Examining Age-Bias and Stereotypes of Aging in LLMs

  • Sherwin Dewan
  • , Ismail Shaikh
  • , Connie Shaw
  • , Abhilash Sahoo
  • , Akshita Jha
  • , Alisha Pradhan

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

Abstract

Large Language Models (LLMs) are increasingly being used across applications, ranging from content generation to decision-making, raising concerns about biases embedded in them. While biases related to gender, race, and culture have been studied extensively, understanding age-bias and stereotypes of aging in LLMs remain underexplored. This study analyzes LLM-generated responses to prompts related to aging, revealing stereotypical biases about aging pertaining to technology proficiency, cognitive and physical decline, and job roles. We noted that even responses without explicit age bias also had mentions of ageist stereotypes. We discuss considerations for involving older adults' perspectives through human-in-the-loop methodologies yet exercising caution about aspects like internalized ageism.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationASSETS 2025 - Proceedings of the 27th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility
EditorsKristen Shinohara, Cynthia L. Bennett, Martez Mott, Shaun K. Kane
PublisherAssociation for Computing Machinery, Inc
ISBN (Electronic)9798400706769
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 22 2025
Event27th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility, ASSETS 2025 - Denver, United States
Duration: Oct 26 2025Oct 29 2025

Publication series

NameASSETS 2025 - Proceedings of the 27th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility

Conference

Conference27th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility, ASSETS 2025
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityDenver
Period10/26/2510/29/25

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Software
  • Hardware and Architecture
  • Human-Computer Interaction
  • Computer Graphics and Computer-Aided Design
  • Computer Networks and Communications

Keywords

  • Age bias
  • Ageism
  • LLMs
  • older adults

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