The Oral History of Palo Alto Senior Citizens

Public project summary

Many senior citizens in America struggle with feelings of loneliness and isolation, despite the efforts of various organizations to give seniors opportunities to interact socially. In a University of San Francisco study that included 1604 participants with an average 71 years old, 43% of seniors reported feeling lonely (Kim, 2012). Loneliness negatively impacts quality of life and can even have an effect on longevity, increasing mortality rates by up to 26% (Lilleston, 2017). The problem is simple: the elderly are lonely because they are often alone (Botek). This project will join older and younger generations together, building inter-generational relationships through the tradition of oral history of the recent past, and examine whether creating these bonds is enough to reduce feelingsof loneliness and the accompanying negative health effects.