Table 2:

Stereotypes about Older Workers’ Personality

Aggregate Stereotype	Phrasing	Source
Less Adaptable	“[less] flexible in doing different tasks,” “[less likely to] try new approaches”	AARP (2000) (p. 6)
	“occupationally flexible”	Karpinska et al. (2013)
	“[more] flexibility”	Levin (1988) (p. 142)
	“[less likely to] adapt to change,” “[less likely to] grasp new ideas”	Lyon and Pollard (1997) (p. 252)
	“older workers are less flexible than younger workers.”	McCann and Keaton (2013)
	“resistant to change”	McGregor and Gray (2002)
	“find difficult to change,” “old-fashioned”	Schmidt and Boland (1986)
	“adapt less well to change,” “are less able to grasp new ideas”	Warr and Pennington (1993) (p. 89)
	“resistant to change”	Weiss and Maurer (2004)
	“talks of past,” “focuses away from future toward past”	Kite et al. (1991)
	“less flexible,” “more old-fashioned”	Stewart and Ryan (1982)
Careful	“think before they act”	Lyon and Pollard (1997) (p. 251)
	“older workers are more cautious than younger workers.”	McCann and Keaton (2013)
	“cautiousness,” “self-discipline”	Truxillo et al. (2012) (p. 2623)
	“think before they act”	Warr and Pennington (1993) (p. 89)
	“better practical judgment,” “better common sense”	Hendrick et al. (1988)
Less Creative	“[lower] creativity”	Levin (1988) (p. 142)
	“[lower] creativity”	van Dalen, Henkens, and Schippers (2009) (p. 21)
Dependable	“loyal”	AARP (2000) (p. 6)
	“[more] stability”	Crew (1984) (p.433)
	“more reliable,” “committed to the organization”	van Dalen, Henkens, and Schippers (2009) (p. 21)
	“stable”	Finkelstein, Burke, and Raju (1995)
	“trustworthy,” “reliability,” “commitment”	Kroon et al. (2016) (p. 16)
	“are loyal to the organization”	Lyon and Pollard (1997) (p. 251)
	“reliability,” “loyalty,” “job commitment”	McGregor and Gray (2002)
	“loyal to the company,” “are reliable”	Pitt-Catsouphes et al. (2007) (p. 8)
	“more loyal to the organization” “more reliable”	Warr and Pennington (1993) (p. 89)
	“more stable”	Singer (1986)
	“more trustworthy”	Stewart and Ryan (1982)
Negative Personality	“dejected,” “poor,” “hopeless,” “unhappy,” “lonely,” “insecure,” “complains a lot,” “grouchy,” “critical,” “miserly”	Kite et al. (1991)
	“[less] pleasantness”	Levin (1988) (p. 143)
	“ill-tempered,” “bitter,” “demanding,” “complaining,” “annoying,” “humorless,” “selfish,” “prejudiced,” “suspicious of strangers,” “easily upset,” “miserly,” “snobbish”	Schmidt and Boland (1986)
	“[less] friendliness,” “[less] cheerfulness”	Truxillo et al. (2012) (p. 2623)
Warm Personality	“warm,” “good-natured,” “benevolent,” “amicable”	Krings, Sczesney, and Kluge (2010)
	“Warm personality”	Kroon et al. (2016) (p. 16)
	“more conscientious”	Warr and Pennington (1993) (p. 89)
	“warm”	Fiske et al. (2002)