The content of the submitted monograph can be framed by the following idea “Getting old means to grow and to ripen. The old man is the one who lives in the community longer and knows many stories...”(Holmerova? and col., 2007, p. 59) and the thought of the Talmud book, “Respect the old one even if he forgot everything due to old people’s weakness”.
We present the results of research carried out in Europe (the Slovak Republic and the Republic of Poland) and in India (Kerala) to the scientific and professional community.
As a result of the development of the society, the demographic changes as the aging of the population in European countries and changes in the structure and size of families and due to other social and economic contexts, it is necessary to change the content and scope of the state’s social policy assuming that it is a state of social good, a welfare state.
One of the welfare state measures in the European frame is to create conditions for the care of the elderly according to their needs, both in the home care (field social work) and in the institutionalized care. We realize that the needs of old people are the same as for other citizens, but they also have their own specifics and sometimes the specific conditions of their fulfilment.
The monograph presents views of young people on the elderly, to the help to the older people, the solitude of the elderly, the violence against the elderly, some areas of social services for the elderly, the self-help groups in social work with the elderly, but also some demographic development of the population and others.
The aim of the publication is to share research findings, offer them for the implementation into practice, trigger a discussion, and also provide a stimulus for further research in this area.
An important goal is also to know the starting point in planning social measures, guiding social change and educating young, but not just young generations.