- 期刊
從老人到長者：醫藥衛生期刊論文形容高齡者用詞之現況與變遷
From the Elderly to Seniors: The Current Status and Changes in the Word Choice to Describe Older Adults in Articles in Medical and Health Care Journals
摘要
研究背景：全球多國人口高齡化，台灣亦快速邁入超高齡社會，在流行文化崇拜青春的情況下，對高齡者普遍存著負面刻板印象，形成「年齡歧視」，阻礙高齡者身心健康與發展。美國心理學會出版手冊強調論文作者必須盡量使用無偏見的語言，但對於中文期刊文章中，形容高齡者中文用詞的探討仍付之闕如。研究目的：以醫藥衛生類別的台灣期刊文章，分析在標題中高齡者形容詞的使用趨勢和現況。研究方法：本研究利用收錄於華藝線上圖書館中文電子期刊服務資料庫，檢索2012至2021年間，共10年所刊登之繁體中文、醫藥衛生分類的電子期刊。檢索篇名欄位中與高齡形容詞的相關用詞進行分析。研究結果：結果共蒐集1,784篇文章，分別刊登在149本期刊內容。形容高齡者用詞出現共1,823次，依照出現次數比例排序，顯示「老人」出現最多（22.7%）、「老年」次之（17.8%）、「高齡」再次之（16.0%）。「高齡」和「長輩或長者」的用詞在2021年的使用比例最高，而「老人、老齡、年邁」的用詞變化，則在2014年後的使用則下降。研究結論：近年使用中性形容高齡者用詞，如「高齡」和「長輩或長者」的文章標題，有增加的趨勢。然而，使用「老人、老齡、年邁」的情況仍然為數不少。期刊編輯和審稿委員應具備覺察偏見用詞的敏感度，當遇到使用年齡偏見用詞的稿件，應予以提醒糾正，並提供正確用詞的建議，以免成為「沉默的同謀」。
並列摘要
Background: While many countries are grappling with population ageing, Taiwan is heading rapidly toward a super-aged society. Amid the worshipping of youth in popular culture, older adults are negatively stereotyped in general. This has led to ageism and undermining the physical and mental well-being and development of older adults. The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association stresses that it is imperative for journal authors to use unbiased language wherever possible; however, the use of descriptive terms for older adults in Chinese journal articles remains underdiscussed. Objective: To analyze the trend and status quo of the use of descriptive terms for older adults in the titles of Taiwanese journal articles classified as medicine- and health-related. Methods: The current study used Airiti Library's Chinese Electronic Periodical Services database to retrieve electronic journals published in traditional Chinese in the category of "Health & Medical Care" over the 10-year period between 2012 and 2021. Terms related to the descriptions of old age in the title field were retrieved for analysis. Results: A total of 1,784 articles were collected across 149 journals. Descriptive terms for older adults appeared 1,823 times. They included, in descending order of their frequency of occurrence, "lǎorén" (literally "old man") (22.7%), "lǎonián" ("old year") (17.8%), and "gāolíng" ("high age") (16.0%). "Gāolíng" and "zhǎngbèi" (older generation) or "zhǎngzhě" ("senior") were the most frequently used terms in 2021, whereas the use of "lǎorén," "lǎolíng" ("old age"), and "niánmài" ("aged") had declined since 2014. Conclusions: In recent years, there has been an upward trend in the use of neutral descriptive terms for older adults, such as "gāolíng" and "zhǎngbèi" or "zhǎngzhě," in article titles. Despite this, the use of "lǎorén," "lǎolíng," and "niánmài" remains non-negligible. Journal editors and review committees should be sensitive and perceptive to the use of biased terms, prompt the author of any manuscript that contains age-biased words to make rectifications, and suggest suitable alternatives to such words to avoid being complicit by way of silence.