Deck 12: Aging and Inequality Based on Age

Question 1

Chronological age is the observable individual attributes such as physical appearance,mobility,strength,coordination,and mental capacity that are used to assign people to age categories.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

In hunting and gathering societies,lack of food surpluses and lack of housing that protect one from the environment are factors associated with higher death rates and a smaller proportion of the total population living beyond 30 or 40 years of age.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

According to gerontologists,age is viewed differently from society to society,and its perception changes over time.Social gerontology is the study of the social (nonphysical)aspects of aging,including such topics as the societal consequences of an aging population and the personal experience of aging.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

People in middle adulthood experience primary aging,which occurs as a result of environmental factors and lifestyle choices.For example,smoking,drinking heavily,and engaging in little or no physical activity are factors that affect the aging process.

Question 5

Older Asian Americans are among the most disadvantaged of all racial/ethnic categories.They are more likely to live in high-poverty,rural areas than are other minority older populations.They were also the objects of historical oppression and federal policies that exacerbated patterns of economic impoverishment.

Question 6

Stereotypes regarding older persons reinforce ageism-prejudice and discrimination against people on the basis of age,particularly against older persons.Ageism against older persons is rooted in the assumption that people become unattractive,unintelligent,asexual,unemployable,and mentally incompetent as they grow older.

Question 7

Nearly 1/3 of teens sends 3,000 texts per month.

Question 8

We find that older people tend to have more wealth but less income than young people.Among older persons,a wider range of assets and income is seen than in other age categories.

Question 9

According to Elisabeth Kubler-Ross,there are five stages of death: denial,anger,bargaining,depression,and acceptance.

Question 10

Alzheimer's disease affects an estimated 5.2 million people age 65 and over and 43 percent of those age 85 and older may have the disease.Fortunately,most older people do not suffer from Alzheimer's and are not incapacitated by their physical condition.

Question 11

The psychological aspects of menopause are often as important as any physical effects.Social scientist Anne Fausto-Sterling concluded that many women respond negatively to menopause because of negative stereotypes associated with it.These stereotypes make the natural process of aging in women appear abnormal when compared with the aging process of men.

Question 12

Age,gender,and poverty are intertwined.Although middle-aged and older women make up an increasing portion of the work force,they are paid substantially less than men their age,receive raises at a slower pace,and still work largely in gender-segregated jobs.

Question 13

In both industrialized and postindustrialized societies,children are expected to attend school and learn the necessary skills for future employment rather than perform unskilled labor.Further,older people are typically expected to retire so that younger people can assume their economic,political,and social roles.

Question 14

Beyond indicating how old or young a person is,age is socially significant because it defines what is appropriate for or expected of people at various stages.

Question 15

The primary reason for the lower income status of many older African Americans can be traced to a pattern of limited employment opportunities and periods of unemployment throughout their lives,combined with their concentration in secondary-sector jobs,which pay lower wages,are sporadic,and have few benefits.

Question 16

Twenty-five percent of all retired people in the United States draw Social Security benefits.Social Security and Supplemental Social Income (SSI)provide virtually all of the financial support to ninety percent of people over age 65.

Question 17

Many of the wealthiest people of the Forbes list of the richest people in the United States are over 65 years of age.On the other hand,almost 10 percent of all people over 65 live in poverty.

Question 18

Over the past thirty years,the U.S.population has been aging.This change was partly a result of Baby Boomers (people born between 1946 and 1964)moving into middle age and partly a result of more people living longer.

Question 19

In industrial societies,information technologies are extremely important,and a large proportion of the working population is employed in the service sector of the economy.The largest employers are in the fields of education and health care,both of which may benefit older people.

Question 20

According to psychologist Erik Erikson,older people must resolve a tension of "stagnation versus generativity." They must accept that the life cycle is inevitable-that their lives are nearing an end,and that achieving inner harmony requires accepting both one's past accomplishments and past disappointments.

Question 21

The oldest region of the United States,in terms of median age,is the Northeast.

Question 22

If we say that somebody is getting gray hair,wrinkled skin,and is becoming forgetful,we are using which age criterion?

