Deck 3: Theories of Aging

Question 1

The central premise of the book Personal Adjustment in Old Age was that:

A) decline in old age is inevitable.
B) poor adjustment is due to being too busy.
C) poor adjustment was correlated with a lack of activity.
D) people adjusted best if they lived around young people.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Which of the following statements is true about continuity theory?

A) It draws heavily from the basic dichotomy of internal and external aging processes described in the Kansas City studies.
B) It ignores the role the personality of an individual plays in determining his or her aging and adult development process.
C) It states that pathological aging and normal aging of an individual are the same.
D) It defines normal aging specifically in terms of the female population.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

The most controversial element of continuity theory is the definition of:

A) activity.
B) successful aging.
C) life satisfaction.
D) normal aging.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Persons at the greatest risk of becoming isolated or involuntarily disengaged are the:

A) young old (65-74).
B) oldest old (85 and older).
C) middle old (75-84).
D) middle-aged.

Question 5

The first practitioners of social gerontology were:

A) social workers.
B) sociologists.
C) developmental psychologists.
D) biologists.

Question 6

Subculture theory shares similar characteristics with activity and disengagement theories. It differs from the two in that its origin is in:

A) the psychosocial area.
B) a sociological theory of subcultural development.
C) classical economics.
D) social systems.

Question 7

Continuity theory uses:

A) a life course perspective to define normal aging and to distinguish it from pathological aging.
B) role models to establish how successful older adults are aging.
C) objective tests to measure the aging process.
D) subjective tests to measure the aging process.

Question 8

What was one of the major problems of the first project of the Kansas City Study of Adult Life?

A) Young adults were not included in the interviews.
B) No one over the age of 70 was interviewed.
C) Too many minorities were interviewed.
D) The measure of adjustment was flawed.

Question 9

According to activity theory, _____.

A) successful aging is active aging
B) lack of activity contributes to aging more gracefully
C) how well people age can be directly correlated to how much exercise they get
D) the social and psychological needs of the elderly are very different from those of younger people

Question 10

A theory is:

A) an explanation for how data are collected.
B) the background information on a social concept.
C) a broad explanation that provides the structure for organizing and interpreting multiple observable facts and their relationship to one another.
D) another word for hypothesis.

Question 11

Older people are likely to form a subculture because:

A) they are isolated from young people and share common experiences with other older people.
B) they are excluded by those who evaluate people based on their occupational statuses.
C) they are labeled by young people as senile, slow, and disinterested in current social activities.
D) they prefer to spend time with people their own age.

Question 12

According to Rose, within the subculture of the elderly, high status is conferred on those who:

A) are married.
B) have friends.
C) have good mental and physical health.
D) have high income.

Question 13

Which of the following was a main finding of the Kansas City Study of Adult Life?

A) There was a major change in the quality of role performance in middle age.
B) There was consistent change in the competence of role performance in middle age.
C) People remained fully engaged in their primary occupations in middle age.
D) People became less involved in family responsibilities in middle age.

Question 14

Early studies of aging influenced by biological concerns suggested that:

A) decline in old age is inevitable.
B) activity in old age does nothing to alleviate mental and physical decline.
C) those who are most active score highest on measures of life satisfaction.
D) social roles are not important for understanding "normal" aging.

Question 15

Which of the following is NOT a factor contributing to disengagement among nursing home residents?

A) limited participation in activities
B) hearing and vision impairment
C) eating difficulties
D) depression

Question 16

Disengagement theory developed by Cumming and Henry states that:

A) it is best for people to stay active and to resist the shrinkage of their social world.
B) normal aging involves a natural and inevitable withdrawal from people in the social system.
C) aging is a continuous process.
D) people who share similar interests, problems, and concerns age well.

Question 17

What was the major emphasis of the second project in the Kansas City Study of Adult Life?

