The purpose of this study is to identify the social situations in which the elderly people present abilities and difficulties to play in a social way. Thirty students of the Third Age Open University were interviewed. From the data analysis, a high percentage of positive answers in 6 different social situations could be identified. On the other hand the majority presented deficiencies in performance of 8 social situations. The results propose the development of Social Skills Training Programs to improve the capacity of elderly people to obtain and keep the social support, in order to achieve better quality of life.
social skills; elderly people; quality of life
