#PositiveAging: A Content Analysis of Positive Aging TikTok Videos

The communication ecology model of successful aging (CEMSA) proposes that the messages individuals receive from the social environment, and their own communication about aging, shape the communication ecology of aging, which in turn influences the degree to which individuals experience successful aging. This content analysis study provides insight into the communication ecology of aging by examining the messages about aging forwarded by positive aging TikTok videos. Two-hundred and seventy videos from the top five most viewed positive aging hashtags were coded. Messages about appearance and evaluations of aging appear more frequently than messages about ability or advice about aging. Overall, these videos presented aging in a positive light; however, messages about skin, cognitive ability, advice about aging, and the #agingwell hashtag represented aging in a more negative light. The majority of positive aging TikTok videos feature middle-aged and older adults. Implications for the CEMSA are discussed.