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Children's attitudes toward old people and aging
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Children's attitudes toward old people and aging
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CHILDREN’S ATTITUDES TOW ARD
OLD PEO PLE AND AGING
by
M arian C laire Miller
A Thesis Presented to the
FACULTY O F TH E LEONARD DAVIS SCHOOL O F GERONTOLOGY
UNIVERSITY O F SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirem ents for the Degree
M ASTER O F SCIENCE
(Gerontology)
August 1996
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UMI Number: 1381598
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UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
LEONARD DAVIS SCHOOL OF GERONTOLOGY
University Park
Los Angeles, CA 90089
This thesis, written by
Marian Claire Miller_________________________________
under the director of her Thesis Committee, and approved by all its
members, has been presented to and accepted by the Dean of the Leonard
Davis School of Gerontology, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for
the degree of Master of Science. Lerontologv__________________
Dean
Date
THESIS COMMITTEE
Chairman
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Introduction...................................................................................................... I
Chapter I. Literature R e v ie w ...................................................................... 6
Attitude Formation in Children......................................................... 7
Changing Social Trends in Grandparent-Grandchild Interactions .. 9
Ageism in the United States................................................................. 10
Changing Policy Perspectives on Entitlement Programs
for the Elderly......................................................................................... 11
The Social Phenomenon o f Victim-Blaming...........................................12
Stereotyping the Elderly...................................................................... 13
Media Depiction o f Older Adults.......................................................... 14
Children’s Attitudes Toward Aging......................................................... 16
Adolescents’ Attitudes on Aging..............................................................18
Qualitative Dimensions in Attitude Form ation......................................19
Attitude Changes Occurring with Maturation........................................20
Social Distance Between Generations.....................................................20
Impact o f Intergenerational Programs on Children’s A ttitudes.. . . 21
Methodological Issues in Intergenerational Studies.......................... 22
Summary................................................................................................. 26
Chapter II. M ethod........................................................................................... 28
Hypotheses............................................................................................... 28
Sample..................................................................................................... 29
Measurement Instrument....................................................................... 29
Procedures............................................................................................ 32
Data Analysis..................................................................................... 34
Limitations o f the Study....................................................................... 36
Chapter HI. R esults.......................................................................................... 37
General Knowledge About A ging....................................................... 37
General Attitudes About Aging...............................................................39
Attitudes About Self-Aging................................................................. 40
Children’s Attitudes About an Older Volunteer in Classroom .... 41
Children’s Evaluative Attitudes About Old People.......................... 44
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Page
Chapter IV. Discussion........................................................................................ 65
General Knowledge About Aging....................................................... 65
General Attitudes About Aging.......................................................... 66
Attitudes About Self-Aging................................................................ 67
Children’s Evaluative Attitudes About Old People.......................... 69
Children’s Attitudes About an Older Volunteer in Classroom .... 69
Chapter V. Summary....................................................................................... 71
References......................................................................................................... 74
Appendices
Appendix A (Children’s Views on Aging Questionnaire)............................ 78
Appendix B (Response Categories to Open-Ended Questions from the
CVoA Children’s Attitude Survey)................................................................... 86
Appendix C (Palmore’s Facts on Aging Quiz - - M odified)............................ 97
iii
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LIST OF TABLES
Page
Table 1. Responses o f Curriculum Only Group and Curriculum + Volunteer
Group on Frequency o f Personal Visits with Grandparents................. 47
Table 2. Responses o f Curriculum Only Group and Curriculum + Volunteer
Group on Frequency o f Phone Conversations with Grandparents .... 47
Table 3. Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses o f Curriculum Only Group and
Curriculum + Volunteer Group on General Attitudes About Aging
Question “Do you think growing old is good/bad/neither?” ................ 48
Table 4. Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses o f Curriculum Only Group and
Curriculum + Volunteer Group on General Attitudes About Aging
Question “How do you think it feels to be an old person?” .................... 49
Table 5. Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses o f Curriculum Only Group and
Curriculum + Volunteer Group on General Attitudes About Aging
Question “What happens when you get to be an old person?” 50
Table 6. Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses o f Curriculum Only Group and
Curriculum + Volunteer Group on Attitudes About Self-Aging
Question “What do you think you will be like when you are old?” . . . 51
Table 7. Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses o f Curriculum Only Group and
Curriculum + Volunteer Group on Attitudes About Self-Aging
Question “How do you think you will feel when you are old?” .... 52
Table 8. Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses o f Curriculum Only Group and
Curriculum + Volunteer Group on Attitudes About Self-Aging
Question “What do you think you will do when you are old?” ......... 53
Table 9. Pre-Test Responses o f Curriculum Only Group and Curriculum
+ Volunteer Group on Attitudes About Having an Old Person
In Classroom on Question “Do you think an old person in
the classroom could bore you?” ..................................................... 54
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Page
Table 10. Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses of Curriculum Only Group on
Attitudes About Having an Old Person In Classroom on Question
“Do you think an old person could help you with your work?” ... 54
Table 11. Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses o f Curriculum Only Group
On Attitudes About Having an Old Person In Classroom on
Question “Do you think an old person could be your friend?” .... 55
Table 12. Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses o f Curriculum Only Group
On Attitudes About Having an Old Person in Classroom
Question “Do you think an old person could bore you?” .............. 55
Table 13. Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses o f Curriculum + Volunteer
Group on What Would Motivate an Old Person to Work in
Classroom “Would an old person come to you classroom
because they feel lonely?” ................................................................... 56
Table 14. Pre-Test to Post-Test Comparison o f Mean Scores of
Curriculum + Volunteer Group on Semantic Differential Scale ... 56
Table 15. Pre-Test to Post-Test Comparison o f Mean Scores o f
Curriculum Only Group on Semantic Differential Scale................. 57
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LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1. Frequency Distribution o f Children’s Sources o f Knowledge
About A ging.................................................................................
Figure 2. Pre-Test Comparisons Between Groups on Question
“What do you think an old person could do with you in class?” ..
Figure 3. Post-Test Responses Between Groups on Question “What
do you think an old person could do with you in class?” ....
Figure 4. Pre-Test Responses Between Groups on Question “Why do
you think an old person would like to come to your class?” .. .
Figure 5. Post-Test Responses Between Groups on Question “Why do
you think an old person would like to come to your class?” .. .
Figure 6. Pre-Test to Post-Test Attitudes Toward Old People on
Semantic Differential Scale for Curriculum + Volunteer Group . .
Figure 7. Pre-Test to Post-Test Attitudes Toward Old People on
Semantic Differential Scale for Curriculum...................................
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INTRODUCTION
Within the United States the rising divorce rate, patterns of increasing geographic
mobility, and age-segregated housing have contributed to a decline in the spontaneity o f informal
social exchange between the young and the old in society. Several studies have suggested that the
formation o f negative age stereotyping o f the aged by children does not develop as a
consequence o f contact with older adults, but rather from their lack of frequent associations with
elderly persons (Jantz, Seefeldt, Galper, & Serock, 1977; Sheehan, 1978). Frequent interaction
between children and older persons has been shown to be a mediating factor in reducing negative
attitudes toward the aged (Bekker & Taylor, 1966).
The complications in kinship relations between grandparents and their grandchildren as a
result o f the divorce and remarriage processes of adult children is a topic which has been
addressed in several studies (Trystad & Sanders, 1989; Gladstone, 1988; Matthews & Sprey,
1984). Divorce-related changes in the family kinship network offer few structural guidelines for
grandparents or grandchildren to follow, and are often mediated by the divorced parents. For
example, Matthews and Sprey (1984) interviewed 37 grandparent couples and found that for
most, the custody decision made a difference in their relations with their grandchildren. Eleven of
the 20 grandparents whose own child had custody o f the grandchildren reported increased contact
with their grandchildren, while larger numbers of non-custodial grandparents reported seeing less
o f their grandchildren following the divorce of their adult children. The study also found the
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factor of geographic proximity o f grandparents to grandchildren to be a significant variable in
reorganization o f the family kinship network, particularly when the custodial daughters-in-law
either moved away or remained in a relatively distant location post-divorce.
Kalish (1969) concluded that children’s general lack o f knowledge about aging and the
elderly is a natural consequence o f patterns of age segregation in society. Other studies suggest
that the formation o f negative age stereotyping by children does not develop as a consequence of
contact with older adults, as children in general do not have frequent associations with elderly
persons. (Jantz, Seefeldt, Galper, and Serlock, 1977; Sheehan, 1978). Gerbner(1989) found an
association between a negative portrayal o f aging on television and negative views o f older adults
which are held by adolescent heavy television viewers. Gerbner observed that television
portrayals o f older adults contribute to the cultural environment through which children learn the
social role o f aging, and that the current image o f aging promoted through television cultivates
negative images rather than positive ones.
Social interaction between the young and the old holds positive reciprocal value to both
generations and provides children with an opportunity to form opinions based upon personal
experience, rather than upon stereotypic images. The young and old alike have a need to be part
o f a community by assisting others and sharing in the responsibilities and benefits gained by
working with others. Intergenerational programs can produce a strengthening and community-
building bond by bringing these generations together in service to each other.
With the fragmentation o f family life, older adults can provide emotional support and the
personal attention which many children may lack in their nuclear families. An increasing number
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o f older adults are even assuming the roles o f custodial caregivers to their grandchildren, due to
the growing number o f social problems caused by divorce, joblessness, drug and alcohol
addiction, and ADDS. According to the United States Census Bureau, 2,214,000 children under
the age o f 18 lived in grandparent-headed households in 1970. By 1993, that number had grown
to 3,368,000 - - an increase o f over 50 percent (Chalfie, 1994). Approximately thirty percent o f
children living with their grandparents have no parent present in the home (Graham, 1994).
By providing emotional support over time, older adults establish themselves as a source o f
trust and wisdom, and can serve as effective mentors to children in conveying strong and positive
life values. Traditionally, the elderly have served as the conveyers o f culture and as such, hold an
important role to children, as a link connecting the past to the present. The elderly have an
opportunity to serve as models o f aging for children as well, by giving children a context within
which to understand their own social development and maturation.
In a study investigating the impact o f the school volunteer experience on older volunteers,
volunteers described the experience o f working with children to be enriching, rewarding and
energizing, a significant factor in overcoming personal trauma, and a factor in improving their
self-esteem by enabling them to regain a valued role in society. (Newman, Vasudev, Onawola,
1985). Young people as well, need the opportunity to use their skills in service to others.
Intergenerational programs promote an understanding of issues affecting other generations and
can promote a bond between the generations within the community setting.
Several studies have examined the impact of intergenerational programs on children’s
attitudes toward aging and the elderly (Parnell, 1980; Seefeldt, Jantz, Gelper, & Serock, 1979;
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Kocamik, Ponzetti, 1986; Dellmann-Jenkins, 1986). Studies which examine young children’s
perceptions o f aging reflect the qualitative and multidimensional nature o f attitude formation in
children. The results o f studies have been mixed, with both positive and negative changes in
attitudes attributable to children’s experiences. Parnell (1980) found that children do appear to
develop a more realistic understanding o f the aging process and change some o f their negative
thinking about the elderly as a result o f participation in an intergenerational program. A 1977
study by Seefeldt and Jantz reflects both the positive and negative dimensions of children’s
attitudes. Researchers found that when children reported their knowledge o f the elderly in
affective terms, their comments were positive. However, when describing physical and behavioral
characteristics o f the elderly, children’s attitudes tended to be negative. Researchers Marks and
Newman (1980) found that although some aspects of children’s perceptions o f the aging process
are negative, their general perceptions o f old people as persons are positive. The researchers
suggested that consciously or unconsciously, children evaluate old people separately on attitude
dimensions. The study indicated that children’s attitudes are multi-dimensional, and that negative
attitudes could be the result o f a lack o f knowledge about older adults and the aging process.
The purpose of this study is to contribute to the body of research on children’s attitudes
toward the aging process and the aged. In this study, children’s frequency o f contact with older
adults, the general knowledge they have relative to older people, and their subjective attitudes
about older people was assessed, after which the students were exposed to classroom interaction
with an older adult volunteer, and an academic curriculum geared toward aging issues.
Instrumental to this study is the issue o f how children’s perceptions about aging are influenced
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and shaped. This study investigated the extent to which interaction with an older adult volunteer
and an educational curriculum about human aging influenced the attitudes o f children toward the
aging process and the elderly. This study addressed the question of whether contact with aged
persons diminishes children’s negative attitudes and stereotypes of the elderly and produces
positive attitudes.