A)chronological
B)functional
C)sequential
D)normative

Question 23

Visible characteristics,such as youthful appearance or gray hair and wrinkled skin,may become our criteria for determining whether someone is "young" or "old." According to historian Lois Banner,"______________,more than any other factor,has occasioned the objectification of aging."

A)mental capacity
B)mobility
C)coordination
D)appearance

Question 24

The age at which one-half the people in a population are younger and the other half are older is referred to as the______________age of that population.

A)mean
B)modal
C)median
D)standard

Question 25

Which of the following is NOT an American trend in aging between 1980 and 2012?

A)The population over age 85 has remained relatively stable.
B)The median age has increased by seven years.
C)The number of persons age 65 and over has increased significantly.
D)More people are living longer.

Question 26

The median age for Americans in 2012 was:

A)30.3
B)37.1
C)42.5
D)48.3

Question 27

Almost______________of the people living in the high-income countries today are expected to survive to age 65.

A)75 percent
B)80 percent
C)85 percent
D)90 percent

Question 28

______________ refers to observable individual attributes,such as physical appearance,mobility,strength,coordination,and mental capacity,that are used to assign people to age categories.

A)Sequential age
B)Chronological age
C)Normative age
D)Functional age

Question 29

Cultural values,including traditional healing practices,may help explain why many Asian Americans,particularly Chinese American elders,do not use physical and mental health services that are available to them.

Question 30

If we say that someone turns 40 years of age on August 21st,we are using which age criterion?

A)normative
B)functional
C)chronological
D)sequential

Question 31

When people say "Act your age," they are referring to______________age- a person's age based on date of birth.

A)functional
B)normative
C)chronological
D)sequential

Question 32

When feminist scholars state that functional age is subjective for men and women,they mean that:

A)women and men age in a similar fashion
B)women and men are evaluated differently
C)men and women are defined about evenly
D)society evaluates men and women using the same standards

Question 33

As they age,men are believed to become more______________,and women are thought to become more______________.

A)distinguished;grandmotherly
B)helpless;powerful
C)active;passive
D)mentally depressed;physically active

Question 34

The increase in the number of older people living in the United States and other high-income nations resulted from an increase in life expectancy (greater longevity)combined with:

A)low mortality rates
B)a decrease in birth rates
C)a stabilizing of birth rates
D)low crime rates

Question 35

Many nursing home residents have major physical and/or cognitive problems that prevent them from living in any other setting,or they do not have available caregivers in their family.Women are more likely to enter nursing homes because of their greater life expectancy,higher rates of chronic illness,and higher rates of widowhood.

Question 36

According to symbolic interactionists,the disengagement theory occurs when older people make a normal and healthy adjustment to aging when they detach themselves from their social roles and prepare for their eventual death.

Question 37

In low-income countries such as Zambia and Angola,nearly half of the total population in each nation is not expected to survive to age______________.

A)40
B)50
C)60
D)70

Question 38

Support services help older individuals cope with the problems in their day-to-day care.These services are inexpensive when they are provided through state or federally funded programs,hospitals,or community organizations.

Question 39

People born between 1946 and 1964 are commonly referred to as:

A)World War II baby products
B)Baby Boomers
C)Cold War baby explosion
D)population dynamics

Question 40

The text defines aging as:

A)the social process of becoming elderly
B)the physical,psychological,and social processes associated with growing older
C)the physical aspects of getting old
D)the psychosocial aspects of getting old

Question 41

The age pyramid that depicts the current distribution of the U.S.population can best be described as:

A)a perfect pyramid
B)a pyramid that is too large at the base because of an increase in birth rates
C)a pyramid that bulges in the middle because of the Baby Boomers and is smaller at the base because of declining birth rates among post-Baby Boomers
D)an inverse pyramid that is larger at the top than at the bottom

Question 42

In______________societies,farming makes it possible for more people to live to adulthood and to more advanced years.In these societies,the proportion of older people living with other family members is extremely high,with few elderly living alone.

A)hunting and gathering
B)horticultural
C)pastoral
D)agrarian

Question 43

As a result of changing population trends,research on aging has grown dramatically in the past 50 years.______________is the study of aging and older people.

