Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin Attribution Theory and Evaluations of Older Men among College Students, their Parents, and Grandparents

Abstract

Subjects sampled from three age groups read one of eight narrative descriptions portraying a man as active or inactive regarding achievement related activities, active or inactive regarding social activities, and young or old. Evaluative attributions to each were measured with a semantic differential scale. Results supported predictions generated by attribution theory and the activity model of aging. It appears that attribution theory can be useful in explaining why attitudes toward the elderly are less positive than those toward the young.