Connecting Across Generations: Intergenerational Café Pilot Study

Intergenerational engagement can positively impact both younger and older adult populations, countering the negative effects of agism. This paper reports on a pilot intergenerational café. Older adults (n = 12) and students (n = 6) participated in four café sessions at a Canadian University (March–April 2023). The aim was to better understand the potential of intergenerational activities to promote social health and well-being in our age segregated society. A mixed-method design included mood questionnaires, completed by participants immediately prior to and immediately after each session, ethnographic style participant observation during each Café session and end of project focus group discussions with students and older adults. A thematic analysis across all data collected yielded findings about participants’ understandings of intergenerational connections, their motivations for participating in the intergenerational café as well as perceived benefits of and barriers to participation. We conclude that a café model is a useful approach to promoting intergenerational engagement opportunities.