Fighting prejudice in elderly adults through training

The present study analyzes the effectiveness of a procedure of automatic reduction of prejudice, based on the assumption of the perspective of the members of stereotyped groups. Specifically, the evaluation of this cognitive strategy in the elderly population is addressed, and potentially modulating variables between the intervention and its effects on prejudice are considered: personality, values, empathy and attribution. Data were collected from a sample of 58 participants with a mean age of 63 years, in which an intervention based on mental imagery aimed at reducing prejudice was implemented. The results show a moderate effectiveness of the strategy and find interaction with several modulating variables, notably particularly kindness, along with attributional activity and values of benevolence, universalism, self direction and conformity, which modulated the effectiveness of perspective taking. The discussion, in addition to contrasting parallels and divergences with the results of other experiments, suggests some applications in the training of elder people, demonstrating that cognitive self-regulation is considered as a relevant competence in the advanced stages of life, decisive for achieving a satisfactory and inclusive active ageing.