Practice test #23 - Late Adulthood: Biosocial Development

Note: These questions are part of a larger data base of questions on Chapter 23 & are selected 
to represent the type of question you should expect on unit exam eight. You can, in fact, 
expect to see many of these very same questions on that exam. Exam questions, however, 
may deal with topics not covered in the self tests or in lectures but are discussed in your 
textbook. You are responsible for the content of your text book plus the content of lectures, 
interactive activities, & material on the web site.

Use these sample questions to test yourself & to practice for the test.

1. The proportion of the United States population over age 65 is about

 33 percent.
 25 percent.
 13 percent.
 3 percent.

2. The term "ageism" refers to

 the veneration of the elderly.
 the view of society held by older people.
 the demographics of the population pyramid.
 judging people on the basis of chronological age.

3. The study of population is called

 gerontology.
 demography.
 psychology.
 geography.

4. The main reason we fail to notice the young-old is

 they do not fit our stereotypes of the elderly.
 they are not integrated into the community.
 they are a problem prone minority.
 there aren't very many of them.

5. Which of the following characterizes primary aging?

 reversible
 irreversible
 preventable
 remediable

6. Bill is 71 years old. He will probably

 feel as old as he looks.
 be surprised at how young he looks.
 be shocked at his aged appearance.
 adjust quite easily to his aging.

7. Which vision disorder is hardest to treat?

 cataracts
 glaucoma
 senile farsightedness
 senile macular degeneration

8. Those speaking to the elderly need to

 speak in a high register.
 speak rapidly & distinctly.
 shout, especially over the telephone.
 be aware of the difficulties posed by background noise.

9. Aging & disease are related in that the elderly

 take longer to recover from their illnesses.
 all suffer from at least one disease.
 never recover completely from an illness.
 use more sick days than younger workers.

10. Limiting the time a person spends being ill or infirm is

 progeria.
 senescence.
 compression of morbidity.
 decreasing the dependency ratio.

11. The wear-and-tear theory of aging is weakened by the fact that

 the human body cannot repair itself.
 the human body can repair damaged areas.
 many parts of the body wear out from use.
 machines can't grow old.

12. The most critical damage caused by free radicals occurs in

 oxygen molecules.
 DNA molecules.
 cancer cells.
 neurotransmitters.

13. Vitamins A, C, & E are all

 free radicals.
 antioxidants.
 carcinogens.
 oxygen byproducts.

14.  Life span refers to the typical length of time that any particular organism can be expected to live. It may 
also refer to:

•  Life expectancy, the average lifespan expected of a group. 
 •  Maximum life span, the maximum lifespan observed in a group . 
  •  Longevity, the average life span expected under ideal conditions. 
   •  all of the above. 

15. The Hayflick limit is a natural limit to the

 number of times cells can divide.
  life span of a victim of a genetic disease.
   size of the population of the earth.
    number of children born to one set of parents.

16. Age related changes in the immune system include all of the 
following except:

 loss of T cells
 shrinkage of the thymus gland
 reduced efficiency of antibodies
 reduced efficiency in repairing damage from B cells

17. In triggering our first maturational changes & then the aging process, 
our genetic makeup is in effect acting as a(n):

 genetic clock.
 secondary ager.
 immune system.
 demographic pyramid.

18. The average life expectany of humans varies according to all of the 
following except:

 socioeconomic factors.
 historical factors.
 cultural factors.
 ethnic factors.

19. A direct result of damage to cellular DNA is:

a errors in the reproduction of cells.
b the occurance of a disease called progeria.
c decreased efficiency of the immune system.
d an increase in the formation of free radicals.

20. As a result of the _______ birth rate, the population dependency ratio is 
_______ than it was at the turn of the twentieth century.

 increasing; lower
 increasing; higher
 decreasing; higher
 decreasing; lower 

21. Those speaking to the elderly in elderspeak need to:

 stretch out the words.
 speak in a higher register.
 increase the logical pauses.
 speak more rapidly & distinctly. 

                         --------------------------------------
                              Robert C. Gates