If a society’s “human capital” is its greatest asset, then the accumulated wisdom and experience of its older generations ought to be given top priority for development!

Our elders have much to give us, but American culture tends to disregard the social, emotional, intellectual and spiritual gifts of its elders. It marginalizes older people – a tendency that is counterproductive to a whole and healthy society

To the Associated Press, study co-author Becca Levy, now an assistant professor at Yale University, hypothesized: positive stereotypes may "change their mood or self-confidence and that impacts their behavior."

A study just published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society used electronic shoes to show senior shuffle may be more the result of stereotypes than reality. Subjects shown positive messages during a computer game walked 9 percent faster than poky participants whose screens projected words with a negative tone.

A recent survey conducted by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) indicates Baby Boomers remain committed to the sexual freedom they fought for in their youth.

Only 36 percent of women and 28 percent of men agreed "people should not have a sexual relationship if they are not married." Among their parents' generation (age 75 or older), those percentages were almost double: 66 and 50, respectively.

71 percent of men and 48 percent of women aged 45-59 judge sexual activity to be important to their overall quality of life. Among their elders (75 or older), those figures are 35 and 13 percent, respectively.

Interestingly, the figures for "romance" are the reverse of those for sexual activity: a mere 29 percent of women aged 45-59 saw their partner as romantic, compared to 53 percent for women 75 or older.The study found that Americans stay sexually active as they age, but at a declining rate. Among those with sexual partners, more than 60 percent of men and women aged 45-59 said they engage in sexual intercourse once a week or more. That declines to about 25 percent for those 75 and older.

30 percent of men and 16 percent of women said improved health would enhance their satisfaction with their sex lives; one in five overall thought better health for their partner would help. 15 percent of the men who reported moderate or complete impotence (one in four) say they have used Viagra or discount soma.

In a Modern Maturity article accompanying the survey, writer Susan Jacoby notes, "The gap in attitudes between women over and under 60 suggests that Baby Boomer women, the oldest of whom are in their late 40s and early 50s, will be much less likely than their mothers' generation to accept celibacy as the natural outcome of widowhood." Adds Shirley Zussman, Ed.D., a couples therapist in New York City, "These women came of age believing they had a right to sexual pleasure and that belief isn't going to evaporate at age 65 or 75."

Going against the popular "youth-oriented" culture, the number of people who view their partners as romantic and/or physically attractive does not decline with age; it may actually increase.

Six of every 10 men aged 45-59 gave their partners the highest possible ratings for being "physically attractive," citing the phrase "strongly applies." By age 75, 64 percent gave their partners this high rating. As for older women, 52 percent in their 40's and 50's gave their partners the highest possible rating as "physically attractive," and 57 percent of those age 75 and over gave the same response.

The results were based on a mail survey of 1,384 adults aged 45 and older which was completed during March 1999 by National Family Opinion Research, Inc.