manufacturers expressing their concerns about ageism on these birthday cards or create their own age-friendly birthday cards. We also encourage the sharing of these age-friendly birthday cards on social media, as it will help raise awareness about ageism. Additionally, manufacturers can collaborate to create an age-friendly society. They can benefit from the Frameworks Institute’s Reframing Aging project (2020) in their efforts to reshape society’s perception of aging. For example, the Frameworks Institute (2020) recommends showcasing older adults engaging in activities or socializing with others as a preferred and positive representation. Furthermore, in a broader context, college instructors can incorporate ageism into curricula related to age or discrimination to raise awareness among young adults, who are highly active on social media (Sawchuk, 2018).
Limitations and Future Directions
The present study contained several limitations. First, although the IRR fell within an acceptable range for most study variables, a few variables, such as humor, time perspective, as well as positive and negative aging stereotypes, had poor IRR, and were either transformed into binary variables (i.e., humor and time perspective), or removed from further analysis (i.e., positive and negative aging stereotypes). It is suspected that poor IRR may be a result of ambiguous coding criteria, individual differences, personal biases, or complicated latent constructs (Gisev et al., 2013). Clarifying the operational definition of these variables in future research could improve reliability. Second, when dummy coding variables, it is important to have a minimum of 10 units for each variable (Crano et al., 2014). This requirement was not satisfied for age 100, due to the low volume of decade birthday cards intended for those turning 100 years of age.
Additionally, the card samples were collected from national retail chain stores, which was intended to increase the external validity of study outcomes. Considering external validity along a continuum, the sample gathered for this study is higher than if only one store was sampled, but lower than if cards had been sampled from stores throughout the United States. Future research could increase the external validity by acquiring a larger, more diverse sample of birthday cards.
Furthermore, with the advancement of technology, the popularity of sending birthday cards electronically, known as e-cards, has increased (Zeman & Zeman, 2017). Older adults, in comparison to young adults, are less familiar with technology and are more accustomed to traditional paper formats (Gitlow, 2014). Due to this reason and the aim of comparing birthday cards intended for different age groups, the current study did not include e-cards in the sample. With a qualitative methodology, Zeman and Zeman (2017) examined themes of e-cards from a British website and reported similar themes as Ellis and Morrison (2005). Based on this finding, future research can adopt a mixed-methods approach and examine the association between humor and ageism in these e-cards.
It should also be noted that the numbers of cards in the various age groups were unequal. This resulted in certain age groups being overrepresented compared to others. Therefore, instead of a convenience sample, future studies of this kind could benefit from quota sampling to ensure inclusion of an adequate number of cards from all ages, ultimately lead to a balanced sample. Random sampling could also be used to potentially provide researchers with deeper insights into the patterns of ageism contained in birthday cards.
In addition to the aforementioned points, future research can also look into how recipients perceive birthday cards that contain ageist messages, exploring whether they perceive them as harmless or offensive. Future studies can also incorporate direct measurements to assess subtle and blatant as well as micro and macro forms of ageism present on birthday cards. And lastly, researchers can investigate the incorporation of the ethnoracial identity of individuals portrayed on the card, as well as indicators related to sexual and gender identity.
Last but not least, culture plays a significant role in psychology (Lin & Liu, 2021), including ageism (North, 2022) and humor (Lin et al., 2021). While Western cultures portray older adults as warm but incompetent, Eastern cultures emphasize respect and filial piety toward older adults (North, 2022). However, this does not imply that Eastern cultures are entirely free from ageism. Ageism may manifest in different ways in Eastern societies. Conducting cross-cultural studies on ageism and birthday cards will further contribute to the field. Furthermore, Ellis and Morrison (2005) was based in Canada, and they acknowledged that despite the similarities between the United States and Canada, there may be nuanced cultural differences. The same applies to Zeman and Zeman (2017) conducted in Britain. Exploring these nuanced differences could provide directions for future studies.
Conclusion
Humor in a birthday card might seem innocuous on the surface. However, ageism in birthday cards contributes to the internalization of ageist messages. Humor is commonly used to mask the negative tone of age-related messages. It is important to consider the implications of such a card when selecting one for a friend or loved one. Greeting card companies reflect the dominant culture and produce cards based on consumer demand. Consumers at any age can affect the production of such cards by refusing to purchase them. Both blatant and subtle ageist messages portrayed in birthday cards are an indicator of larger systemic problems in society. Learning to recognize these messages in birthday cards, questioning them, and choosing an alternate option is one small step in the right direction to halting the spread of ageist messages.
Funding
None.
Conflict of Interest
None.
Data Availability
Data are available upon reasonable request. The study is not preregistered.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to express their gratitude to Dr. Jennifer Roberts for her invaluable assistance in data collection and to Dr. Andrew Lac for his feedback on statistics.
Author Contributions
Shayne Lin (Conceptualization [Supporting], Formal analysis [Lead], Investigation [Equal], Methodology [Equal], Project administration [Equal], Visualization [Lead], Writing – original draft [Supporting], Writing – review & editing [Lead]) and Allison Walden (Conceptualization [Lead], Formal analysis [Supporting], Investigation [Equal], Project administration [Equal], Writing – original draft [Lead], Writing – review & editing [Supporting])