Chapter I reviews social and economic factors in our culture which contribute to age-
segregation and stereotyping o f the aged, and reviews the literature on studies o f children’s
attitudes toward aging and the elderly. The study’s research design, procedures, measures and
the method o f analysis are described in Chapter n. Chapter in describes the results o f the study.
A discussion o f the study’s findings is covered in Chapter IV. Chapter V provides a summary o f
the study and its implications with respect to the development of intergenerational programs.
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CHAPTER I. LITERATURE REVIEW
As a social anthropologist studying cultures worldwide, Margaret Mead observed that the
“the continuity o f all cultures depends on the living presence o f at least three generations.”
However, the familial connections between young and old, common in past generations, have
changed markedly today. Despite the fact that Americans are living longer and maintaining
healthier lives, a growing number o f elderly persons today live in either naturally occurring or
planned retirement communities, while their adult children and their families have migrated to
suburbs in other cities or states. Although the 1980 census did not categorize retirement housing
separately from other types o f housing, a 1981 inventory indicated that there were about 2,400
retirement communities in the United States at that time (Siegel, 1993). The physical distances
which accompany age-segregated housing deprive young children o f the life enrichment and
stabilizing influence that regular association with grandparents or other older persons can provide.
Moody (1994) emphasized that the trend toward age-segregation, promoted by increases in
migration and urbanization, has created social distances which serve as barriers in day-to-day
contact between children and grandparents. Such distances also decrease the opportunities for
children to become aware o f and understand their own aging and maturation processes through
regular interaction with older adults
Several researchers have commented on children’s limited knowledge o f and contact with
older people (Seefeldt, Jantz, Gelper, Serock, 1977; Ansello, 1978). As one researcher stated
“learning the concept o f old age has special difficulties today since the first step in concept
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development, that o f concrete experiences, is lacking for many children” (Ansello, 1978, p. 120).
In a study investigating the relationship between frequency o f contact with older persons and
children’s ability to accurately perform age discrimination tasks, Sheehan (1981) found that 23
percent o f the sample o f sixty children saw an old person at least once a week, but only 21
percent had personal interaction with an old person within the past year. O f the personal
interactions with older adults listed by children, 83 percent were with family members. The study
indicated that the primary source of intergenerational contact came from within the family.
Another study examining children’s attitudes toward the elderly found that only 39 o f the 180
children interviewed could identify an older person they knew outside of the family unit. The
contact these children had with older adults was usually limited to one or two visits a year with
grandparents living in another state (Seefeldt, Jantz, Galper, Serock, 1977).
Attitude Formation in Children
In his theory o f symbolic interaction, social psychologist George Mead espoused that the
shaping o f children’s attitudes evolves as part of the social experience which provides a child with
a specific social identity. This process includes gaining knowledge o f particular groups in society,
in terms o f their social status and cultural views. Just as children’s attitudes o f “self” are
influenced through experiencing how others respond to them socially, as members in the culture
children acquire the cultural attitudes o f the social group within which they function. Through
this process, children develop the capability to comprehend a situation from the perspective o f
other people. As a child begins to gain a distinct sense o f self, he becomes able to understand the
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roles o f others in society, as well. Children’s attitudes and behavior toward a particular group in
society consequently reflect the perceived value that group holds within society. In essence, as
children develop, they become reflections o f the general social system to which they belong
(Cockerham, 1991). Parents serve as social bridges in the family relationships between children
and their grandparents. Through transference o f their attitudes and behaviors, parents may
facilitate or hinder interactions between grandchildren and grandparents (Troll, Miller & Atchley,
1979). Cherlin and Furstenberg (1986) found that if parents are emotionally close to
grandparents, grandparents and grandchildren are also more likely to be close. Close
geographical proximity o f grandparents to grandchildren is a significant factor in the development
o f frequent interaction between grandchildren and grandparents, as well. For young children, the
opportunity to establish relationships with grandparents depends upon the grandparents’
availability in the realm o f the child’s world. Children are dependent upon their parents as
facilitators in establishing contact with their grandparents until the children are old enough to act
independently. In a study evaluating the relationships between adolescents and their
grandparents, the grandchildren’s evaluations o f their relationships with their grandparents were
reported to be affected not only by their access to grandparents during childhood, but also by each
o f their parent’s relationships with specific grandparents (Matthews & Sprey, 1985).
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Changing Social Trends in Grandparent-Grandchild Interactions
Social and economic trends including increased divorce rates, dual-income earning families
and single-parenting have changed patterns o f interaction for many children and their
grandparents. Current trends in grandparent-grandchild relationships vary from infrequent
communication or even an absence o f communication between grandparent and grandchild, to
households in which grandparents are the primary caretakers o f their grandchildren. According to
the 1990 United States Census Bureau, over half a million grandparents in the United States are
the primary caretakers o f their grandchildren. The number o f children living with their
grandparents has increased more than 50 percent in the last twenty-five years, with approximately
3.2 million o f the nation’s 63.8 million children presently living with their grandparents (Chalfie,
1994). Four percent o f the nation’s white children and twelve percent o f the nation’s black
children live in homes headed by their grandparents (Kalter, 1993). Many are the victims of
some of the country’s leading social ills: crime, divorce, joblessness, alcohol and drug abuse.
For more than a million children under the age of 18, no parents are residing in the home
(Graham, 1994).
Parental divorces have been associated with declines in the frequency o f contact between
grandparents and grandchildren, particularly for those grandparents related to the noncustodial
parent. One study found that while 39 percent of the custodial grandparents saw their
grandchildren at least once a week, only 16 percent of non-custodial grandparents saw their
grandchildren at least once a week. (Miller & Bengston, 1991). A separate study which examined
the changing kinship networks o f grandparents due to marital instability observed that the divorce
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and remarriage process potentially creates an expanded kinship system for social integration o f
grandparent-grandchild relations (Johnson & Barer, 1987).
In a longitudinal study in which more than 1,000 grandparents were interviewed, evidence
o f a pattern o f emotional disconnection between generations emerged. Komhaber (1981) found
that close grandparent-grandchild relationships, or “vital connections” were few and far between.
Approximately fifteen percent o f the 1,000 individuals interviewed described themselves as having
a close emotional bond between grandparent and grandchild. Bengston and Roberts (1985) have
suggested that children with close relationships to at least one grandparent are different from
children with infrequent grandparent contact in that they are not ageist and do not fear old age,
because their grandparents serve as positive role models.
Ageism in the United States
Ageism has been described by Robert Butler (1975) as a process o f systematic
stereotyping of and discrimination against people because they are old, just as racism and sexism
accomplish this with skin color and gender. In his examination o f the social patterns which
accompany ageism, Butler emphasized that ageism allows the younger generations to see older
people as different from themselves, causing them to subtly cease to identify with their elders as
human beings.
In investigating the roots o f ageism in America, Fischer (1977) examined the impact o f
modernization on the status o f the elderly. He found that historically, cultural changes which took
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place as society began to change from a rural, agrarian system to the urban and industrial system
o f today, included a reduction in the status and esteem which had traditionally been accorded the
elderly. As material wealth became available, affluence replaced age as a qualification for
leadership. The development o f modem manufacturing and the availability o f mass education for
the young eventually pushed older people, who were viewed as being incapable o f keeping up
with industrial changes, into a lower social status. Dependence in old age and lack o f earning
power among the elderly resulted in the societal perception that old age was generally associated
with poverty, a condition which was in fact common to many of the nation’s elderly in the early
1900’s. O f all the people who lived in state pauper institutions in 1910 for example, the vast
majority were sixty-five or older: 60 percent in Ohio, 62 percent in Pennsylvania, 87 percent in
Wisconsin and 92 per cent in Massachusetts (Fischer, 1977).
Changing Policy Perspectives on Entitlement Programs for the Elderly
The development of Social Security and Medicare programs for the elderly in the United
States was originally based on a presumption o f need and dependency, or the “failure model” o f
old age (Kalish, 1977). By the 1980’s however, improvements in the overall economic status o f
older people began to change the concept o f “compassionate aging” through which the public had
perceived the elderly as weak, poor and dependent (Binstock, 1983). Current proponents of
generational equity are challenging the perception that entitlement programs are based on a
presumption of need, arguing that programs benefitting the elderly are directly linked to the
financial hardships o f younger cohorts, and that the existence o f these programs are primary
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causes o f the government’s fiscal crisis. The myth o f a homogeneous and financially secure
elderly population dissipates when the wide variation in income, pension inequalities and health
care cost-sharing o f the elderly population are taken into account (Moody, 1994).
The Social Phenomenon o f Victim-Blaming
The scapegoating o f the Social Security and Medicare programs as a source o f the United
States’ financial problems represents the perpetuation o f a pattern o f “victim-blaming”. Victim-
blaming is the tendency when examining a social problem to attribute the social problem to the
characteristics o f the people who are its victims (Ryan, 1971). Discriminatory attitudes toward the
elderly are attributed in part to a general societal fear o f aging and the social values which have
evolved in relation to aging. In an effort to avoid being reminded o f the fact that aging and death
are inevitable, many people have learned to disassociate themselves from the elderly, and to
devalue them for being in an aged state. Ryan described the components in blaming the victim as:
an identification o f a social problem; a recitation o f the ways in which those affected by the
problem differ from the majority as a result o f deprivation or injustice; and a process o f assigning
those differences as the causes o f the social problem itself. The concept o f blame is then
reinforced by the establishment o f programs designed to “help” such victims by correcting those
characteristics which make them incapable o f competing. The process of victim-blaming develops
into a subculture that tends to perpetuate itself and is then assumed to be the root o f the problem
itself. Levin and Levin (1980) emphasized that the prevalent perspective on aging is to blame the
aged for the problems they suffer rather than to examine the social forces in our society that make
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old age a dreaded stage o f life. They cite as an example the disengagement theory, which assumes
that individuals decline with age in their ability to operate in the everyday world. Within the basic
assumptions o f the disengagement theory, the elderly are seen as physically weaker, slower and
lacking in flexibility, and a threat to the equilibrium of the various social systems in which they are
involved.
Stereotyping the Elderly
A 1975 Harris Poll on aging revealed wide discrepancies between public attitudes on aging
and the views o f the elderly on aging issues. Sixty-two percent o f the public thought that “not
having enough money to live on” was a problem for the aging population, although only 15
percent o f the elderly polled found lack o f money to be a personal problem. Fifty-one percent of
the public felt that “poor health” was a problem for the aging, while 21 percent o f the elderly
found this to be a personal problem. Fifty percent of the public cited “fear of crime” as a serious
problem for the aging versus 23 percent o f older people. Only 21 percent o f those under sixty-
five considered people sixty-five and over to be “very useful”, while 40 percent of people aged
sixty-five and over had a high self-image in terms of being “a very useful member o f their
community”. In addition, 87 percent o f those polled who were responsible for hiring and firing
employees expressed the opinion that most employers discriminate against older people in
employment policies (Kalish, 1977).
One study on deviations from expected stereotypes o f the aging found that while
individuals may hold negative stereotypes o f older people in general, they consistently view
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specific older people as exceptions to the stereotype. Subjects in the study described older people
in general as being less satisfied with life, more dependent, less well-adjusted and as having fewer
positive personality characteristics than younger people. When subjects were presented with a
profile o f a 76-year-old woman which contradicted stereotyped expectations about the elderly,
subjects evaluated the older woman more positively than they did a younger person who showed
the same level of activity, suggesting that the older person was perceived as deviating from the
norm for that age. Holding negative perceptions, the subjects apparently found positive
information about an older person much more impressive than the identical information about a
young person. The researchers concluded that in the absence o f frequent interaction with active
older adults, young persons seem to think of the active older people they do meet as being
exceptions to the dull, inactive norm. This attitude makes it possible for them to continue to
apply a generally negative stereotype to the majority o f the elderly (Crockett, Press & Osterkamp,
1979).
Media Depiction of Older Adults
The visibility of old people in the mass media is disproportionately low in relation to their
percentage within the population. Media portrayal o f the elderly in a negative light influences
public opinion and consequently contributes to negative stereotyping o f aging and the elderly. A
1993 meta-analysis examined the media’s depiction o f older adults. The analysis critiqued the
findings o f twenty-eight studies published between 1974 and 1988 which addressed the quantity
and quality o f mass media representation o f the elderly in the United States. A review of the
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studies suggested that the elderly are widely misrepresented in both the electronic and print media.
