Implicit attitudes toward the elderly among health professionals and undergraduate students in the health field: A systematic review

Abstract

Objective: To perform a systematic review of articles evaluating implicit attitudes of health professionals and undergraduate students in the health field toward the elderly. Methods: The PsycINFO, PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus and LILACS databases were searched for relevant articles published in English, Portuguese and Spanish using the following search terms: implicit attitude AND (elderly OR aged OR older people). Seven articles were selected. Results: The majority of studies were conducted in developed countries and found negative attitudes toward the elderly, with males exhibiting more negative attitudes than females. Conclusion: The articles analyzed in this review demonstrate an implicitly negative attitude among professionals and students in the field of health toward the elderly.