A) the income of older adults across the life span
B) the emphasis on adjustment with measures of social role performance across the life span
C) the emphasis on the role that personality plays in the adjustment to aging
D) the emphasis on loss of status in old age

Question 18

Which of the following is NOT a condition for the development of subcultures?

A) people with similar interests
B) people with similar concerns
C) people who are excluded from participation in the wider society
D) people who recently became friends

Question 19

All of the following are micro theories of aging with the exception of:

A) continuity theory.
B) political economy theory.
C) activity theory.
D) exchange theory.

Question 20

Disengagement theory proposes that:

A) disengagement can be easily avoided.
B) disengagement is caused by social factors rather than biological factors.
C) disengagement happens everywhere and in all historical eras.
D) disengagement typically occurs to people who believe that their life space is increasing.

Question 21

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of exchange theory?

A) Older people with the greatest resource in an exchange with younger people are the most capable of remaining engaged.
B) If costs are greater than benefits, social interaction will be limited.
C) If benefits are greater than cost, rewards will be limited.
D) Maintaining an exchange relationship can be a struggle for people with few resources.

Question 22

Based on the definition of "deferred exchange strategies," the person most likely to be involved in such a strategy would be a:

A) doctor.
B) family member.
C) housekeeper.
D) grocery clerk.

Question 23

Age stratification theory had its origins in:

A) social networking.
B) status attainment research.
C) the process of professionalization.
D) high rates of urbanization.

Question 24

The political economy perspective is:

A) a conceptual framework for understanding inequality in the aging process.
B) a policy solution for understanding inequality in the aging process.
C) a framework for examining the larger social context of problems associated with old age.
D) a way to think about the financial problems encountered by the elderly.

Question 25

A central concept in age stratification theory is:

A) age cohort.
B) life expectancy.
C) life span.
D) functional age.

Question 26

An age-integrated institution is characterized by:

A) distinct activities for specific age groups.
B) social norms based on chronological age.
C) absence of chronological age as means of entrance, participation, or exit.
D) social norms based on functional age.

Question 27

A major criticism of political economy theories is that:

A) they ignore public policies.
B) they view older people as too passive.
C) they fail to offer an empirical perspective on the socioeconomic determinants of the experience of aging and old age.
D) they ignore the economy.

Question 28

Which of the following is NOT a central concern of age stratification theory?

A) how an individual's location in the changing age structure affects his/her behavior and attitudes
B) how individuals relate to each other within and between age strata
C) how individuals pass through key transitions
D) how biological decline leads to social isolation between age strata

Question 29

The social constructionist approach views an individual:

A) as capable of interpreting her/his social reality.
B) as incapable of defining her/his social reality.
C) perspective on rational choice.
D) perspective on nonrational choice.

Question 30

Recent studies have found exchange theory useful in explaining:

A) social support and transition between generations.
B) gender differences in the aging process.
C) retirement patterns of different cohorts.
D) the decline in the status of adults.

Question 31

Which of the following is usually the most age-integrated institution of all?

A) a class
B) a family
C) a factory
D) a workplace

Question 32

Feminist theory of aging notes that:

A) men and women experience age differently because of social activities.
B) men and women have different interests and form groups based on these interests.
C) men and women experience aging differently because of the organization of social structure and gendered social definition of reality.
D) men and women experience age differently because of their power resources.

Question 33

An underlying assumption of age stratification is that:

A) all societies group people into social categories.
B) all societies rank individuals on ascribed characteristics.
C) all societies rank individuals on achieved characteristics.
D) there are similar social structures in all societies.

Question 34

A major element of political theory is:

A) the power struggles between groups and business interests.
B) cohort differences.
C) the decline in the status of the elderly.
D) the gendered values of society.

Question 35

_____ refers to outdated social structures that prevent people from participating fully in society.

A) Cultural lag
B) Social lag
C) Structural lag
D) Economic lag

Question 36

A problem with exchange theory is that it:

A) fails to consider the costs and benefits involved in an exchange between individuals in a relationship.
B) ignores the value of nonrational resources, such as love and companionship.
C) fails to look at the immediate interactions between older people and other age groups.
D) considers intimacy to be the greatest benefit an individual can receive in any exchange.