Both the electronic and print media failed to reflect the true representative size o f the elderly
population. O f the 22 studies that measured the quantity o f portrayal o f the elderly, 20 concluded
that the elderly were underrepresented relative to their proportion in the actual population.
The under-representation o f the elderly was particularly dominant in prime-time television
programming, with elderly characters comprising only 1.5 percent to 4.9 percent o f the prime
time television population. Elderly women were found to be especially underrepresented in the
prime-time programming and were more likely than elderly male characters to be depicted in a
negative fashion. A greater proportion o f older women than older men were portrayed on prime
time television as unsuccessful, sexually neutral, lacking common sense, acting silly, or being
eccentric. In contrast, where desirable and favorable depictions o f elderly characters did occur on
television, they were primarily o f men. Men were portrayed as problem solvers, figures of
authority, advice givers, good listeners and sexually attractive. Results o f the study showed that
the elderly were represented in numbers more closely approximating their actual numbers in the
population in television commercials than in television programming.
The findings o f the meta-analysis indicate that both the electronic and print media support
and strengthen negative images o f the elderly. The majority o f the studies reviewed in the meta
analysis found the quality o f the media representation of the elderly to be poor and inadequate,
typically marginalizing elderly characters in both television and print media. Elderly characters
rarely appeared in major roles, were rarely developed fully as characters, and were frequently
described in stereotypical terms (Vasil & Wass, 1993).
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In addition, a recent study found an exaggerated overrepresentation o f children and a
virtual absence o f older characters in week-end dramas and commercials in children’s television
programming (Gerbner, 1993). Characters aged sixty-five and over represented merely 1.4
percent o f the fictional population in the children’s programs reviewed. In prime-time television
programming, men outnumbered women about three to one in representation, with older
characters, especially women, more likely to end up in roles as victims. Gerbner found older
characters to be cast in comic roles, and to be treated with disrespect more than were characters
in any other age group. The same study found a significant positive relationship between
increased television viewing and the perception of old people in generally negative and
unfavorable terms. This correlation was not reduced when controlling statistically for education,
income, sex or age, and was found to be much stronger for younger people In his summary o f the
study’s findings, Gerbner described as “symbolic annihilation” the psychological impact which
occurs when a population is under-represented and minimalized in importance in the media.
Children’s Attitudes Toward Aging
Studies investigating the attitudes o f children toward aging have looked at the stereotypic
attributes assigned to older people by children, as well as the relationship o f exposure to older
people on children’s attitudes toward the elderly. Although findings have been mixed, they tend
to support a general negative perception o f the elderly on the part o f children. While some
studies found positive changes in attitudes o f children based upon interaction with older persons,
other studies suggested that contact with older persons is only effective under certain social
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conditions, emphasizing the importance o f the “quality” o f exposure as a variable in interaction
between children and older persons (Ivester & King, 1977).
The cumulative results of studies investigating children’s attitudes toward aging suggest
that both the quality o f contact and the type o f social setting are important factors in how
children’s perceptions o f older persons are influenced, as well as how children’s attitudes about
their own aging are shaped. In a study examining the effect o f contact with grandparents on
children’s attitudes toward the elderly, Ivester and King (1977) hypothesized that contact with
grandparents would yield more positive attitudes toward the elderly. The study’s hypothesis was
not supported, and the researchers suggested that future research should take into account the
“quality” of exposure as being an important variable.
A recent study identified five key elements in defining “quality” in the relationships
between grandparents and young adult grandchildren. Although the study’s generalizability to
relationships between grandchildren o f younger ages and their grandparents may be limited, the
findings emphasize the value o f frequent one-on-one interaction between grandchildren and
grandparents. Kennedy (1992) suggested five characteristics as elements o f quality in
grandparent/grandchild relationships: (1) a feeling o f closeness with the grandparent on behalf o f
the grandchild; (2) a grandchild’s sense o f feeling known and understood by the grandparents;
(3) the grandchild’s knowing and understanding the grandparents; (4) the grandparents exercising
a positive influence in the life o f the grandchild; and (5) the grandchild viewing their relationship
as an authentic friendship, independent o f an association maintained by parents as the
intermediaries.
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The study’s hypothesized elements o f quality were strongly supported in young adult
grandchildren’s reports o f their most positive experiences with their grandparents. The greater
the extent of one-on-one contact between grandchildren and their grandparents, the greater the
quality o f the relationship, the degree of closeness and perceived understanding which was
expressed between them. A 1985 study evaluating adolescents’ relationships with their
grandparents similarly found that adolescents who reported a close relationship with their
grandparents stressed their accessibility to grandparents in early childhood as being an important
factor in grandchild-grandparent relations (Matthews & Sprey, 1985).
Immorlica (1980) suggested that children’s perceptions and attitudes might change under
different situations, if the quality o f contact with older volunteers varied. The study found that
negative perceptions o f older adult volunteers increased when the volunteers worked with
children in a remedial educational setting, suggesting that the students may have perceived the
presence of the older volunteers as making them stand out from other students, and may have
stigmatized the students by accentuating their handicap.
Adolescents’ Attitudes on Aging
Several studies have examined the attitudes o f adolescents toward aging. They indicate
that adolescents perceive old age as a period o f life markedly different from earlier years, and
those differences are seen as primarily, although not entirely, negative. Evidence that adolescents
tend to have negative attitudes toward the aged however, may have more to do with factors
intrinsic to the psycho-social development o f adolescents than with an inherently negative attitude
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o f aging. Margaret Mead observed that children are devoid o f the life experience which would
enable them to relate to older people as “individuals”. In a study o f how young people view old
age, Kastenbaum (1964) observed that adolescents live in an intense awareness o f the present and
regard their remote future as being devoid o f significant positive values because they have no
context wtihin which to place it. They give more explicit structuring to their past because they
can place it in their conscious awareness.
Qualitative Dimensions in Attitude Formation
Studies which examine young children’s perceptions o f aging reflect the qualitative and
multidimensional nature o f attitude formation in children. The results o f studies have been mixed,
with both positive and negative attitudinal outcomes attributed to children’s experiences. A 1977
study by Seefeldt and Jantz reflects both the positive and negative dimensions o f children’s
attitudes. Researchers found that when children reported their knowledge of the elderly in
affective terms, their emotional sentiments were positive. However, when describing physical and
behavioral characteristics of the elderly, their attitudes tended to be negative. Marks and
Newman (1980) found that although some aspects of children’s perceptions o f the aging process
are negative, their general perceptions o f old people as persons are positive. The researchers
found that consciously or unconsciously, children evaluate old people separately on attitude
dimensions. The study indicated that children’s attitudes are multi-dimensional, and that negative
attitudes could be the result o f a lack o f knowledge about older adults and the aging process.
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Attitude Changes Occurring with Maturation
Hickey (1968) found that children perceive age-related differences between distinct adult
age groups, and that the older the adult, the less positive the image o f him which is held by the
child. The study did not support the previous hypothesis o f Tuckman and Lorge (1953) however
that children’s images of adults and the elderly also become more negative as children themselves
age. To the contrary, it was found that with increasing age, children’s perceptions o f adults
become more realistic, and that children’s images o f the elderly do not become more negative as
children age. In support o f this premise, Hickey and Kalish (1968) found no significant
differences in how 8, 12, 15 and 19-year old persons viewed the aged. Seefeldt et al. (1977) as
well, concluded that children’s concepts o f the aged increase in accuracy as the children increase
in age.
Social Distance Between Generations
More recent studies conclude that limited contact by children with the elderly contributes
to the formation o f negative stereotypes. Robert E. Park (1924) was the first to describe the
concept o f “social distance”. He described social distance as an effort to reduce to measurable
terms the grades and degrees o f understanding and intimacy which generally characterize personal
and social relations. In a study examining the relation between social distance and
intergenerational relations, Kidwell (1977) found that regardless o f their own age, people appear
to feel more socially distant from older people. Social distance was found to be a linear function
o f age difference. The greater the age difference, the greater the social distance. The study
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indicated that limited contact with older persons contributes to social distance. In research on
adolescents’ attitudes toward the aged, Ivester (1977) concluded that contact with an aged person
is an apparent mediating factor in reducing such negative attitudes toward the aged.
The Impact o f Intergenerational Programs on Children’s Attitudes
A research study reviewing the impact o f intergenerational programs on children
concluded that children do appear to develop a more realistic understanding o f the aging process
and change some o f their negative thinking about the elderly as a result o f participation in such
programs (Parnell, 1980). Classroom interaction with older people, coupled with presentation of
accurate information about aging was found to contribute to positive attitude changes in
preschoolers’ attitudes toward aging and the elderly (Dellmann-Jenkins, 1986). In a program
providing accurate information about the elderly and structured dialogue between older
volunteers and students, 10 and 11-year old students were shown to improve the ability to assess
their perceptions o f aging and give unbiased responses concerning characteristics o f the elderly
(Laney, 1987).
Researchers have taken various approaches in examining children’s attitudes toward aging
and the elderly. Seefeldt et al. (1977) used a series o f pictures of one man at four ages (20, 40,
60, 80) combined with a structured interview technique to test children (preschool through sixth
grade) on their cognitive, affective and behavioral attitudes. The researchers concluded that
concept formation o f what is “old” is a cognitive-developmental process and that children report
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negative and stereotypic attitudes toward age and the elderly because o f physical and behavioral
stereotypes.
In a study o f stereotyping o f the elderly by children and young adults, Fillmer (1984)
found that while elementary school students favorably described photographs o f the elderly, they
indicated that they would prefer to associate with young rather than old adults. The study found
that although young students do not have much association with older persons, they are learning
negative stereotypes of older adults.
While many intergenerational programs have documented positive attitude changes toward
the elderly on behalf o f children, other programs have reported mixed results. In a study by
Seefeldt et al. (1977), following contact with older adults in a school setting children were less
likely to stereotypes elders on the basis o f physical and behavioral characteristics. However, the
children were reported to have retained strong negative attitudes toward their own aging.
Methodological Issues In Intergenerational Studies
The general absence o f theoretical-based methodology in the development and evaluation
o f intergenerational studies has been discussed in a comprehensive analysis o f intergenerational
studies performed from 1957 to 1990 (Fox & Giles, 1993). Fox & Giles segregated research
studies involving contact between different age groups into four categories: (a) studies o f
unmanipulated contact between age groups; (b) studies o f manipulated contact between age
groups with educational programs about aging and older adults; (c) studies o f manipulated
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contact between age groups without an educational program; and (d) educational programs about
aging without direct intergenerational contact.
In the studies which involved unmanipulated contact, Fox and Giles found the variable o f
“quality” o f contact over “quantity” o f contact to be an important factor in improving attitudes
toward the elderly. Studies involving both intergenerational contact and an educational program
on aging however, produced more positive attitudes than did studies o f unmanipulated contact.
Educational programs about aging were found to reduce misperceptions o f the aging process.
Younger persons’ positive attitude changes were most significant in intergenerational settings
where the older participants were healthy, older volunteers. However, programs which either
involved unhealthy nursing home patients, or placed elderly and younger persons in competition
with one another resulted in negative attitude changes in the younger subjects.
In 5 of the 10 studies which involved manipulated contact without educational information
on aging, no systematic measures o f attitude change, social distance or changed knowledge about
elderly persons were employed. These studies relied on researchers’ observations and subjects’
self-reports. Fox and Giles suggest that investigator-bias may have affected the reported results
in such studies. Educational programs about aging without contact with elderly persons
characteristically were found to produce positive attitude changes by influencing the future
expectations of younger people toward older people.
Overall, 69% o f the studies which focused on attitude outcomes found more positive
attitudes as a result o f an intergenerational contact manipulation, however, 16% o f these studies
had employed no systematic measurement o f attitude. Studies which either found no difference in
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attitude or which found negative changes in attitude did not differ methodologically from the
studies which found positive results. Fox and Giles suggest that the lack o f theory-driven
research in intergenerational contact studies encourages methodological problems, specifically
with respect to the ability o f attitude to predict fUture behavior.
