College students' perceptions of persons with intellectual disability at three different ages.

Researchers asked college students to rate people with intellectual disability. They showed three photos of the same person at different ages: young, middle-aged, and older.

Students answered how active, friendly, and capable they thought each person was. The survey looked for age bias in these ratings.

Students scored the older person as much less active than the younger version. They saw no difference between men and women.

The bias was clear: age, not gender, shaped how students viewed people with ID.

Chien et al. (2017) found younger kids with ID actually do less recreation, so the students’ view of older adults seems backwards. The gap is real for children, not seniors.

Fahmie et al. (2013) tracked adults with ID for four years and saw stable well-being in later life. Their skills did not drop the way students assumed.

Perez et al. (2015) show quality contact cuts prejudice. Brief, shallow meetings can backfire, so campus inclusion must be deep and repeated.

College students are tomorrow’s teachers, employers, and voters. If they see older adults with ID as inactive, they may offer fewer jobs, classes, or social chances. You can counter this by pairing students with active seniors who have ID for semester-long projects. Use structured roles like co-presenters or gym buddies. Measure attitudes before and after to show the shift.