Role of age and gender in the perception of aging: a community-based survey in Kuwait.

It was aimed at investigating the perception of the aging process by the adult population in Kuwait and the existence of gender-dependent ageism. A total of 305 adults aged between 20 and 64 years were selected among those attending health centers in Kuwait. They were interviewed using a pre-tested questionnaire and data was collected through direct one-to-one interview using the incidental sampling method. Over 74% of both group of respondents considered age as a defining factor for elderly women, however, only 62.2% of women and 67% of men thought age defined elderly men. Body image was an important criterion and a significant association between age of the respondents with body image and mental alertness in defining elderly women was observed (p<0.001). Only 1.6% agreed that the elderly required geriatric homes, 69.9% agreed they feared death and up to 78.8% of the respondents agreed that the elderly were irritable. Some degree of gender ageism was evident in both groups of respondents. In general, though Kuwait has undergone extensive socio-cultural changes associated with modernization, the status of the elderly as an indispensable part of the family continues to remain.