[Mutual concept formation of older and younger subjects. Stereotyping and distribution preferences]

This article analyzes the extent to which younger and older persons are apt to stereotype and discriminate age groups. Several hypotheses are tested based on a recent (1987) large scale national Dutch survey. No evidence is found for the hypothesis that positive attributes are systematically more ascribed to younger people and negative attributes systematically more to older people. Only a small minority of the Dutch population holds negative images of older people. A large majority does not discriminate between age groups or finds positive attributes more characteristic of older people. It is demonstrated, however, that older people have a more positive perception of older people - or a more negative perception of younger people - than younger people. In accordance with our hypothesis, negative stereotyping of older versus younger people is related to authoritarian attitudes and a general tendency to social discrimination. The assumption that both older and younger people favour their own age group in (hypothetical) distributions of scarce goods and tasks is in general not supported. On the contrary both age groups, especially the elderly, exhibit a surprising willingness to support the other age group.