Fox and Giles propose a theoretical model for intergenerational contact studies consisting
o f longitudinally-based research which focuses on multidimensional measurements o f attitude,
interest and social distance. The proposed model involves both generations in an “intergroup”
approach to the behavioral and communicative aspects within the contact situation. An
intergroup model is one in which group membership is salient to the situation, and in which
individual members o f the other group (or generation, in this instance) are perceived as being
typical or representative o f that group and not as exceptions to the group. If the person is not
seen as a typical group member, communicative or behavioral data from that person can be
discounted, consequently permitting the stereotype o f the group as a whole to remain intact. Fox
and Giles emphasize that the outcome o f intergroup contact situations is dependent upon the
positive or negative views which result from the contact situation. If individual members within
an group are perceived as being typical, then the effect o f contact should be generalizable to the
group as a whole.
Generally, after manipulated contact within intergenerational studies has been completed,
no further interactions between the participants have taken place. Longitudinal studies in
intergenerational contact research serve a beneficial purpose in measuring the long-term effects in
attitude change resulting from intergenerational contact. When younger participants perceive
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intergenerational contact merely as a “get acquainted” situation, they may not invest as much
effort toward an enduring relationship as they would if the contact potential were long-term.
Fox and Giles also stress the value o f structuring intergroup activities toward giving equal
status to both age groups, in activities in which older people do not have an experiential
advantage - - for example, in the use o f computer technology. Further, many intergenerational
studies have been structured on the expectation that there will be positive results from
intergenerational contact. It is important to keep participants unaware o f a “Pollyanna” purpose,
in order to determine whether or not positive effects will result without other expectations. For
example, in five studies examined by Fox and Giles, positive attitudes were found but decreases in
younger people’s interest in older participants were also found. Past intergenerational contact
studies failed as well, to adequately investigate the issue o f how aging stereotypes are developed
as a result o f older and younger people’s perceptions o f their own aging, and the attributes they
feel they have or should possess. The effect that younger people’s views and feelings have on
older people, and vice versa, is a primary component in the theoretical model proposed by Fox
and Giles.
Fox and Giles acknowledge a major limitation to their theoretical model in that it lacks a
methodological component to examine the variables o f communicative processes which occur in
the contact situation. However, their comprehensive analysis of past intergenerational contact
studies and their proposed theoretical model provide a substantive guide for future
intergenerational contact studies to follow.
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Summary
Present demographic patterns o f increased migration and urbanization, and increased
disruptions o f the nuclear family caused by divorce, joblessness, and drug and alcohol abuse have
contributed to changes in society which impact the frequency and quality o f interaction between
children and the elderly. Changes in social trends among families impact not only the interaction
between children and their grandparents, but also how children develop their perceptions o f the
elderly and attitudes toward their own aging and maturation.
Much evidence exists that Americans hold generally negative stereotypes o f aging and the
elderly, with positive traits o f specific old people being viewed as exceptions to an otherwise
negative stereotype. Studies suggest that limited or superficial contact between children and the
elderly contribute to the formation o f negative stereotypes. In the absence o f frequent and
quality interaction with old people, children may adopt the stereotypic and unfavorable
perceptions o f the elderly as they are represented in media portrayals. Frequent interaction o f a
quality nature with older people is an apparent mediating factor in reducing such negative
attitudes toward the elderly.
Studies investigating the attitudes o f children toward aging indicate that children’s
attitudes are multi-dimensional and may be influenced by a general lack o f knowledge about aging
and by minimal personal experience in interacting with older persons. While results o f studies
investigating children’s attitudes toward the elderly have supported a general negative perception
o f the elderly on the part o f children, they indicate that children evaluate older people based upon
the separate dimensions o f their general knowledge o f older people, their emotional affect toward
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old people and their behavioral attitudes toward old people. Intergenerational programs in which
children have received both accurate information about aging and frequent interaction with older
people have been found to contribute to positive changes in children’s attitudes toward aging and
the elderly.
A comprehensive analysis o f past intergenerational contact studies provides evidence of
significant methodological flaws in measuring the behavioral, attitudinal and communicative
components o f intergenerational exchanges between young persons and older adults. A need
exists for both improvements in methodological measures and for longitudinal studies measuring
changes in attitudes over time. Such approaches are vital in assessing the long term impact of
intergenerational programs which strive to reduce negative stereotypes and produce positive
changes in attitudes toward older adults.
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CHAPTER II. METHOD
The purpose o f this study is to examine the effect that exposure to an educational program
about aging and interaction with an older adult volunteer have on the attitudes o f children toward
aging. The study examines the question o f whether frequent classroom interaction with an aged
person diminishes general negative attitudes toward the elderly and produces positive attitudes.
Hypotheses
Hypothesis 1: Elementary school children exposed to an educational curriculum about
aging concurrently with classroom interaction with an older adult volunteer will express a
statistically significant increase in positive attitudes about old people and aging upon completion
o f the educational curriculum on aging, as measured by their scores on the Children’s Views on
Aging Questionnaire, employing a .10 level o f significance. The children in this group are referred
to as the “curriculum + volunteer group” for purposes of this study.
Hypothesis 2: Elementary school children exposed to the educational curriculum about
aging without classroom interaction with an older adult volunteer, will express a statistically
significant increase in positive attitudes about old people and aging upon completion of the
educational curriculum on aging, as measured by their scores on the Children’s Views on Aging
Questionnaire, employing a . 10 level of significance. The children in this group are referred to as
the “curriculum only group” for purposes o f this study.
Hypothesis 3: On completion o f the study, children in the curriculum + volunteer group
will express more statistically significant changes in attitudes in a positive direction than children
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in the curriculum only group, as measured by their scores on the Children’s Views on Aging
Questionnaire, employing a .10 level o f significance.
Sample
The sample consisted o f two fourth-grade classes at Beryl Heights Elementary School in
Redondo Beach, California, with 29 students in the curriculum only group and 30 students
originally in the curriculum and exposure group. Two students in the curriculum and exposure
group disenrolled from the school between the period o f time in which the pre-test and post-test
were administered. Their questionnaires were therefore eliminated, leaving 28 students
participating in the curriculum and exposure group for the entire study. All students ranged in
age from nine to ten years o f age. The curriculum only group was comprised o f fourteen boys
and fifteen girls, and the curriculum and exposure group was comprised o f ten boys and eighteen
girls.
Measurement Instrument
Children’s attitudes toward aging were measured by The Children’s Views on Aging
Questionnaire (Marks, Newman 1985). The Children’s Views on Aging Questionnaire (CVoA),
developed as part o f the University o f Pittsburgh’s intergenerational studies program , is included
in Appendix A o f this study. The CVoA Questionnaire measures the cognitive, affective and
conative content o f children’s attitudes about aging. The cognitive component o f children’s
attitudes represents the general knowledge that a child has relative to old people. The affective
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component o f children’s attitudes refers to a child’s subjective feelings about old people. The
conative component o f children’s attitudes represents the behavioral action that is intended by a
child toward old persons based upon his or her subjective evaluations o f old people in general.
Through a series o f open-ended and close-ended questions, the CVoA Questionnaire
examines children’s cognitive knowledge of aging, their beliefs about the process o f aging and the
condition o f being old, and their frequency o f contact with old persons.
Section I o f the questionnaire examines the child’s knowledge o f and beliefs about the
aging process, with the following qualitative, open-ended questions:
“How can you tell when people are growing old?”
“How do you think it feels to be an old person?”
“What do you think happens when you get to be an old person?”
Each open-ended question is followed by a close-ended question with three possible responses.
The close-ended questions provide either a positive, negative or neutral evaluative response in
conjunction with the child’s attitudes as expressed in each proceeding open-ended question.
Section II examines the children’s subjective feelings about their own aging, through the
following open-ended questions:
“What do you think you will be like when you are an old person?”
“How do you think you will feel when you are an old person?”
“What do you think you will do when you are an old person?”
Each open-ended question is followed with a close-ended question with three possible
responses. The closed-ended questions offer a positive, negative or neutral emotional response in
conjunction with the child’s attitudes as expressed in each preceding open-ended question.
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Responses to the open-ended questions in Sections I and II are placed into categories
which are mutually exclusive and which describe as precisely as possible the individual responses
with no attempt at rater evaluation. The categories for all open-ended questions appear in
Appendix B. In addition, the use o f the word “old” is used consistently to refer to the elderly. Its
use is preferred over the term “older”, which may be perceived as being relative, or “elderly”
which may be ambiguous.
The questions in Section III relate to the child’s day-to-day exposure to old persons in
their personal lives, and ask the child to identify specific “old people” with whom they are in
regular contact, the old persons’ relationships to the child, their frequency o f interaction, and
where the interaction occurs. These questions are designed to measure the child’s ability to
determine chronological age, and to examine the relationship between the child’s frequency of
contact with old persons and their expressed attitudes toward the aged.
To investigate the extent to which children perceive old persons as having potential value
in a classroom and their interest in interacting with an old person in a classroom setting, additional
questions are presented concerning an old person’s motivations for working in the classroom and
the function(s) they could serve.
Finally, a set of semantic differential scales is presented in the questionnaire to measure
changes in children’s attitudes o f old persons from pre-test to post-test. The semantic differential
scale used in this study is derived from the “Children’s Views On Aging” study by Marks and
Newman (1985). Attitudes toward old people are rated on eleven descriptive or behavioral
characteristics using bipolar adjectives ranging on a five-point scale, e.g., Very Good - - Good - -
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Not Sure - - Bad - - Very Bad. The eleven characteristics measure attitudes on the evaluative
factor, as described by Osgood and Suci (1955). The scale is balanced with half o f the negative
and positive responses on each side, and a neutral response in the middle. Specific references to
the high test-retest reliability o f semantic differential scales in measuring changes in attitudes are
cited by DiVesta and Rick (1966) in the CVoA study (Marks & Newman, 1985).
Procedures
The Children’s Views on Aging Questionnaire was administered as a pre-test to children
in the curriculum and exposure group, and children in the curriculum only group by their
respective teachers before exposure to the educational curriculum on aging. Items were presented
orally by the teacher while each child read along silently and responded to each question on the
written questionnaire at his or her desk. The test was administered within a 30-minute time
frame. Following the pre-test, each group was presented with the following educational
information about aging over a six-week period:
1. Each group was shown three intergenerational films, followed by classroom discussion
about each film. The first film provides an historical perspective o f life in the 1920’s with new
inventions such as the iron, telephone and picture shows. The second film portrays a story in
which a middle-aged couple hires a babysitter for grandmother and the children when the
grandfather goes into the hospital. In the course of the film, the grandmother demonstrates that
she is still very active. In the third film, a shy boy meets a retired gentleman without anything to
do. They discover that the two generations can offer each other friendship.
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2. Children in each group were given an oral quiz consisting o f a modified version of the
Facts On Aging Quiz (Palmore, 1977), after which the correct answers were provided and
discussed with each child checking his or her own answers. The modified version o f the Facts
On Aging Quiz administered to students is included in Appendix C o f this study.
3. Children in each group were asked to draw three “activity” self-portraits:
a. An activity they regularly engage in now;
b. An activity they perceive themselves participating in when they reach
their parents’ ages;
c. An activity they predict they will participate in when they reach
their grandparents’ ages.
Following the exercise, children in each group were asked to describe the activity they had
depicted at each of the three life stages, and why. This exercise was designed to reveal the
children’s subjective feelings about old people and to help the children begin to think about their
own maturation and aging process.
In the curriculum and exposure group, a retired volunteer recruited through the Retired
Senior Volunteer Program (R.S. V.P.) worked in the classroom with the children in a two-hour
session one morning each week, for six weeks. The volunteer did not work as a general teacher’s
aide in the classroom, but rather served the specific function as facilitator for intergenerational
classroom dialogue. In addition to the three structured activities, the volunteer focused on adding
a qualitative dimension to her classroom interaction with the children through an exercise in life
history exchange. The volunteer devoted several classroom sessions to sharing and explaining to
the children photographs and personal memorabilia from her childhood, including a hand-made
kaleidoscope and school primers used in elementary schools during the early 1900’s. She also
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shared with the children food ration coupons from World War II accompanied by a chart showing
the coupon value o f different food items, and described to the children how and why the food
rationing system was implemented during World War H.
In exchange, the children in the curriculum and exposure group each prepared individual
photo books on their lives, which included significant events from their infancy to their present
age. Each child shared his or her description of the life events in his/her book with the volunteer
and the rest o f the children in the group.
In the curriculum only group, children were given the three structured educational
activities only, and did not interact with a retired volunteer in the classroom. Rather, the
classroom teacher served as the facilitator for classroom discussions concerning the three
structured activities.
