As a response to our rapidly aging society, professional training programs in health care need to offer rich applied learning experiences with older adults and educate students about ageist attitudes. Health care professionals are likely to work with older adults in a variety of settings, yet ageist attitudes continue to be a barrier to workforce development. This study evaluated the effects of an intergenerational lifelong learning initiative as a way to decrease ageist attitudes in social work students. The research hypothesis was that intergenerational engagement would help reduce ageist attitudes of social work students. Paired samples t tests were conducted with 32 students through pre- and post-surveys of the ROPE (Relating to Old People Evaluation). Results indicated a significant decrease in ageist attitudes overall, in negative ageism, and in students’ self-report of behaviors such as complimenting older adults “despite their age” and avoiding older adults. Qualitative comments indicated significant changes in perception about the aging experience and increased awareness of ageist stereotypes. Overall, this pilot study offers an encouraging model that can be applied through future partnerships to reduce ageism of students in health care–related fields.

中文翻译：

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代际参与对社会工作学生老龄化态度的影响：以克莱蒙学院为例

作为对我们快速老龄化社会的回应，医疗保健专业培训计划需要为老年人提供丰富的应用学习经验，并教育学生关于年龄歧视的态度。医疗保健专业人员可能会在各种环境中与老年人一起工作，但年龄歧视的态度仍然是劳动力发展的障碍。本研究评估了代际终生学习计划作为减少社会工作学生年龄歧视态度的一种方式的效果。研究假设是代际参与将有助于减少社会工作学生的年龄歧视态度。配对样本t通过 ROPE（与老年人评估相关）的前后调查，对 32 名学生进行了测试。结果表明，总体上年龄歧视态度、消极年龄歧视以及学生自我报告的行为（例如“尽管年龄”）赞美老年人和避免老年人的行为显着减少。定性评论表明对衰老体验的看法发生了显着变化，并且对年龄歧视的刻板印象意识增强。总的来说，这项试点研究提供了一个令人鼓舞的模型，可以通过未来的合作伙伴关系应用，以减少医疗相关领域学生的年龄歧视。