Stereotypes and Perceptions of the Elderly by the Youth in Nigeria: Implications for Social Policy

Abstract

This study investigates stereotypes and perceptions of the elderly by youths, their effects on intergenerational relations, and the implications for traditional social support systems and social policy in Nigeria. Data were collected through a questionnaire administered to 800 youths aged 15 to 30 and selected through a stratified random sampling process from both rural and urban areas of Anambra State of Nigeria. Four focus group discussion sessions also were conducted. Results show that Nigerian youths do not see the elderly as making too many demands on their children. The respondents, however, possess a number of aging stereotypes. They believe that the elderly behave like children and are sickly, conservative, suspicious, and secretive. Having stereotypes is related to level of education but not to gender, age, or place of residence. The policy implications of these findings are discussed and a new approach to care for the elderly recommended.

Impact of Contact With Grandparents on Children's and Adolescents’ Views on the Elderly

“…Contrary to our observations, however, Raabe and Beelmann () do not confirm a reappearance of ethnic, racial, and national prejudices later in adolescence (14–19 years). Yet, negative views on the elderly are often reported to peak during adolescence (Doka, ; Isaacs & Bearison, ; Okoye & Obikeze, ; Randler et al., ). In our study, ageism increased during adolescence and the elderly's physical appearance seemed to play a large role in that trend.…”

Perceptions of older people among Chinese adolescents: conceptual and methodological issues

“…It is a signifi cant predictor of attitudes (13) as well as a moderating factor affecting attitudes toward older people. Although the majority of the research fi ndings support that more contact with older people has a positive effect on better knowledge and positive attitudes toward older people (7,10,13,26,27,29) , fi ndings showing no signifi cant or slight relationships between these variables (8,11,12,14,16,28) and even negative effect on attitudes toward older people (20) also exist. Problems of conceptual ambiguity and inconsistency are probably caused by measurement on two aspects: the older people being contacted and the nature of the contact.…”

“…The majority of the fi ndings indicated that female respondents held more positive bias (12,16) or less negative attitudes to aging and older people than males (11) . However, fi ndings of no gender differences were also reported (10,13,14) . Regarding knowledge of aging, female respondents were more knowledgeable than male respondents (11) , but Steitz and Verner (12) reported no difference when education was held constant.…”

“…Allen (28) concluded that the gender variable was inconsequential as there were very slight differences between male and female respondents in the levels of knowledge about older people. Okoye and Obikeze (10) showed that young people with higher level of education possessed fewer aging stereotypes than the less educated youth, whereas Allen (28) found education had little effect on knowledge about aging. Furthermore, it should be noted that as perceivers' demographic correlates such as age, gender and education are closely associated among themselves, it is not easy to delineate their real individual effects.…”

Stereotypes of Intimate Partner Violence: Do Sex and Sexual Orientation Matter?

“…In this study, the intimate partner violence (IPV) adjudicated to people of a different sex and sexual orientation are examined in Mexico, where socio-historical dynamics have changed significantly in the last three decades. Moreover, a negative correlation between stereotypes and education levels has been demonstrated (Okoye & Obikeze, 2005;Plous & Williams, 1995). Consequently, this study focuses on an educated sector of the population who are expected to have less stereotypical beliefs than people with lower levels of education.…”