A)Ethnomethodology
B)Gerontology
C)Ethnology
D)Anthropology

Question 44

The text points out that,in modern western societies,adolescence:

A)is a period in which the individual is still allowed to act "childish"
B)is a time when young people are expected to continue their education and perhaps hold a part-time job
C)is a time when young men and women are not expected to hold a job while they go to school
D)is a period in which the individual is accorded adult status

Question 45

______________ is the number and type of positions available to a specific age level of people within a society.

A)Age structure
B)Role differentiation
C)Age stratification
D)Role structure

Question 46

______________ is the number of persons of each age level within the society.

A)Age structure
B)Role structure
C)Age stratification
D)Role differentiation

Question 47

Which of the following statements regarding age in historical perspective is TRUE?

A)The concept of "childhood" has remained largely unchanged over the past two hundred years.
B)Young people are considered to be "little adults" in societies that need their physical labor.
C)In the United States,older individuals always have been devalued because they were unable to help with the work.
D)For several centuries,the age continuum has been divided into infants and toddlers,children,teenagers,and adults.

Question 48

Based on the death rates in the year of birth,life expectancy shows the average length of life of a(n)______________-a group of people born within a specified period of time.

A)associate
B)consociate
C)cohort
D)partisan

Question 49

If we say that all Americans who were born in the year 1954 will,on average,live to the age of 75,we are using a criterion called:

A)life chances
B)life opportunities
C)life projection
D)life expectancy

Question 50

______________ refers to inequalities,differences,segregation,or conflict between age groups.

A)Social stratification
B)Gerontology
C)Age socialization
D)Age stratification

Question 51

There are significant racial-ethnic and sex differences in life expectancy.The average life expectancy in 2011 for white males is______________as compared to black males,which is .

A)76.4;71.6
B)60.4;75.6
C)50.5;67.9
D)67.9;74.2

Question 52

There are significant racial-ethnic and sex differences in life expectancy.The average life expectancy in 2011 for white females is______________as compared to black females,which is .

A)81.1;77.8
B)75.6;80.4
C)74.2;79.9
D)68.9;67.9

Question 53

In the past it was widely assumed that older people in Japan were respected and revered;changes in the culture are evident when looking at living arrangements.Among individuals age 65 and over,the number of three-generation households has declined from 70 percent in 1980 to in 2010.

A)65
B)20
C)50
D)16

Question 54

______________ is the study of the nonphysical aspects of aging,including such topics as the societal consequences of an aging population and the personal experience of aging.

A)Social gerontology
B)Cultural gerontology
C)Community gerontology
D)Associate gerontology

Question 55

In the eyes of contemporary western society,children are often:

A)an economic liability
B)lacking in necessary skills for many roles of society
C)required to stay in school to learn the necessary skills for future employment
D)all of the above

Question 56

______________ is/are the average number of years that a group of people born in the same year could expect to live.

A)Life projection
B)Life opportunities
C)Life expectancy
D)Life chances

Question 57

Young adulthood follows adolescence and lasts to about age:

A)25
B)30
C)39
D)45

Question 58

One of the fastest growing segments of the U.S.population is made up of______________.This cohort is expected to almost double in size between 2000 and 2025.

A)teenagers
B)those between ages 25-35
C)those between ages 45-55
D)those age 85 and over

Question 59

For the cohort born in 2011,life expectancy at birth was______________years for the overall U.S.population.

A)78.7
B)60.3
C)87.8
D)90.9

Question 60

Because of an aging populace,the total population of Japan is expected to decrease by roughly million people between 2011 and 2035.

A)2
B)9
C)17
D)22

Question 61

Stereotypes regarding older persons reinforce______________,which is the prejudice and discrimination against people on the basis of age,particularly against older persons.

