Children's Attitudes and Classroom Interaction in an Intergenerational Education Program

Abstract

were administered before and after the project with two goals. The first goal was to determine the effect of the project on children's attitudes toward aging and the elderly. We found that even though the program was not specifically designed for attitude change, there was a significant difference in positive attitudes toward aging in the experimental group. The second goal was to see how those attitudes were related to intention to seek out older volunteers for help. We found that the most important predictors of students' intentions to ask for help from senior volunteers were specific attitudes about the adults in the classroom rather than more general attitudes toward the aged. Implications for future programs include the need to introduce the volunteer to the class before the beginning of an intergenerational project in order to let children know the volunteer's qualifications and reasons for wanting to help. 453Over the years there has been a proliferation of intergenerational contact programs, the majority of which are designed to reduce children's negative perceptions of the aged through programs of positive interactions. Most studies are based on activities designed to bring young and old together in cooperative, fun activities rather than training seniors to be involved directly in the classroom as instructional assistants. Will programs that bring students and the old together for a common goal, such as academic enrichment, but not designed specifically to change attitudes, have the same impact on beliefs about age and aging? To what extent do preexisting beliefs about aging affect the interactions between adults and children and, therefore, the success of the programs? The goal of this research is to examine the effect of participation in an intergenerational science program on student's attitudes toward aging and the aged. We will also examine the effect of students' attitudes on their willingness to seek out help from senior volunteers. LITERATURE REVIEWThe typical intergenerational program engages children with older adults in a series of activities over an extended period of time. This is done to give children an opportunity to work closely with older adults, to benefit from their added attention, and to reduce stereotypes due to unfamiliarity

Intergenerational contact and mediators impact ambivalence towards future selves

“…These mixed images frequently result in ambivalence (Dunham & Casadonte, 2009). When the object of the ambivalence has personal relevance, the intrapersonal conflict can be healthy at the same time that it causes discomfort.…”

“…Desired outcomes include reduced ageism (e.g., Ligon, Ehlman, Moriello, & Welleford, 2009) and greater interest in working with an elderly population (e.g., Westmoreland et al, 2009). Interventions appear largely effective (Dunham & Casadonte, 2009) at improving attitudes (Femia, Zarit, Blair, Jarrott, & Bruno, 2007) and promoting interest in working with geriatric populations (e.g., Hughes et al, 2008). The few studies that followed youth participants longitudinally reported longterm benefits ranging from advanced empathy (Femia et al, 2007) to more positive attitudes towards older adults (Aday, Sims, McDuffie, & Evans, 1996).…”

“…Young people frequently describe a mix of both positive and negative ideas about older adults reflecting diverse experiences related to aging and older adults (e.g., Hummert, Garstka, Shaner, & Straham, 1994;McGuinn & Mosher-Ashley, 2002). These mixed images frequently result in ambivalence (Dunham & Casadonte, 2009). When the object of the ambivalence has personal relevance, the intrapersonal conflict can be healthy at the same time that it causes discomfort.…”

The effect of intergenerational programs on the mental health of elderly adults

“…Intergenerational programs have been developed over the past several decades in the United States to address a range of social issues. Most of these programs include young children to support educational success, getting to know older people, and reducing ageism (Chowdhary et al, 2000;Dunham & Casadonte, 2009;Jones, Herrick, & York, 2004;Newman, Morris, & Streetman, 1999). Recently, the aims of these programs were broadened to address various social issues such as the involvement of the elderly in providing child care, and supporting school dropouts, drug addicts, etc., in order to promote intergenerational exchange between the young and the elderly within local communities (Barton, 1999;Brabazon, 1999;Larkin & Newman, 1997).…”

Factors that facilitate multigenerational exchanges in regional locations: a cross‐sectional study in Niigata City, Japan

“…Conversations among different generations increase the knowledge level of each party more than interactions within the same generation [45]. Conversation may prevent cognitive deterioration among older persons [34,46], improve attitudes toward older people [11,12,31,[47][48][49][50][51], and lead to the transmission of knowledge to children [22,45]. Furthermore, communication is an important factor in SC [17]; communication at Cha-no-Ma connects people so that conversations arise naturally in locations other than Cha-no-Ma.…”