Question 1

Jane is surprised to learn that her income for most of her career was quite low, because when she thinks back she remembers making more money than she actually did. Jane's memory distortion is best considered to be an example of:

Accepted Answer

The positivity effect refers to the well-documented finding that older adults seem to attend more to positive information than negative information; they remember positive information better as well.

Question 2

Which of the following in NOT one of the six components of adult well-being, as identified by Carol Ryff?

Accepted Answer

Parenthood is not one of the six components of adult well-being identified by Carol Ryff. The six components are self-acceptance, positive relations with others, autonomy, environmental mastery, purpose in life, and personal growth.

Question 3

In a national survey of older Americans reported in the text, adults age 65 and over rated their health and well-being. The most accurate conclusion to be drawn from the data reported would be that _______ of the people in this study reported that their health was good to excellent and black Americans reported _______ levels of health than did white Americans:

Accepted Answer

The survey indicated that about three-quarters of older Americans rated their health as good to excellent, and black Americans reported lower levels of health compared to white Americans.

Question 4

According to the text, the major difference between stage theories and continuity theories that describe adult development is the degree to which they:

Accepted Answer

Stage theorists emphasize the idea that people pass through discrete stages, changing in some dramatic ways in the passage from one stage to another. Continuity theorists emphasize the role of smaller, continuous adjustments as people respond to aging, which allows people to maintain a stable sense of who they are over the lifespan.

Question 5

Suppose you show positive and negative images on a computer screen to younger and older adults. If younger adults remember 25% of the positive images and 25% of the negative images, you would expect that, of the total number of images they remembered, older adults would remember _____ positive images and _____ negative images.

Accepted Answer

The book describes a research study in which, relative to younger adults, older adults were found to experience greater neural activation for positive images than negative ones in the amygdala, an area in the brain involved in the processing of emotional responses.

Question 6

Maria, who worked full-time for her entire adult life, has recently retired. However, she misses her friends at work and she feels lonely and bored. According to Robert Atchley, she is in which stage of retirement?

Accepted Answer

In the stage of disenchantment, retirees may feel a sense of loss, restlessness, and a lack of fulfillment. They may miss their work routines and social connections, leading to feelings of boredom and loneliness. Maria's experience of missing her friends at work and feeling lonely and bored suggests that she is in the disenchantment stage.

Question 7

A study of Americans 65 or older found that about ____ rated their health and well-being as good to excellent:

Accepted Answer

Studies have shown that a significant portion of older Americans, around 75%, rate their health and well-being as good to excellent.

Question 8

According to the text, in older adulthood, personality dimensions generally _________ and well-being generally ___________.

Accepted Answer

Research has shown that personality dimensions tend to remain consistent in older adulthood, with only small changes. Well-being, on the other hand, tends to increase in older adulthood as people adapt to changes and find meaning in their lives.

Question 9

Frank says that he doesn't like having to use a walker, but at least he's in better shape than his brother, who must use a wheelchair. Frank's statement exemplifies the basic principle involved in:

Accepted Answer

When people use social comparison, they evaluate themselves and their own situation against the experiences of others they perceive to be similar. Using social comparison can allow older adults to maintain a positive outlook despite their failing health and declining abilities.

Question 10

According to the text, which of the following is the most important determinant of satisfaction in older adulthood?

Accepted Answer

The text states that health is the most important determinant of satisfaction in older adulthood. While money, marital status, and social interaction can all contribute to one's overall satisfaction, the text specifically highlights the importance of maintaining good health in order to lead a fulfilling life in older age.

Question 11

If you were to describe the emotionality of the majority of older adults, the best conclusion to come to would be that, compared to earlier in their lives, their emotionality is ______ complex and their sense of well-being is _________.

Accepted Answer

As people grow older, their sense that time is fleeting usually deepens and makes for more complex emotionality. A greater ability to negotiate the conflicts between what they believe they should do and what they want to do contributes to a greater sense of well-being.

Question 12

If you looked at MRI results of brain activity of younger and older adults while viewing positive images, you would expect that brain activity would be relatively ___________ for older adults in the area of the brain called the ____________.

Accepted Answer

The book describes a research study in which, relative to younger adults, older adults were found to experience greater neural activation for positive images than negative ones in the amygdala, an area in the brain involved in the processing of emotional responses.

Question 13

According to the text, the positivity effect is best described as:

Accepted Answer

The text describes the positivity effect as the tendency for older adults to remember positive information better than negative information, which is best described by choice D.

Question 14

According to the text, in comparison to the coping styles used by younger adults, older adults are more likely to use coping styles that are more:

Accepted Answer

Older adults tend to use coping styles that are more passive and focused on emotions, as they often prioritize emotional regulation and acceptance over problem-solving strategies.

Question 15

Generalizing from information presented in the text, in which of the following years would you predict to see the highest proportion of retirements occurring at ages 65 or younger?

Accepted Answer

According to the text, retirement at the traditional ages of 62 or 65 seems to have peaked in the 1980s or early 1990s.

Question 16

According to the text, as men age, they typically become:

Accepted Answer

The text notes that as men age, they become more introverted. From Chapter 16, in which the Big Five personality traits are discussed, students should have learned that introversion is the opposite end of the trait of extroversion.

Question 17

According to research presented in the text, you would expect that in older adulthood adults would experience all of the following changes EXCEPT:

Accepted Answer

In studies across cultures, older adults consistently reported fewer mood swings, less agitation, and a greater ability to control their emotions than did young adults, which contributes to a greater sense of well-being.

Question 18

In comparison to older women, older men tend to be _____ emotional and to cope _____ effectively.

Accepted Answer

Research has shown that compared to older women, older men tend to express less emotion and cope more effectively with stressors. This may be due to societal expectations for men to be stoic and unemotional, as well as individual differences in coping strategies.

Question 19

About what percent of workers in 2012 chose to retire "in the traditional sense" - to quit working entirely at age 65?

Accepted Answer

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2012, about 33% of workers retired "in the traditional sense" by quitting their jobs entirely at age 65. This means that the majority of workers either continued working past age 65 or gradually reduced their hours or switched to part-time work instead of fully retiring.

Question 20

According to research cited in the text, which of the following groups of people age 65 and older would be expected to report the highest levels of healthiness?

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to research cited in the text,...

Quiz 17: Older Adulthood: Personality and Sociocultural Development