This study focused on the social representations of "old person" built by elderly, in order to help the understanding of how people think, develop, articulate knowledge and act. Based on a structural approach, a test of words' free evocation was triggered by the expression "old person"; a questionnaire was given to elicit answers regarding beliefs, attitudes, rules, values and practices related to the aging process and to the participants socio-demographic characterization. Took part in the study 70 people above 60 years old , all former students from a federal institution in Rio de Janeiro. Ages ranged between 60 and 83 years old (average 65.4 years old). 51.4% of the subjects were female. Experience was the only component of the central system. The peripheral system consisted of Affection, Wisdom, Health, Father-Mother-Aunt, Difficulties, Abandon, Joy, Respect, Excluded, Retired, Tired, Care and Exercises; an intermediary system comprised: Disease, Elder, Dedication, Prejudice, Sadness, Patience, Grandparent, Discrimination, Grouchy, Solitude and Old-fashioned. In the representation built by the elderly, it was possible to identify the psychosocial dimension, critically referring to the treatment society gives or should give the old person and the passive or active manner in which the old person acts. It is possible that participants have built a representation with which they do not identify or do not want to identify themselves in every sense, and which represents someone else, the Old Person.
Old Person; Elderly; Social Representations; Aging
