Do Older Workers Have Bad Work Attitudes?

One of the most common misconceptions about older workers is their negative attitudes towards work. This bias instantly sets them back in management’s minds, overshadowing their strengths and the wealth of experience they bring.

We are living in an age of diversity and inclusion, and therefore, it is important to check the reality behind these assumptions. Is it true that older workers are resistant to change, less engaged, and less adaptable? Or are these myths reflecting common bias? 

Let’s find out!

Age vs Attitude

Around 55% of the U.S. workforce is 40 or older. Because of negative stereotypes, several research studies have shown that older workers receive lower ratings in job applications, performance appraisals, and access to career development activities. 

The most prevalent age stereotype is that older workers are less motivated and engaged than younger workers. But is there any empirical support for the relationship between age and job attitudes?

‘A Meta-Analysis’

An exceptional study published in Personnel Psychology, “The Relationships of Age with Job Attitudes: A Meta-Analysis,” tackled that question. The study examined 800 previously published articles, examining 35 different attitudes toward work tasks, colleagues, and supervisors. The researchers also examined how gender, race, and education level affected the relationships between age and attitudes.

The researchers found that “older workers have more favorable job attitudes (and/or less unfavorable job attitudes) than younger workers do, even though for some attitudes the difference is small or negligible” (p. 705). 

Age affected 27 of the 35 task-based (e.g., overall job satisfaction, intrinsic work motivation), people-based (e.g., trust, satisfaction with the supervisor), and organization-based (e.g., organizational commitment, loyalty) attitudes. 

They also found that the correlation between age and job attitudes was “stronger for older workers with longer organizational tenure, minority older workers, and older workers without a college education” (p. 705).

Although most of the relationships between age and attitude were positive, a few of the negative relationships were very interesting. Older female workers were less likely to be satisfied with promotions and had less trust in the organization. Older workers with a college education were more likely to experience role conflict.

Given the well-established link between positive job attitudes and performance, this research suggests that an increasingly older workforce can be good news for employers. In addition to having positive job attitudes, separate research (Ng & Feldman, 2008) has shown that “older workers tend to exhibit greater citizenship and less counterproductive work behavior than their younger colleagues do” (p. 710).

If there is a “bad attitude” about older workers, it is displayed toward them rather than by them. Hopefully, this new evidence about the positive attitudes of older workers will help us appreciate them even more.

The Unique Challenges Older Workers Face

On the one hand, these employees are valuable assets for an organization as they bring experience, loyalty, work ethic, and stable attitudes. On the other hand, these employees also face specific challenges at work. Let’s talk about some of the most pressing issues they have to face.

Limited Growth Opportunities

A few older workers are given opportunities to grow and advance in their careers. We seldom see a promotion amongst them, and most stay stagnant.

Many older women, in fact, report they are not satisfied with the promotion opportunities they get even today. Despite holistic attempts to crush the glass ceiling, women (rather, older women) have to face age and gender bias, which prohibit their growth and progression.

If workplaces set clear and defined career paths for these older workers, they could, in fact, benefit from them and fully utilize their capabilities.

Workplace Stereotyping

Of course, these older workers have to deal with negative stereotypes. For instance, people believe old workers are not as text-savvy and take longer to use computers and other electronic equipment. 

This is one key reason employers are hesitant to hire old employees, and even if they are hired, they are not delegated tasks and responsibilities. 

Many feel isolated, underutilized, and unappreciated, which makes them demotivated to show up and work.

Role Conflict and Increasing Responsibilities

Older employees also have specific personal responsibilities, like family or health issues, that they have to deal with, which adds to their work stress. 

They also have role conflicts. They are given the role of mentors to younger employees and do not receive recognition for the wealth of experience they bring to the table.

Lower Trust in Organizational Decisions

Older employees also often have less trust in their organization than younger employees. This is because they have witnessed many corporate decisions that do not favor them, like layouts and restructuring decisions.

So, they are more cautious about investing efforts in the organization when they feel it will not reward or appreciate them. That’s why it is all the more important to keep all communication channels open and maintain transparency and inclusive policies to keep the older audience feeling valued.

Adapting to Rapid Technological Changes

Technology is advancing so fast that it’s hard to keep up. Even the most text-savvy people struggle at times to stay abreast.

Obviously, that’s no less than a challenge for older employees. Many of these older workers are open to learning. However, they still have less exposure to these tools than the young employees who have wider exposure and have grown up with them, which can cause feelings of frustration and also affect their opportunities to grow.

One way to rebuild their trust is to offer training opportunities adapted to their learning pace and style. This will empower the older audience, keep them up to date with the latest technology advancements, and give them confidence in their capabilities.

Wrap Up

The general idea that older employees are not good is a baseless stereotype. 

Research suggests that older employees bring many positive attitudes to their job roles, often perform better, and adapt to the workplace. So, employers can benefit from recognizing and capitalizing on their strengths rather than focusing on their shortcomings. 

Employers and organizations should welcome them with positive attitudes and value the wealth of knowledge that they bring.

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Bret L. Simmons, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Management at The University of Nevada, Reno. He earned his doctorate in Business Administration at Oklahoma State University. Bret blogs about leadership and social business at his website Positive Organizational Behavior. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.