When are you planning to retire? A qualitative study of ageism among older women in the federal government
Open AccessThis research was conducted to explore the experience of women over 55 in a civil government agency to answer the research question: How do female employees, aged 55 or over in managerial or executive positions, experience age and gender stereotypes in the U.S. federal civil service?The purpose of this exploratory qualitative interview-based study was to study the age-related experience of female federal civil servants 55 years or older who worked in managerial or executive positions in a U.S. federal civil agency. The study focused on one agency to provide a concentrated opportunity in a single environment to identify age-related issues in the interview data, namely influences such as job requirements, work-life priorities, and potential stereotypes they had experienced in the agency that guided their personal and business decisions. The study also looked at influences, such as family, friends, or the media, that may have affected how they viewed their experience and investigated the potential role that stereotype threat or stereotype embodiment played in their work experience. Over a 4-month period in the fall of 2019, 13 interviews were conducted generating three primary findings. Many older women are confident with high self-esteem regarding their abilities and their contributions to their employment. However, even with a strong self-image, the first finding identified reoccurring age-related and gender-related comments that had an influence on them, leading them to second-guess others’ motives as well as their work and retirement decisions. The second finding identified that a more youthful appearance matters in the business environment, especially in more senior roles, and not adequately maintaining hair, makeup, clothing, and fitness were perceived to have greater consequences for women than for their male counterparts. The third finding revealed that although anti-discrimination laws are in place, for many older female employees, microaggressions indicate that equality challenges still exist in the workplace. Statements of continued inequality was embedded throughout the interviews during discussions of race, gender, and age experiences with the common message from the interviewees that they wanted to be treated fairly. This study contributes to both theory and practice, adding new insights to the theoretical understanding of stereotype threat and stereotype embodiment while offering practitioners insight into the microaggressions women face in a work environment.
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