‘’Being old’’ is a master status that commonly overshadows all others in the United States. The insights of labeling theory help us analyze the consequences of aging. Once people are labeled ’’old’’ this designation has a major impact on how others perceive them and even on how they view themselves. Negative stereotypes of the elderly contribute to their position as a minority group subject to discrimination as we’’ll see later in the chapter. The model of five basic properties of a minority or subordinate group (introduced in Chapter 10) can be applied to older people in the United States to clarify their subordinate status