Upon completion o f the educational program, the Children’s Views on Aging
Questionnaire was again administered in the same manner to each group by the groups’ respective
teachers, as a post-test, in order to measure the changes in attitudes within each group from pre
test to post-test, and the difference in post-test attitudes between the curriculum only group and
the curriculum and exposure group.
Data Analysis
A frequency distribution o f pre-test and post-test responses to questions in Sections I and
II was compiled to evaluate changes within each group with respect to the children’s beliefs about
the aging process, and their subjective feelings about aging. Chi-square analyses were performed,
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comparing the pre-test scores o f the curriculum only group and the curriculum and exposure
group to assess any significant differences which may have existed between the groups at the
outset o f the study.
Frequency distributions o f pre-test and post-test responses relating to questions about (a)
having an old person in the classroom; (b) children’s perceptions about an old person’s
motivations for working in the class; and (c) children’s intended behavioral action toward old
persons were compiled, to evaluate pre-test and post-test changes within each group. Cross-
tabular tables compared the pre- and post-test responses within each group, using a chi-square
analysis to determine the level o f significance for each variable.
Cross-tabular tables compared pre-test and post-test responses within each group, using a
chi-square analysis to determine if any statistically significant changes had occurred for each
variable. A frequency distribution o f responses to questions in Section III relating to children’s
frequency o f interaction with old people was compiled to examine any statistically significant
differences in frequency o f interaction with old persons which may have existed between the
groups.
The mean change in scores on the semantic differential variables were computed to
measure attitude changes from pre-test to post-test within each group. All variables on the
semantic differential scale were coded in a positive to negative direction, with the lowest score
representing the most positive response on attitudes. For example, on a five-point scale varying
from “very good” to “very bad”, a score o f one (1) represents the most positive response o f
“very good” while a score o f five (5) represents the most negative response of “very bad”. A
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positive post-test change in attitudes would be represented by a decline in the numerical value of
the score. Conversely, a negative post-test change in attitudes would be represented by an
increase in the raw score’s numerical value.
Limitations o f the Study
This study is limited in its ability to make broad inferences or general conclusions about
children’s attitudes toward aging. The findings o f this study are limited due to the small sample
size and the limited six-week duration o f the study. Chappell (1977) observed that attitude scales
are limited in their usefulness, as attitudes may not be related to manifested behavior. All facets o f
an attitude may not be tapped by an attitude scale. Changes in attitude, subjective in nature, are
difficult to quantify on a measurement score. For example, attitudes might change under different
situations and an attitude scale might not measure this. However, the study’s design provides
methods of assessing both the nature and the extent o f pre-existing notions children may hold
about old people and the aging process. The study also stresses the importance o f considering
the issue of quality interaction between children and older adults when developing
intergenerational programs in an academic setting.
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CHAPTER m . RESULTS
Data from the Children’s Views On Aging Questionnaire (CVOA) were analyzed
to determine if differences existed in the Curriculum Only Group and the Curriculum + Volunteer
Group in five major areas measured by the questionnaire: (1) the children’s knowledge o f aging;
(2) the children’s general attitudes about aging; (3) their attitudes about self-aging; (4) their
attitudes about having an old person as a volunteer in the classroom; and (5) their evaluative
attitudes towards old people.
The chi-square statistic and t-test were used to test the three hypotheses in this study.
Hypothesis 1 was that the knowledge and attitudes o f the curriculum + volunteer group toward
old people and aging would improve significantly from pre-test to post-test. Hypothesis 2 was
that the knowledge and attitudes o f the curriculum only group toward old people and aging would
improve significantly as well, from pre-test to post-test. Hypothesis 3 was that statistically
significant changes in positive attitudes from pre-test to post-test would occur on more measures
in the curriculum + volunteer group than in the curriculum only group, employing a . 10 level of
significance.
General Knowledge About Aging
Figure 1 depicts a frequency distribution o f children’s sources o f knowledge about aging.
As the frequency distribution shows, the children’s primary source o f knowledge about aging
came from communication with their grandparents. Sixty-nine percent of the children in the
37
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curriculum only group cited their grandparents as their primary source o f knowledge about aging,
and 82% o f the children in the curriculum + volunteer group listed their grandparents as their
primary source o f knowledge on aging. Other potential sources o f information about aging, such
as parents or the media appeared to have little influence in children’s knowledge about aging. In
order to evaluate whether the groups were similar with respect to their potential for interaction
with grandparents, children were asked whether they had living grandparents. All o f the children
in the sample responded that they did have living grandparents.
Table 1 shows the frequency o f personal visits between the children in each group and
their grandparents. In order to evaluate any differences between the groups with respect to their
exposure to grandparents, a chi-square analysis was performed comparing the two groups’
frequency o f personal visits with their grandparents. The chi-square analysis showed no
statistically significant difference between the groups with respect to the children’s frequency of
personal visits with their grandparents.. Approximately 48% o f the children in the curriculum
only group reported personal visits with their grandparents on a regular basis (daily to weekly)
with 57% o f the children in the curriculum + volunteer group reporting daily to weekly visits with
grandparents.
No statistically significant differences were found between the groups with respect to the
frequency o f phone conversations with their grandparents, as reported in Table 2. Fifty-four
percent of the children in the curriculum only group and 50% o f the children in the curriculum +
volunteer group reported regular (daily to weekly) phone conversations with their grandparents.
38
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General Attitudes About Aging
The responses o f the curriculum + volunteer group and the curriculum only group on
measures concerning their general attitudes about aging are reported in Tables 3 through 5. Chi-
square analyses showed no statistically significant difference between the groups with respect to
their pre-test responses. Within-group changes from pre-test to post-test were evaluated for
statistical significance, using a chi-square analysis. Table 3 shows both groups’ pre-test and post
test responses to the question “Do you think growing old is a good thing, a bad thing or
neither? ” The changes in responses from pre-test to post-test were statistically significant at the
.05 level (X2 = 3.61) in the curriculum + volunteer group, with the group’s positive attitudes
about growing old increasing 25% on the post-test. In contrast, pre- to post-test changes within
the curriculum only group were not statistically significant, and actually showed a 10% decline in
positive attitudes on the post-test.
Analyses o f the groups’ pre-test to post-test responses to the question “How do you think
it feels to be an old person? Does it feel good, bad or neither? ” are shown in Table 4. Pre-test
to post-test changes within the curriculum + volunteer group were statistically significant at the
.01 level (X2 = 9.91) with a 43% increase in positive attitudes about what it feels like to be old.
No statistically significant difference from pre-test to post-test was found in the curriculum only
group, with the group showing only a slight increase (7%) in their positive attitudes.
The changes in the groups’ pre-test to post-test responses to the question “What happens
when you get to be an old person? Is this a good thing, a bad thing or neither? ” are shown in
39
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Table 5. No significant improvement in positive attitudes about aging was shown by either group
in response to this question.
Attitudes About Self-Aging
Three questions within the questionnaire focused on the children’s attitudes about their
own aging. Chi-square analyses showed no significant difference between the two groups’ pre
test responses on two of the three measures concerning attitudes about self-aging ( “ What do you
think you will be like when you are an old person? ” and "What do you think you will do when
you are an old person? ”). However, a chi-square analysis o f both groups’ pre-test responses to
the question "How do you think you willfeel when you are an old person? ” showed significantly
more positive attitudes among children in the curriculum only group (X2 = 4.62, p = .05).
Table 6 shows the within-group changes from pre-test to post-test to the question "What
do you think you will be like when you are an old person? Will this be a good thing, a bad thing,
or neither? ” The responses o f the curriculum + volunteer group showed an increase in positive
attitudes from pre-test to post-test which was statistically significant at the .05 level (X2 = 4.72).
While the changes in responses from pre-test to post-test within the curriculum only group were
in the anticipated positive direction, the changes were not statistically significant. Positive
attitudes towards becoming old increased 32% in the curriculum + volunteer group, with only a
slight increase o f 7% in the curriculum only group’s positive attitudes about their own aging.
Table 7 shows the within-group changes from pre-test to post-test to the question "How
do you think you will feel when you are an old person? Will it be good, bad or neither? ” A
40
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statistically significant increase in positive attitudes about how they will feel when they become
old was shown in the curriculum + volunteer group (X2 = 7.96, p = .01), with a 40% increase in
the group’s positive attitudes about how they will feel when they are old. Positive attitude
changes in the curriculum only group however, were negligible (7%) and not statistically
significant.
Table 8 shows the within-group changes from pre-test to post-test in response to the
question “What do you think you will do when you are an old person? Will it be good, bad or
neither? ” Neither group showed a statistically significant change from pre-test to post-test in
their responses to this question.
Children’s Attitudes About Having An Older Volunteer In The Classroom.
A frequency distribution o f the groups’ pre-test attitudes about an old person’s usefulness
in the classroom is depicted in Figure 2. Both groups expressed markedly more positive attitudes
than negative ones about the value o f having an old person in the classroom, with 80% to 90%
within each group responding that an old person in the classroom could teach them, help them
with their work, and become their friend. Chi-square analyses showed no statistically significant
difference between the groups’ pre-test responses on the measures o f whether an old person
could: “teach us” , “help with work”, “become afriend” , “be mean to us”, “leach wrong
answers”, or “ get in the way. ” A chi-square analysis however, did show a statistically significant
difference between the groups’ pre-test responses on the measure o f whether an old person could
“bore us. " A significantly higher number of children in the curriculum only group
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(X2 = 8.34, p = .01) felt that an old person working in the classroom could bore them. The chi-
square analysis o f the groups’ pre-test scores on this measure is found in Table 9.
A frequency distribution o f the groups’ post-test attitudes about having an old person in
the classroom are shown in Figure 3. The post-test responses o f the curriculum + volunteer
group show an increase in positive attitudes in comparison with the responses o f children in the
curriculum only group. The difference was not statistically significant.
Chi-square analyses showed no statistically significant changes from pre-test to
post-test within the curriculum + volunteer group on any o f the measures. In the curriculum only
group, no significant pre-test to post-test changes were observed on the measures o f whether an
old person could : “teach us", "be mean to us", or "teach the wrong answers. ” However, chi-
square analyses did show statistically significant attitude changes in a negative direction from pre-
to post-test in the curriculum only group on the measures o f whether an old person could “help
with work’’ , and “become a friend. " Table 10 shows the chi-square analysis o f the group’s pre-
to post-test responses on the measure "help with work. ” From pre-test to post-test, the number
of children in the curriculum only group who felt that an old person could help them with their
work declined significantly (X2 = 4.038, p = .05). Also statistically significant at the .05 level was
the decline in the number o f children who felt that an old person could become their friend
(X2 = 4.229). The chi-square analysis o f pre- to post-test changes in the curriculum only group
on the measure o f whether an old person could “become a friend" is shown in Table 11. One
statistically significant attitude change in a positive direction, however, was observed on the
group’s post-test responses to the measure o f whether an old person could "bore us. " A
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significant decrease (X2 = 4.49, p = .05) was observed in the number o f children who felt that an
old person in the classroom would bore them. Table 12 shows the chi-square analysis o f the
group’s pre-test to post-test responses on this measure.
Figure 4 shows the frequency distribution o f each group’s pre-test attitudes about what
motivates an old person to work in a classroom setting. The responses o f each group indicate an
attitude that old persons are more motivated by positive rather than negative factors to volunteer
in a classroom setting. Chi-square analyses showed no statistically significant difference between
the groups’ pre-test responses on the measures concerning an old person’s motivations for
volunteering in the classroom. However, a considerable number o f children in each group (41%
in the curriculum only group and 50% in the curriculum + volunteer group) indicated on the pre
test that an old person might be motivated to work in the classroom out o f loneliness.
A frequency distribution of the groups’ post-test attitudes about an old person’s
motivations for working in the classroom is shown in Figure 5. While both groups’ positive
attitudes that an old person would “leach them ”, “ help them ” and “like children ” remained
stable from pre-test to post-test, each group’s negative feelings that an old person would
volunteer in the class due to boredom or a sense of uselessness, while not statistically significant,
changed in a negative direction from pre-test to post-test.
Chi-square analyses o f the within-group changes from pre-test to post-test showed no
statistically significant differences, with the exception of the measure on “loneliness. ” A chi-
square analysis showed a statistically significant decrease (X2 = 2.74, p = . 10) from pre-test to
43
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post-test in the number o f children in the curriculum + volunteer group who felt that an old
person would be motivated to volunteer out of loneliness (Table 13). The
chi-square analysis o f the pre- to post test changes on this measure within the curriculum only
group was not statistically significant.