A)age stratification
B)elderism
C)ageism
D)age differentiation

Question 62

When social scientist William Levin showed photographs of the same man (disguised to appear as ages 25,52,and 73 in various photos)to a group of college students and asked them to evaluate these (apparently different)men for employment,many of the students viewed the:

A)"25­year­old" as less competent,less intelligent,and less reliable
B)"52­year­old" as less competent,less intelligent,and less reliable
C)"73­year­old" as less competent,less intelligent,and less reliable
D)study as unacceptable because they knew that competence,intelligence and reliability could not be measured by age

Question 63

Joyce has been the evening news anchor at the local television station for the past 10 years;recently,she was transferred to another,less visible position.Although station executives deny that there is any connection,Joyce believes that she was transferred because of her advancing age.Her experience best illustrates:

A)elderism
B)ageism
C)age stratification
D)age differentiation

Question 64

According to the text's discussion of wealth,poverty,and aging:

A)older persons are getting richer at the expense of younger persons
B)older persons tend to have less wealth but more income than younger people
C)older persons tend to have more wealth but less income than younger people
D)about 30 percent of all persons over age 65 live in poverty

Question 65

Many older people resist ageism by continuing to view themselves as being in middle adulthood long after their chronological age would suggest otherwise.In a study of people age 60 and over, percent of the respondents stated that they thought of themselves as middle-aged
And only 10 percent viewed themselves as being old.

A)50
B)75
C)25
D)15

Question 66

During middle adulthood,men undergo a______________,in which the production of the "male" hormone testosterone decreases.

A)menopause
B)spermarche
C)pinnacle
D)climacteric

Question 67

Many older people resist ageism by continuing to view themselves as being in middle adulthood long after their chronological age would suggest otherwise.Even at age 80:

A)one out of four men and one out of five women said that the word old did not apply to them
B)achieving inner harmony requires refusing to accept past disappointments and living as if you were 20 years younger
C)the individual's own reaction to aging is the primary factor in age discrimination
D)most refuse to stop driving

Question 68

According to the text,retirement:

A)involves the institutionalized separation of a person from an occupational position
B)means the end of all income other than entitlement programs such as Social Security
C)is a very positive status for most people who seldom refer to their former occupational status
D)generally occurs at about age 55

Question 69

Ageism is reinforced by______________.

A)empirical evidence
B)resentment of the elderly because they hold the majority of power in society
C)negative stereotypes
D)religious teachings

Question 70

About 55 percent of all organic mental disorders in the older population are caused by:

A)Alzheimer's disease
B)functional psychoses
C)senility
D)neurotic antecedents

Question 71

During middle adulthood,women undergo______________-the cessation of the menstrual cycle caused by a gradual decline in the body's production of the "female" hormones of estrogen and progesterone.

A)menarche
B)menopause
C)menstrual projection
D)climacteric

Question 72

Older people must accept that the life cycle is inevitable;that their lives are nearing an end,and that achieving inner harmony requires accepting both one's past accomplishments and past disappointments.This is reflective of psychologist Erik Erikson's stage of:

A)age versus beauty
B)activity versus disengagement
C)stagnation versus autonomy
D)integrity versus despair

Question 73

As people progress through middle adulthood,they experience______________(primary aging)in the form of molecular and cellular changes in the body.Wrinkles and gray hair are visible signs and less visible signs include arthritis and a gradual dulling of the senses of taste,smell,touch,and vision.

A)incongruence
B)senescence
C)incontinence
D)elderliness

Question 74

On a positive note,______________for some people represents the time during which they have the highest levels of income and prestige.

A)young adulthood
B)middle adulthood
C)late adulthood
D)late-late adulthood

Question 75

Late adulthood is generally considered to begin at age:

A)50
B)60
C)65
D)75

Question 76

Middle adulthood refers to people between the ages of:

A)30 and 50
B)40 and 55
C)40 and 65
D)55 and 70

Question 77

It is possible to reverse many of the afflictions associated with aging through______________.

A)miracle creams and other cosmetic products
B)exercise
C)decreased activity and increased relaxation
D)willfully ignoring the problems

Question 78

The physical and psychological changes that come with increasing age can cause stress. According to psychologist Erik Erikson,older people must resolve a tension of "______________."

A)age versus beauty
B)integrity versus despair
C)accomplishment versus disappointment
D)activity versus disengagement

Question 79

All of the following are categories into which gerontologists subdivide late adulthood EXCEPT:

A)the "young­old"
B)the "middle­old"
C)the "old­old"
D)the "oldest­old"

Question 80

The text points out that young adulthood in the U.S.is the time when:

A)people are expected to marry,get a job,and have children
B)people are expected to marry,but continue their education
C)people experience great bodily change
D)chronic illness sets in