1. Conforming or opposing the stereotypes
Conforming or opposing the stereotypes? A study of the sexuality of Croatian older adults
Matija Sinković
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb
Department of Sociology
Healthy sexual aging project - financed by the Norwegian Research Council

2. Stereotypes and aging
Beliefs about older adults as a generalized group
Stereotype embodiment theory: effects on behaviour, physical outcomes, cognitive and mental health (Levy, 2009; Mesiner & Levy 2011)
Normative barriers to Sexual expression
Sexual activity associated with well being
Sexuality: negative attitudes about attractiveness in old age (Löckenhoff et al., 2009)
The asexuality stereotype
“The oldie stereotype”: successful aging?

3. Aging and sexuality stereotypes
Older adults are asexual or not interested in sexual relations.
Older adults who demonstrate an interest in sex are abnormal.
It is acceptable for older men to marry younger women but not for older women to marry younger men.
Older men who engage in sexual relationships are considered virile yet lecherous.
Older women who engage in sex are considered amoral or abnormal because it is assumed they lose interest in sex after menopause.
Older persons should be segregated by gender in nursing homes to avoid problems for staff and criticism from family and community members.
(Huffstetler, 2006)

4. Stereotypes – are they there?
All of the restrictive seterotypes above are found in:
Older research
Media analysis
Healthcare providers
Institutional policies
Newer studies on attitudes toward aging sexuality:
Moderately permissive and positive attitudes
Men have highest sexual stigma scores regardless of age
(Syme & Cohn, 2017)

5. STEREOTYPES OF AGING AND SEXUALITY IN CROATIAN OLDER ADULTS
Stereotypes older adults encounter
Stereotypic attitudes they have internalised
Reaction to stereotypes, effects on sexual expression
33 in-depth, semi-structured interviews
Duration 1 – 2 hours
Recruitment: retirement homes, gerontology centres, Red Cross, happenings for older adults, NGO-s, leaflets, posters, lectures
Sub-sample: 10 interviews, (6 female, 4 male)
Thematic analysis

6. General remarks Participants do not talk about sterotypes Openess
Resilience to trauma
Lack of working class
Generation gap
Accessibility of information
Traumatic experiences of women
Homosexuality

11. Some quotes 1
"...No, my God, no way ... I cannot imagine older [people] having intercourse, how can they use their old, flabby bodies, really...“ (Female, 82) "The other side, man is watching out, if he hears [my] years over the phone, then I am old for him. And he is 75! But when he hears 69, he sees a barrel! ... One guy asked me: "Pretty please, how do you look? I don't want a barrel by my side.“ (Female, 69) "I know many men can't accept it, I just think it is the natural course of life, someone dies and someone loses [desire]” (Male, 67)

12. Some quotes 2
“ I am at check-up and he [GP] says: “Well, you don’t have a partner anyways. And I was in a relationship at the time: “Who says I don’t have a partner!?” (Female , 79) And the guy [doctor] was confused, “what do you want why do you complain anyways! You have sugar [diabetes] and you are still sexually active! What do you want?” (Male, 67) I mostly don’t talk about sex, I do it my way. I know younger think we old ones don’t need sex, but we do. You’ll see one day. (Female, 73)