Children’s Evaluative Attitudes About Old People
Scale profiles o f the pre-test and post-test attitudes within the curriculum + volunteer
group and within the curriculum only group are shown in Figures 6 and 7, respectively. The
semantic differential scale evaluated the following eleven characteristics from positive to negative:
Good to Bad; Pleasant to Unpleasant; Happy to Sad; Fast to Slow; Pretty to Ugly; Exciting to
Dull; Clean to Dirty; Kind to Cruel; Wise to Foolish; Loved to Hated; and Honest to Dishonest.
A score o f “ 1 ” rated old people most positively on each respective characteristic. A score o f “2”
rated old people as “a little” positive. A score of “3” on the semantic differential scale indicated a
response o f “not sure”. A score o f “4” rated old people as “a little” negative on the respective
characteristics, and a score o f “5” indicated the most negative evaluative rating.
T-tests were performed comparing the pre-test and post-test means within each group on
the semantic differential scale. No statistically significant differences were observed in the mean
scores within each group from pre-test to post-test in their evaluations o f old people. Table 14
shows the t-test comparisons o f the pre-test and post-test mean scores for the curriculum +
volunteer group on the semantic differential scale. The t score in Table 14 indicates that the
variance between the group’s pre-test and post-test mean scores is not statistically significant
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[t (28) = .038 (ns) ]. Table 15 shows the t-test comparisons o f the pre-test and post-test mean
scores for the curriculum only group on the semantic differential scale. The t score in Table 15
indicates that the variance between the pre-test and post-test mean scores for the curriculum only
group on their evaluative attitudes toward old people is not statistically significant
[t (29) = .045 (ns) ].
In summary, the curriculum + volunteer group showed a statistically significant
improvement from pre-test to post-test on all measures concerning their general attitudes about
aging, while the curriculum only group showed no statistically significant changes in their general
attitudes from pre-test to post-test.
In their attitudes about self-aging, the curriculum + volunteer group showed significant
improvement in attitudes from pre-test to post-test on two out o f three measures, while the
curriculum only group showed no significant changes in attitudes about self-aging from pre-test to
post-test.
The two groups varied as well, with respect to their changes in attitudes about having an
older volunteer in the classroom. On the pre-test, the attitudes between the groups showed no
statistically significant differences. While no statistically significant attitude changes were seen
within the curriculum + volunteer group from pre-test to post-test, the curriculum only group
showed statistically significant attitude changes in a negative direction from pre-test to post-test
on two o f the five measures.
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On the semantic differential scale, neither the curriculum + volunteer group or the
curriculum only group evidenced any statistically significant variance in their mean scores from
pre-test to post-test in their evaluations o f old people.
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Table 1.
Responses o f Curriculum Only Group and Curriculum + Volunteer Group
on Frequency o f Personal Visits with Grandparents
% Curriculum Onlv % Curriculum + Volunteer Total C N O
Dailv/Weeklv Visits 45.0 57.1 29
Monthlv/Yearlv Visits 48.3 42.9 26
Total 93.3% 100% 55
Note. Two student responses missing in Curriculum Only Group
Table 2.
Responses o f Curriculum Onlv GrouD and Curriculum + Volunteer Group On Freauencv of
Phone Conversations with Grandparents
% Curriculum Onlv % Curriculum + Volunteer Total OD
Dailv/Weeklv 48.3 46.4 27
Monthlv/Yearlv 41.4 46.4 25
Total 89.7% 92.8% 52
Note. Three student responses missing in Curriculum Only Group; two student responses missing
in Curriculum + Volunteer Group.
47
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Table 3.
Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses o f Curriculum Only Group and Curriculum + Volunteer Group
on General Attitudes About Aging
“Do you think growing old is a good thing, a bad thine or neither?”
Good
Bad/Neither
Total
X2 = .526, p = .58 (ns)
Curriculum Onlv GrouD
Pre-Test Post-Test
%
N
Si
N
20.7 6 10.3 3
79.3 23 89.7 26
100 29 100 29
Curriculum + Volunteer Group
Good
Bad/Neither
Total
X2 = 3.61, p < .05
Pre-Test Post--Test
%
N
°A
N
10.7 3 36 10
89.3 25 64 18
100 28 100 28
48
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Table 4.
Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses of Curriculum Onlv Group and
Curriculum + Volunteer Group On General Attitudes About Aging
How do you think it feels to be an old person? Does it feel good, bad or neither?’"
Good
Bad/Neither
Total
X2 = .145, p = .69 (ns)
Curriculum Onlv Gtoud
Pre-Test PostTest
% N
i l
N
10.3 3 17.2 5
89.7 26 82.8 24
100 29 100 29
Curriculum + Volunteer Group
Good
Bad/Neither
Total
X2 = 9.91, p < . 001
Pre-Test Post-Test
%
N
%
N
10.7 3 53.6 15
89.3 25 46.4 13
100 28 100 28
49
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Table 5.
Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses of Curriculum Only Group and
Curriculum + Volunteer Group On General Attitudes About Aging
“What happens when you get to be an old person? Is this a good thing, a bad thing, or neither?”
Curriculum Onlv GrouD
Pre-Test Post -Test
° A
N al N
Good 10.3 3 24.1 7
Bad/Neither 89.7 26 75.9 22
Total 100 29 100 29
X2 = 1.08, p = .30 (ns)
Curriculum + Volunteer Group
Good
Bad/Neither
Total
X2 = 2.12, p < .10
Pre-Test Post--Test
%
N
°A
N
7.1 2 25 7
92.9 26 75 21
100 28 100 28
50
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Table 6.
Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses of Curriculum Only Group and
Curriculum + Volunteer Group On Attitudes About Self-Aging
“What do you think you will be like when you are an old person? Will this be a good thing, a bad
thing, or neither?”
Curriculum Onlv Group
Pre-Test Post-Test
%
N
%
N
Good 38 11 44.8 13
Bad/Neither 62 18 55.2 16
Total 100 29 100 29
X2 = .071, p = .89 (ns)
Curriculum + Volunteer Group
Pre-Test
% N
Post-Test
% N
Good 25 7 57 16
Bad/Neither 75 21 43 12
Total 100 28 100 28
X2 = 4.72, p < .05
51
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Table 7.
Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses o f Curriculum Onlv Group and
Curriculum + Volunteer Group On Attitudes About Self-Aging
“How do you think you will feel when you are an old person? Will it be good, bad or neither?”
Curriculum Onlv Group
Pre-Test Post-Test
% N
%
N
Good 27.6 8 34.5 10
Bad/Neither 72.4 21 65.5 19
Total 100 29 100 29
X2 = .0805, p = .77 (ns)
Curriculum + Volunteer Group
Good
Bad/Neither
Total
X2 = 7.97, p < . 001
Pre-Test Post-Test
%
N
%
N
14.3 4 53.6 15
85.7 24 46.4 13
100 28 100 28
52
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Table 8.
Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses of Curriculum Onlv Group and
Curriculum + Volunteer Group On Attitudes About Self-Aging
“What do you think you will do when you are an old person? Will it be good, bad or neither?”
Curriculum Onlv Group
Pre-Test Post-Test
%
N
%
N
Good 72.4 21 82.8 24
Bad/Neither 27.6 8 17.2 5
Total 100 29 100 29
X2 = .3965, p = .44 (ns)
Curriculum + Volunteer Group
Pre-Test Post-Test
%
N
%
N
Good 85.7 24 78.6 22
Bad/Neither 14.3 4 21.4 6
Total 100 28 100 28
X2= .12, p = .57 (ns)
53
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Table 9.
Pre-Test Responses o f Curriculum Only Group and Curriculum + Volunteer Group
On Attitudes About Having an Old Person in the Classroom
“Do you think an old person in the classroom could bore you?”
Curriculum Onlv
% N
Yes 59 17
No 41 12
Total 100 29
X2 = 8.34, p < .001
Table 10.
Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses o f Curriculum Onlv Group
on Attitudes About Having an Old Person in the Classroom
“Do you think an old person in the classroom could help you with your work?”
Pre-Test Post-Test
% N
% N
Yes 93 27 69 20
No 7 2 31 9
Total 100 29 100 29
X2= 4.038, p < .05
54
Curriculum + Volunteer
%
N
18 5
82 23
100 28
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Table 11.
Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses of Curriculum Only Group
On Attitudes About Having an Old Person in the Classroom
“Do vou think an old person in the classroom could become vour friend?
Pre-Test Post-Test
% N % N
Yes 86 25 59 17
No 14 4 41 12
Total 100 29 100 29
X2 = 4.229, p < . 05
Table 12.
Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses of Curriculum Onlv Group
On Attitudes About Having an Old Person in the Classroom
“Do you think an old person in the classroom could bore you?”
Pre-Test Post-Test
% N % N
Yes 59 17 28 8
No 41 12 72 21
Total
X2 = 4.49 , p < .05
100 29 100 29
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Table 13.
Pre-Test to Post-Test Responses o f Curriculum + Volunteer Group
On What Would Motivate an Old Person to Work in the Classroom
“Would an old person want to come to your classroom because they feel lonely?”
Pre-•Test Post -Test
% N
i l
N
50 14 25 7
50 14 75 21
100 28 100 28
X2 = 2.74, p < 10
Table 14.
Pre-Test to Post-Test Comparison o f Mean Scores o f Curriculum + Volunteer Group on
Semantic Differential Scale
Group Range N Mean T Ratio
Pre-Test 1.0-3.0 28 1.82
.038
Post-Test 1.0-3.0 28 1.72
p = .90 (ns)
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Table 15.
Differential Scale
Group Range N Mean T Ratio
Pre-Test 1.0- 3.45 29 1.81
.045
Post-Test
p = .90 (ns)
1.09-3.0 28 1.93
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Reproduced w ith permission o f th e copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
Figure 1. Frequency Distribution of Children's Sources
of Knowledge About Aging
90%
80%
70%
60%
I 50%
o >
u 40%
C L
30%
20%
10% ------
0% I —
i l l l i l i l l l l l l l l p
■ C u rric u lu m O n ly
l l l i i l i l i l i i l l i
□ C u rric u lu m +
V o lu n te e r
l l l i l l l l l l l l l H l l l l l l l f i l l
I
P a r e n t s G r a n d p a r e n ts M e d ia S o m e w h e r e E ls e
cn
00
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Figure 2. Pre-test Comparisons Between Groups: "What do you think
an old person could do with you in the classroom?"
100 .
■ C u rric u lu m O n ly
□ C u rric u lu m +
V o lu n te e r
T e a c h H e lp B e c o m e B e T e a c h G e t in B o re U s
u s w ith a frie n d m e a n to w ro n g th e w a y
w o rk u s a n s w e r s
cn
U 2
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100
Figure 3. Post-test Responses Between Groups: "What do you think an old person could do
with you in the classroom?"
I
T e a c h B e c o m e
a frie n d
I C u rric u lu m O n ly
□ C u rric u lu m + V o lu n te e r
m e a n to
T e a c h
w ro n g
a n s w e r s
G e t in
th e w a y
B o re u s
C T>
O
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Figure 4. Pre-test Responses Between Groups: "Why do you think
an old person would like to come to your classroom?"
1 0 0 - J
q o .
i b b s
oU
RO - uu
70 -
1 u
0 0 -
o u
50 -
40 -
H U
^0 -
ou
90 -
4 ~ \J
10 -
1 u
0 -
T o
te a c h u s
C u rric u lu m O n ly
® C u rric u lu m +
V o lu n te e r
u s e e s s
T o h e lp
c h ild re n
T h e y
like
c h ild re n
N o th in g
e ls e to
d o
en
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Figure 5. Post-test Responses Between Groups: "Why do you think
an old person would like to come to your classrooom?"
