Preschool Children's Attitudes Toward Older Adults: Comparison of Intergenerational and Traditional Day Care

Abstract

Increasingly, attention has focused on the impact of intergenerational programming. Using a static group comparison design, this study examines preschoolers' attitudes toward older adults by comparing children in a shared site intergenerational program and those in traditional day care. Children were shown sketches of an older man and an older woman and were asked to describe them in terms of specific attributes. A two-group discriminant analysis was conducted to assess differences between the two programs yielding significant differences, with 82% of children correctly classified regarding program participation. Overall, attitudes toward older adults were more positive in the intergenerational program compared to the traditional program. In addition, preschoolers in the intergenerational program viewed older adults as healthy compared with preschoolers in a traditional program. Implications of these findings are examined.

Keywords:

• intergenerational programs
• shared site programs
• children's attitudes toward older adults
• intergenerational relationships