A Comparative Study of Undergraduates’ Attitudes Toward Aging in Taiwan and the United States Through Student Drawings

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to compare similarities and differences in the attitudes toward aging among college students from Taiwan and the United States; 128 Taiwanese students and 124 U.S. students participated in this study. The findings indicate that the majority of students from both countries viewed aging as consisting primarily of physical changes. The differences are the U.S. students' drawings showing physical decline along with hospitals, nursing homes, or death, whereas Taiwanese students presenting physical decline as getting wrinkles, wearing glasses, or needing aid devices. U.S. students associated aging with grandparents-grandchildren relationships, whereas more Taiwanese students thought aging related to spousal relationships. This study adds to the existing literature that demonstrates the strong influence of different cultures on students' attitudes toward aging. Further, knowledge derived from this study can be used in gerontology courses for both students and professors to lessen or correct ageist stereotypes over time.

College students’ perceptions of “old people” compared to “grandparents”

“…Recognizing the value of understanding the significant outcomes of population aging, many disciplines have worked to incorporate gerontological content into their competencies and requirements (e.g., nursing [Gilje et al, 2007;Grocki & Fox, 2004;Kennedy-Malone et al, 2006;Lyons et al, 2014], social work [Burke, 2003], and recreation therapy [Richeson & Sardina, 2016], among others). It is clear though that college students frequently hold negative or ambivalent views of aging and older adults (Guest et al, 2019;Liou, 2017), suggesting they are not well-prepared to engage with the fastest growing segment of the population or to create appropriate products, services, or policies to address the needs and interests of older adults.…”

“…It is evident that individuals can develop negative aging stereotypes at a young age. These beliefs often persist into early adulthood, and are apparent in younger college students (see Guest et al, 2019;Liou, 2017). What is less clear is how college students' views of groups of older adults (e.g., grandparents) with whom they are more likely to have had extensive contact may differ from views of older adults in general.…”

The Extent to Which Ageism Has Affected Lifelong Learning Settings: Perspectives From Practitioners in Taiwan

“…For example, C. S. Huang (2011) found that aging stereotypes toward older adults, such as weak physical traits and engaged in unproductive activities, were usually mentioned in Taiwan's school textbooks. Perceiving aging as physical functioning declines, which was associated with walking aids and assistive technologies among Taiwan college students, was also discovered in a cross-cultural study between Taiwan and the United States (Liou, 2017). Furthermore, Vauclair et al (2016) mentioned that taking care of older people may be considered a duty in some Asian cultures.…”

Contact with grandparents and young people’s explicit and implicit attitudes toward older adults

“…College students, in both Western and Eastern cultural contexts, generally hold negative perceptions about aging and older adults, associating old age with sickness, frailty, loneliness, boring and grumpy [ 12 – 14 ]. However, there is also evidence showing that college students have neutral or positive attitudes toward older people [ 15 , 16 ].…”