■ r
-
....
i
T o
te a c h u s
T o h e lp
c h ild re n
l C u rric u lu m O n ly
□ C u rric u lu m +
V o lu n te e r
T h e y
like
c h ild re n
T h e y
fe e l
u s e l e s s
t ± B -
T h e y
fe e l
lo n e ly
N o th in g
e ls e to
d o
CD
ro
Hgjxe6. Fte-Test to Ftst-Test Attitudes T c M a rd Q d Ftecple cn Semantic Diflerential Scale
fcr Grriculim +Vdm teer G rap
. (N = 28) Post-Test
Good-
■ I Slow Fast
Ocai ■ I Dirty
Kind
Wise
- I H ied Loved
Honest-
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Figire7. fre-Test to Fbst-Test Attitudes T ow ar d Qd Ffe cple cn Semaitic Differential Scale Fcr
Q rriculiinQ ily G r o u p
Pest-T est
Good
Pleasant
J Sow Fast
{Dull Exdting'
C lean- { Dirty
{Chid
W ise {Foolish
Loved
{Dishonest Honest
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CHAPTER IV. DISCUSSION
General Knowledge About Aging
Although much o f the literature on intergenerational contact between
grandchildren and grandparents indicates children’s contact with grandparents is limited
(Seefeldt, et al. 1977), approximately one half o f the children participating in this study
maintained regular communication with their grandparents on a daily to weekly basis,
either by telephone or through personal visits. Additionally, over one half o f the children
in the study were in close geographical proximity to grandparents and participated in
regular personal visits with their grandparents.
Grandparents were cited as the primary source o f knowledge about aging for
children in both groups. O f interest is the observation that so few children in either group
indicated that their attitudes were influenced by the media. While Gerbner (1993)
reported that old people are either under-represented or depicted negatively in children’s
television programming, it is likely that the absence or negative portrayals o f old people in
television programming are subliminal influences on children, and as such are not likely to
be consciously reported by them.
The data on the children’s degree of interaction with grandparents established that
both groups were similar in their access to and interaction with grandparents at the
commencement o f the study.
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General Attitudes About Aging.
The study’s findings with respect to the children’s general attitudes about aging
partially support Hypothesis 1, that the curriculum + volunteer group’s knowledge and
attitudes about aging would improve significantly after exposure to the curriculum on
aging and classroom interaction with an older volunteer. Their positive perceptions about
aging improved significantly on two of the three measures concerning general attitudes
about aging. Although they showed significant improvement in their attitudes that
growing old is a good thing, and that growing old feels “good” rather than “bad”, the
curriculum + volunteer group showed no significant improvement in their attitudes in
response to the question o f what “happens” when one becomes old. The question “ What
happens when yon get to be an old person? ” may have required more specific knowledge
about the aging process than the experiential knowledge of children aged 9 and 10
permits.
The educational curriculum presented to both groups included
videos profiling intergenerational exchanges between children and older adults. However,
the educational curriculum alone, in the absence o f personal classroom interaction with an
older adult volunteer, was insufficient in positively influencing the attitudes o f the
curriculum only group about aging. The curriculum only group showed no significantly
positive changes on any o f the measures concerning general attitudes about aging.
Consequently there was no support for Hypothesis two, that positive attitudes about aging
would improve significantly in the curriculum only group upon completion o f the
academic curriculum on aging.
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The significant improvement in attitudes among children in the curriculum +
volunteer group contrasts with the attitudes o f children in the curriculum only group. The
findings support Hypothesis three, that statistically significant attitude changes in a
positive direction would occur on more measures within the curriculum + volunteer group
than in the curriculum only group. In contrast with the children in the curriculum only
group, the attitudes o f children in the curriculum + volunteer group improved significantly
from pre-test to post-test. Although both groups received the same educational
information about aging, the group of children who additionally had regular classroom
interaction with an older volunteer showed significantly more positive changes in attitudes.
The findings suggest that the classroom interaction with the older adult volunteer may be
the component against which the difference in the groups’ attitudes can be assessed. The
volunteer’s regular social interaction with the children extended beyond the academic
material and provided an opportunity for the children to develop attitudes based on their
personal experiences with an older person rather than from pre-formed or subconscious
stereotypes. The volunteer who participated in the study was healthy, outgoing and led an
active lifestyle.
Attitudes About Self-Aging
The curriculum + volunteer group showed significant improvements in their
attitudes about self-aging in response to two o f the three questions concerning self-aging,
in partial support o f Hypothesis 1. However, in the third question presented to the
children concerning their attitudes about their own aging, “What do you think you will do
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when you are an old person? ” the active verb “do” suggests an action which asks children
to actively project themselves into a specific activity in the distant future. It may be
difficult for children who have only nine or ten years o f life experience to envision events
in their lives which place them decades into the future. As Kastenbaum (1964) observed,
due to children’s limited life experience, they place their emphasis and value on their life in
the present and have no context within which to project future events. The absence o f
post-test improvements in response to this question may have been due in part to the
inability o f children to respond meaningfully to the question.
In the absence o f interaction with an older adult volunteer, the curriculum alone
did not appear to serve as a positive influence for children in the curriculum only group in
their perspectives about their own aging. No significant changes in positive attitudes
about self-aging were seen in the curriculum only group. Consequently, there was no
support for Hypothesis 2.
In support o f the third hypothesis, at the completion o f the study the children in the
curriculum + volunteer group demonstrated significantly more positive attitudes about
their own aging than did the children in the curriculum only group. The older volunteer’s
participation in classroom exercises in which the volunteer and the children exchanged
personal accounts about their aging and maturation may have been a contributing factor in
the improvement in attitudes among children in the curriculum + volunteer group.
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Children’s Evaluative Attitudes About Old People
From pre-test to post-test, neither group showed statistically significant
improvement in their evaluative attitudes about old people, as evidenced in their responses
on the semantic differential scale. In general, both groups evaluated old people highly on
both the pre-test and the post-test. The majority of children in each group gave responses
which were within the range o f “a little” (positive) to “not sure” or “a little” (negative).
One explanation may be that the children’s limited life experiences with old persons
restricted their ability to respond within the full range of possible responses on the scale.
Another explanation may be that the children responded within the context o f what they
felt were the most desirable or appropriate responses. Within the range o f responses
provided by the children, however, the children in each group evaluated old people more
positively on behavioral characteristics such as being “honest”, “good”, “happy”, and
evaluated old people more negatively on the physical trait o f “fast” vs. “slow”. These
results support the conclusion o f Marks and Newman (1980) that children evaluate old
people differently on various behavioral and physical characteristics.
Children’s Attitudes About Having An Older Volunteer In the Classroom
At the beginning o f the study, a significantly greater number o f children in the
curriculum only group expressed concern that an old person in the classroom might bore
them, which indicated that children in the curriculum + volunteer group may have held
fewer negative stereotypes o f old persons than did the children in the curriculum only
group. The groups differed in their pre-test evaluation o f the value o f having an older
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volunteer in the classroom only on this measure. On all other measures, the children in
each group exhibited highly positive attitudes about an older volunteer’s usefulness in the
classroom as well as positive attitudes about an older person’s personal motivations for
volunteering in the school. The positive attitudes o f the children in the curriculum +
volunteer group remained stable at the completion o f their intergenerational experience,
and the prior negative attitudes of some children, for example that old people volunteer
out of loneliness, were reduced significantly as well. The children who did not participate
in the intergenerational experience (the curriculum only group) however, showed no
improvement in their perceptions about what motivates an older person to volunteer in the
school, and in fact demonstrated significantly more negative attitudes about older
volunteers at the conclusion of the study than they had at the beginning o f the study.
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CHAPTER V. SUMMARY
The existing literature on children’s attitudes about aging supports both a general
lack o f knowledge about old people and limited opportunities for contact between children
and older adults. However, the children in this study did not experience social segregation
from old persons, rather they experienced a high level o f communication and interaction
with their grandparents. While many studies have found that children hold negative
stereotypes o f old persons, the children in this study held favorable attitudes toward old
persons, a finding which supports the observation o f Bengston and Roberts (1985) that
children who have close relationships with their grandparents do not express ageist
attitudes. The children in the study indicated that they had learned the most about old
people and about the process o f aging from their grandparents. This finding coincides
with Sheehan’s (1981) observation that the primary source o f intergenerational contact
comes from within the family.
In examining the different dimensions on which children evaluate old people, it is
interesting to observe from this study that children in both groups rated old people more
negatively on characteristics relating to physical traits, such as physical attractiveness and
the rate o f physical mobility. As Seefeldt and Jantz (1977) found in their study, so the
attitudes o f children in this study also showed more positive evaluations o f old people on
qualities representing character values, such as honesty, love, kindness and wisdom, than
on those representing physical characteristics.
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The study’s findings support the existing body o f literature with respect to the
positive role that intergenerational programs can play in changing children’s attitudes
about aging and about the elderly. The positive change in attitudes among children in the
curriculum + volunteer group strongly suggests that frequent and quality interaction
between children and older adults are valuable components in the development o f
educational programs about aging. The children who participated in the intergenerational
social exchange in addition to receiving the educational curriculum on aging, expressed a
greater increase in positive attitudes about aging in general and about their own aging than
did the group who received the curriculum but no intergenerational contact. They also
showed a greater reduction in negative attitudes, in contrast with the children who
received the educational curriculum without the benefit of intergenerational social contact.
Fox and Giles’ 1993 meta-analysis o f the methodological designs employed in past
intergenerational programs stressed the value o f “quality” o f contact over “quantity” of
contact in improving children’s attitudes toward the elderly. A review o f the research
designs o f studies structured to influence children’s attitudes about aging showed the
condition “social distance” to be a contributing factor in the development o f negative
attitudes on behalf of children. Consequently, the studies found to be the most effective in
producing positive attitudes about aging among children involved both structured
intergenerational contact and educational information about aging.
A long-standing methodological problem in intergenerational studies, as in the
present study, is the inability to measure long-term changes in attitudes which result from
intergenerational contact o f a limited duration. The need exists for a focus on longitudinal
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studies which incorporate in their designs frequent, quality interaction between the young
and the old, combined with factual information about aging. The guidelines for future
programs have been shaped and more clearly defined through the combined successes and
limitations o f past intergenerational programs. Children and older adults have many
resources to offer one another. These resources can be linked through the creation of
methodologically sound intergenerational programs which benefit and positively influence
both young and old alike.
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APPENDIX A
Children’s Views on Aging Questionnaire
Instructions: The following questions ask you to think about becoming an old person.
For most o f these questions you will just need to write a few words. For some other
questions, you will need to circle the answer that tells what you think. If you have any
questions, raise your hand. There are no right or wrong answers. Don’t worry if you
cannot spell a word you want to use.
Name____________________________
Please check one: Are you a a) boy b) girl______
For the next eight questions you should circle the response you want to choose, or write a
few words.
1.a) How can you tell when people are growing old?_______________
b) Do you think this is: (circle only one)
a good thing to happen? a bad thing to happen? neither good or bad?
2.a) How do you think it feels to be an old person?__________________
b) Do you think this: (circle only one)
feels good? feels bad? Feels neither good or bad?
3.a) What do you think happens when you get to be an old person?_____
b) Do you think this is: (circle only one)
a good thing to happen? a bad thing to happen? neither good or bad?
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c) At what age is a person an old person?
4. You have been answering questions about some of the things you know about old
persons. Now I would like to know where you learned the most about old persons.
Circle the one that tells where you think you learned the most, (circle only one.)
a. television e. your grandparents
b. your friends f. books
c. your parents g. somewhere else
d. movies
Now, imagine that you are an old person.
5.a) What do you think you will be like?____________________________
b) Do you think this will be: (circle only one)
a good thing? a bad thing? feel neither good or bad?
6.a) How do you think you will feel when you are an old person? _
b) Do you think this will: (circle only one)
feel good? feel bad? feel neither good or bad?
7.a) What do you think you will do when you are an old person?_______
b) Do you think doing this will be: (circle only one)
a good thing to do? a bad thing to do? feel neither good or bad?
8. You have just answered some questions about what you think you will
be like and what you think you will do when you are an old person.
Now I would like to know where you learned the most about becoming
old. Circle the one that tells where you think you learned the most.
a. television or radio c. your parents e. your grandparents
b. your friends d. the movies f. books
g. somewhere else
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Part II.
Think o f some o f the old persons you know. First, write their names or what you usually
call them. Then for each person you name, write who they are. For each person you
name, write how old you think they are. Then write how often you see them and where
you usually see them.
What is Who
their name? are they?
1. almost every day
2. almost every week
3. almost every month
4. summers
5. once or twice a year
How old do you How often do Where do you
think they are? you see them? you see them?
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Part HI.
I would like you to think about some ways you would describe old people.
