Report: How young people feel about older people and

growing old

INTRODUCTION
The aim of this report is to discuss how young people where I live feel about older people in the
community and the prospect of them growing old themselves. The final section makes
recommendations on how these attitudes could be changed for the better.

ATTITUDES TO OLDER PEOPLE

I conducted interviews with some young people in my community, asking them how they feel about
the elders and most answers were positive, the teenagers I talked to often saying how much they
respect the elderly and how they look up to them. There were some negative answers too. Most of
these were about the lack of knowledge older people have about current events and how people live
their lives in our times.

ATTITUDES TO GROWING OLD

When talking about growing old, most people said they don’t look up to it, saying that being a
teenager is much more enjoyable. They want to live their lives to their fullest while they’re young
and think life as an elder is boring. On the other hand, few people said they looked forward to
growing old since they will be free to do whatever they want whenever they want and live a quieter
life.

RECOMMENDATIONS
Taking all the factors mentioned into account, my recommendations are:

 Younger people should be more understanding towards older people and eliminate
prejudices.
 Younger people should not see growing old as something bad.
 Teach young people how to handle their responsibilities when they get older.
 Teach young people to work hard in order to achieve their goals and pursue their dreams.