Question 37

The presumption behind modernization theory was that:

A) all nations had the same level of development.
B) the degree of urbanization was similar in all nations.
C) all nations had equal number of resources to fulfil their needs.
D) the path to prosperity was similar for all nations.

Question 38

The basic premise of modernization theory was that:

A) older people had less power and authority in the community in which they lived.
B) people lived independently rather than with their grandparents or kids.
C) there was once a golden age of aging.
D) younger people were more venerated than the older people in any community.

Question 39

Modernization theory focuses on:

A) the economic development of all societies.
B) the degree of gender integration after World War II.
C) the labor force participation of older adults after World War II.
D) the continuum of societies from least to most developed based on indicators like industrialization and urbanization.

Question 40

A strength of the social constructionist approach is that:

A) older people are viewed as energetic and creative.
B) older people are passive objects, not active subjects, in constructing their social worlds.
C) older people are not passive objects.
D) older people are visible because of their power to negotiate.

Question 41

The origins of exchange theory are in developmental psychology.

Question 42

What matters most when staying active is actually performing activities.

Question 43

In the context of aging, feminist theorists contend that:

A) men are less likely than women to engage in risky behaviors.
B) women are less likely than men to take primary responsibility for maintaining social ties.
C) the entire life course of individuals is gendered.
D) older men do not experience aging.

Question 44

In age stratification theory, the individual is the subject matter.

Question 45

Most people are involved in both age-integrated and age-segregated activities.

Question 46

Continuity theory emphasizes that personality plays a major role in adjustment to old age and that adult development is an aging process.

Question 47

A central feature of modernization theory is the social construction of reality.

Question 48

Feminist theories:

A) are formalized theories, such as activity theory.
B) seek to prove that masculinity and femininity are not socially constructed.
C) are only studied by women.
D) use theory to illustrate gender differences in decision-making and outcomes.

Question 49

What example best applies to political economy theory?

A) the quality of care for the frail elderly
B) the friendship networks of older women
C) the mutual exchange between parents and adult children
D) the adjustment to growing older

Question 50

Early researchers saw old age as a period of physical and mental decline.

Question 51

The political economy theories view old age as a socially constructed process created through power struggles.

Question 52

According to activity theory, successful aging is based on individual attributes.

Question 53

Subcultures develop when people meet to share their concerns about ageism.

Question 54

Which of the following statements is true about critical gerontology?

A) It focuses only on the aging issues faced by the middle class in developed nations.
B) It suggests that aging remains unaffected by changes caused in a society by globalization and urbanization.
C) It excludes the political and feminist approaches to aging.
D) It states that aging affects individuals, families, and nations all around the world.

Question 55

According to continuity theory, continuity is an adaptive strategy for successful aging.

Question 56

Religious faith sustains people through many crises as they age.

Question 57

Age integration theory suggests that:

A) societies are not segregated by age.
B) there are numerous examples of completely age-segregated societies in the real world.
C) all societies will one day be completely age integrated.
D) age integration can be applied to periods of an individual's life course.

Question 58

A major criticism of continuity theory is that it defines normal aging around the female model of aging.

Question 59

The social constructionist approach focuses on older adults as active subjects who participate in the creation of their social realities.

Question 60

Most controversial about disengagement theory was the idea that disengagement occurred primarily because of social factors rather than biological factors.

Question 61

One aspect of the feminist approach concerns gender differences in employment patterns and retirement.

Question 62

Structural lag occurs when societies lag behind other societies because of older people demanding to be more integrated.

Question 63

Think of some examples of structural lag.

Question 64

Think of the older people that you know. Are most engaged or disengaged? Who is happiest?

Question 65

What are the main premises of modernization theory?