Below are 11 pairs o f words. For each pair, place an X on one of the five lines that tells
what you think about old people. Look at the first pair. If you think old people are very
good, place an X on the first line, under the word “Very”. If you think old people are a
little good, place an X on the second line, under “A Little”. If you are not sure, place an
X on the middle line under “Not Sure”. If you think old people are a little bad, place an X
on the fourth line under “A Little”, and if you think old people are very bad, place an X on
the last line under “Very”.
Old People
Very A Little Not Sure A Little Very
I. Good Bad
2. Unpleasant Pleasant
3. Happy Sad
4. Slow Fast
5. Pretty Ugly
6. Dull Exciting
7. Clean Dirty
8. Cruel Kind
9. Wise Foolish
10. Hated Loved
11. Honest Dishonest
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Part IV.
For some o f these next questions you will just need to write a few words. For some
others, mark an X next to the answer you want to make.
1. Who is the oldest person you know ?______________________________
2. How old do you think this person is?______________________________
3. How do you think this person feels to be old?________________________
4. Do you have grandparents? Yes No
(If you do not, do not answer the next four questions.)
5. How often do you see your grandparents? (Check the one that is correct.)
Almost every day Almost every week
Almost every month Summers Once or twice a year
6. What do you do with your grandparents when you are with them ?______
7. How often do you talk to your grandparents on the telephone? (Check the
one that is correct.)
Almost every day Almost every week
Almost every month Summers Once or twice a year
8.a) Are your grandparents old? Yes ____ No
b) What are the ages o f (1) your grandmothers? ______
(2) your grandfathers? ______ ______
9.a) Do you have great-grandparents? Yes No
(If you do not, do not answer the next four questions.)
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10. How often do you see your great-grandparents? (Check the one that is
correct.)
Almost every d a y Almost every week
Almost every month Summers Once or twice a year
11. What do you do with your great-grandparents when you are with them?
12. How often do you talk to your great-grandparents when you are with them?
(Check the one that is correct.)
Almost every day Almost every week
Almost every month Summers Once or twice a year
13. Are your great-grandparents old? Yes No
Now I would like to ask you some questions about having an old person in your
classroom.
14. What do you think an old person could do with you in your classroom?
(For each one, mark an X next to Yes if you think an old person could
do this with you, or mark an X next to No if you think an old person
could not do this with you.)
Do you think an old person could:
a. Teach you? Yes____ No___
b. Help you with your work? Y es N o ____
c. Become your friend? Yes N o ____
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15. If an old person came to your classroom what do you think they might do with
you? (For each one, mark an X next to “Yes” if you think an old person would do this
with you, or mark an X next to “No” if you think an old person would not do this with
you.)
Do you think an old person might:
a. Be mean to you? Yes No
b. Teach you the wrong answers? Yes No
c. Just get in your way? Yes No
d. Bore you with uninteresting
stories? Yes No
Why do you think an old person would like to come to you
a. To teach children Yes No
b. To help children Yes No
c. Because they like children Yes No
d. Because they feel useless Yes No
e. Because they are lonely Yes No
f. Because they have nothing
else to do Yes No
17. Would you like having an old person in your classroom as a helper?
Yes N o _____
18. Would you go to an old person if you had a problem during school time?
Yes No
19. Do you think an old person might need help in getting used to your
classroom?
Yes No
20. If you said Yes, what kind o f help might they need?_
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21. Would you be willing to provide this help?
Yes No
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APPENDIX B
Response Categories to Open-Ended Questions
From the Children's Views on Aging Attitude Survey
1. Question: How can you tell when people are growing old?
Response Categories
1. Positive psychological/physical qualities
2. Negative psychological/physical qualities
3. Physiological decline
4. Objective physical characteristics
5. Other (objective comments)
Exemplatv Responses
1. Positive psychological/physical qualities
They help you.
They get more mature.
They get wise/nice.
2. Negative psychological/physical qualities
Their face is ugly.
They can’t get a job.
When they start getting lonely. They get mean.
3. Physiological decline
They get weak.
Cannot walk good/have back problems.
Hard of hearing.
They shake.
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4. Objective physical characteristics
Hair turns gray.
Wrinkles on face/hands.
By their hands/skin.
5. Other (objective comments)
By how old they are.
Their looks.
2. Question: How do you think it feels to be an old person?
Response Categories
1. Positive psychological/physical qualities
2. Negative psychological/physical qualities
3. Mixed responses
4. Other (objective comments)
Exemplary Responses
1. Positive psychological/physical qualities
Good/Wonderful
Import ant/Helpfiil
Will be fun
Happy/Nice
2. Negative psychological/physical qualities
Bad/Lonely/Sad Grumpy
Weird/Scared Unwanted
Run down/ Feels lazy Need help/Helpless
Can’t walk good You’ll die soon
Not good/ Can’t get a job Slower
People don’t care about you Don’t enjoy life as much anymore
Uncomfortable Can’t do anything
3. Mixed responses
Sometimes good, sometimes bad
Voice is shaky.
The way they walk.
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4. Other (objective comments)
Different
Old
No different than young
3. Question: What do you think happens when you get to be an old person?
Response Categories
1. Positive psychological/physical qualities
2. Negative psychological/physical qualities
3. Physical decline
4. You die
5. Objective physical characteristics
6. Social withdrawal
7. Other
Exemplary Responses
1. Positive psychological/physical qualities (response implies adult autonomy)
Can do more things
You can drive
Become a parent
Get bigger
2. Negative psychological/physical qualities
You get gloomy
Don’t have as much fun
Get lonesome/lonely
Kids call you names
Nobody cares
Scared
Get mean
Life goes to waste
Sad and you want to be a teenager again
and have friends
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3. Physical decline
Cannot do as much Get weaker/sicker/slower
Sick/can’t run Hard to work
Bones hurt Can’t work
Need help Won’t be able to move
4. You die
You die/days are almost over/get ready to die
5. Objective physical characteristics
Gray hair Wrinkles/teeth fall out
6. Social withdrawal
Sit in a rocking chair Do nothing/quit your job
7. Other
Feel different Get older
4. Question: What do you think you will be like when you are old?
Response Categories
1. Positive psychological/physical qualities
2. Negative psychological/physical qualities
3. Objective physical characteristics
4. Mixed responses
5. Other
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Exemplary Responses
1. Positive psychological/physical qualities
2. Negative psychological/physical qualities
Unhelpful/crippled Very weak/lazy/poor
Not as good as young
3. Objective physical characteristics
Gray hair/no teeth/wrinkles
Have a beard/get fat
Will die soon
4. Mixed
Good and bad
5. Other
Very young/very old
Nice old lady
Kind/friendly
Needed
Good citizen/helpful
Active/OK
Neat/clean
Scared/weird
Will look ugly
Senile
Lonesome/afraid
Helpless person that sits in a rocking chair
Can’t walk/need help
Can’t work or play
Not fun/not good/sad
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5. Question: How do you think you will feel when you are old?
Response Categories
1. Positive psychological/physical qualities
2. Negative psychological/physical qualities
3. Mixed responses
4. Other
Exemplary Responses
1. Positive psychological/physical qualities
OK/good Needed
Happy/nice/proud Active
2. Negative psychological/physical qualities
Weak/tired Horrible/miserable/terrible/awful
Sad/bad/sick/cranky/mean Will have to stay in the house
Will feel left out Aches and pains
Won’t be fun Young people will make fun o f you
Will feel out o f place
3. Mixed responses
Lonesome and scary but friendly
Sometimes bad and sometimes good
4. Other
Will be old
Will feel older
Different
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6. Question: What do you think you will do when you are old?
Response Categories
1. Social participation
2. Social withdrawal
3. Other
4. Don’t know
Exemplary Responses
1. Social participation
Swim
Be awful nice
Help people
Bake a lot
Visit friends
2. Social withdrawal
Watch TV
Sit on the porch
Nothing
Stay home all day
Go to bed all day
Try to stay healthy and active
Open up a businessfte a teacher
Buy my grandchildren toys
I will go on roller coasters/not be in a rocking chair
Love
Sit around all day/sit in rocking chair
Go to an old folks’ home
Die when I get too old
Cry till my head falls off
I would be sick and sit around all day because
old people are sick.
3. Other
Be a senior citizen.
Take it easy/vacation/retire.
Walk around the neighborhood.
4. Don’t know
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7. Question: “The old people children know” Who are they? Where do you see them?
Response Categories: Who are they?
1. Grandparent
2. Other relative
3. Neighbor
4. Friend
5. Senior citizen volunteer
6. Teacher
7. Other
Response Categories: Where do you see them?
1. Child’s home
2. Old person’s home
3. In the neighborhood (church, store, etc.)
4. School
8. Question: Who is the oldest person you know?
Response Categories
1. Grandparent/great-grandparent
2. Other relative
3. Other (person’s name)
4. Senior citizen volunteer
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9. Question: How do you think this person feels to be old?
Response Categories
1. Positive psychological/physical qualities
2. Negative psychological/physical qualities
3. Mixed responses
4. Other
Exemplary Responses
1. Positive psychological/physical qualities
OK, she thinks its nothing to cry about.
She likes it/happy/nice/active
2. Negative psychological/physical qualities
Sad/lousy Not so great
Terrible/unhappy Wants to be young again
Lonesome
3. Mixed responses
OK, but sick
4. Other
10. Question: What do you do with your grandparents when you are with them?
Response Categories
1. Talk
2. Talk about the past
3. Go places
4. Play games
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5. Help them
6. Other
Exemplary Responses
1. Talk
2. Talk about the past
3. Go places
Go to the store with them
Go on vacations with them
Go on walks
4. Play games
Play catch/cards
Play games and watch TV
5. Help them
Help them with their shopping
Help them with stairs
6. Other
11. Question: What kind o f help might an old person need in your classroom?
Response Categories
1. Getting acquainted with children
2. Adjusting to classroom
3. Help (personal)
95
Go to the movies
Go out to dinner
Fish/sew/bake
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4. Help (subjects)
Exemplary Responses
1. Getting acquainted with children
Learning the kids’ names
Making friends
2. Adjusting to classroom
Getting used to noise/things/schedule
Finding things
3. Help (personal)
Help them walk around
Help them to be friendly
Help them from being lonesome
4. Help (subjects)
Help with reading/math
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APPENDIX C
Palmore’s Facts on Aging Quiz (Modified)
Circle “T” for True, or “F ’ for False.
1. T F The majority o f old people (past age 65) are senile (for example, defective
memory, disoriented, or demented).
2. T F All five senses (vision, hearing, touch, taste and smell) tend to decline
in old age.
3. T F Lung capacity tends to decline in old age.
4. T F The majority of old people feel miserable most o f the time.
5. T F Physical strength tends to decline in old age.
6. T F At least 1 out o f every 10 old people are living in Iong-stay institutions
(for example, nursing homes, mental hospitals, homes for the aged).
7. T F Aged drivers have fewer accidents per person than drivers under age 65.
8. T F Most older workers cannot work as effectively as younger workers.
9. T F About 4 out o f every 5 old people are healthy enough to carry out their
normal activities.
10. T F Most old people are set in their ways and unable to change.
11. T F Old people usually take longer to learn something new.
12. T F It is almost impossible for most old people to learn new things.
13. T F In general, most old people are pretty much alike.
14. T F The majority o f old people are usually not bored.
15. T F The majority o f old people are socially isolated from others and lonely.
16. T F Older workers have fewer accidents on the job than younger workers.
17. T F Over l/6th of the United States population are now age 65 or over.
97
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18. T F
19. T F
The majority o f old people are working or would like to have some kind o f
work to do (including housework and volunteer work).
The majority o f old people are not usually irritated or angry.
Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
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Asset Metadata
Creator
Miller, Marian Claire
(author)
Core Title
Children's attitudes toward old people and aging
School
Leonard Davis School of Gerontology
Degree
Master of Science
Degree Program
Gerontology
Publisher
University of Southern California
(original),
University of Southern California. Libraries
(digital)
Tag
education, elementary,Education, Social Sciences,Gerontology,OAI-PMH Harvest
Language
English
Contributor
Digitized by ProQuest
(provenance)
Advisor
[illegible] (
committee chair
), [illegible] (
committee member
)
Permanent Link (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c16-5602
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UC11341874
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1381598.pdf
Dmrecord
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Document Type
Thesis
Rights
Miller, Marian Claire
Type
texts
Source
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(contributing entity),
University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses
(collection)
Access Conditions
The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the au...
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education, elementary
Education, Social Sciences