Age discrimination and quality of life among older adults

he older population is often associated with negative stereotypes, such as disease, disability or dependency, which make it a group that is occasionally excluded and/ or treated inadequately by the rest of society. Social discrimination based on age is so subtle that usually not even the victims themselves are aware of it. The objective of the study was to analyze the association between the social discrimination perceived by older people and their quality of life. For this, a cross-sectional study was carried out in which two questionnaires were applied, the scale of social discrimination in daily life and the Philadelphia scale, to a sample of 86 elderly people who attended day center in Oviedo (Asturias). The level of perceived discrimination was low. However, following a "zero tolerance" criterion, 59.3% of the sample had suffered social discrimination at some time in their lives due to their age.70.9% had a moderate-low quality of life. Social discrimination based on age was associated in a statistically significant way with a worse quality of life. A larger body of research is needed on age discrimination and its effects on the health outcomes and quality of life of older people.