Relationship Between Ageist Attitudes and Adverse Childhood Experiences of Health Sciences Students: A Multicenter Study.

INTRODUCTION

As the global population continues to age, ensuring older adults' well-being and promoting healthy aging have become increasingly important. In this context, ageism has emerged as a growing public health concern. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between ageist attitudes and adverse childhood experiences among health sciences students.

METHODS

In this cross-sectional study, 1,064 undergraduate students from four universities in Turkey completed an online survey including a personal information form, the Ageism Attitude Scale (AAS; possible range 23-115, higher scores indicating more positive attitudes), and the Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire (ACE-Q; possible range 0-10, higher scores indicating more ACEs). Group comparisons in ACE-Q scores by selected characteristics were conducted using independent samples t-test, and the association between AAS total score and ACE-Q total score was examined using Pearson correlation (two-tailed).

RESULTS

The mean (SD) scores were 66.29 (9.44) for the AAS and 0.85 (1.49) for the ACE-Q. The most commonly reported ACE item was psychological abuse (21.1%). Pearson correlation showed no significant association between AAS and ACE-Q scores (r=0.036, P=0.247). ACE-Q scores were significantly higher among participants living with an older adult and among those who did not wish to live with an older adult family member in the future (P<0.05).

CONCLUSION

Students demonstrated moderately positive attitudes toward older adults, and approximately one in three participants reported at least one adverse childhood experience. Although AAS and ACE-Q scores were not significantly correlated, higher ACE-Q scores were observed in subgroups defined by living arrangements with older adults and future co-residence preferences.