Sex Differences in Preschoolers' Perceptions of Young, Middle-Aged, and Elderly Adults

Abstract

Summary The Children's Attitudes Toward the Elderly (CATE) scale was administered in modified form to 40 preschool boys and girls. Children were able to correctly order photographs of younger, middle-aged, and elderly female adults by age, but did not differentiate younger and middle-aged male adults by age. An elderly male adult was always viewed as oldest by the children, however. Boys were generally less positive than girls in attitudes toward elderly individuals; boys also tended to view the elderly adults as less physically attractive than younger adults.