Sociology - Aging and the Elderly - Chpt 14 - Exam 3

primary aging

Biological factors such as molecular and cellular changes

dependency ratio

the number of nonproductive citizens (young, disabled, or elderly) to productive working citizens

sex ratio

compares number of men to women

conflict theory MODERNIZATION THEORY

suggests that the primary cause of the elderly losing power and influence in society are the parallel forces of industrialization and modernization

thanatology

the systematic study of death and dying

three perspectives of elderly in society

Theories in the functionalist perspective focus on the role of elders in terms of the functioning of society as a whole. Theories in the conflict perspective concentrate on how elders, as a group, are at odds with other groups in society. And theories in the symbolic interactionist perspective focus on how elders' identities are created through their interactions.

functionalist ACTIVITY THEORY

According to this theory, activity levels and social involvement are key to this process, and key to happiness / the more active and involved an elderly person is, the happier he or she will be / reformulations of this theory suggest that participation in informal activities, such as hobbies, are what most effect later life satisfaction

conflict theory AGE STRATIFICATION THEORY

Because age serves as a basis of social control, different age groups will have varying access to social resources such as political and economic power / within societies, behavioral age norms, including norms about roles and appropriate behavior, dictate what members of age cohorts may reasonably do

Gerontology

a field of science that seeks to understand the process of aging and the challenges encountered as seniors grow older

cohort

a group of people who share a statistical or demographic trait / People belonging to the same age cohort were born in the same time frame

geriatrics

a medical specialty that focuses on the elderly / Dr. Ignatz Nascher coined the term / doctors were diagnosing their patients with "old age" and Nascher refused to accept this dismissive view, seeing it as medical neglect

grief

a psychological, emotional, and social response to the feelings of loss that accompanies death or a similar event.

conflict theory EXCHANGE THEORY

a rational choice approach, suggests we experience an increased dependence as we age and must increasingly submit to the will of others because we have fewer ways of compelling others to submit to us

gerontocracy

a type of social structure wherein the power is held by a society's oldest members

the middle-old

ages seventy-five to eighty-four years old

secondary aging

aging that occurs due to controllable factors such as lack of physical exercise and poor diet

the young-old

approximately sixty-five to seventy-four years old

filial piety

attitude of deference and respect to one's parents and ancestors in all things, as defining all other virtues

symbolic interactionist SELECTIVE OPTIMIZATION WITH COMPENSATION THEORY

based on the idea that successful personal development throughout the life course and subsequent mastery of the challenges associated with everyday life are based on the components of selection, optimization, and compensation / in the field of gerontology, researchers focus attention on balancing the losses associated with aging with the gains stemming from the same

Ageism

discrimination (when someone acts on a prejudice) based on age / can make older people fear losing a job, feel dismissed by a doctor, or feel a lack of power and control in their daily living situations

symbolic interactionist SUBCULTURE OF AGING THEORY

focuses on the shared community created by the elderly when they are excluded (due to age), voluntarily or involuntarily, from participating in other groups

Elder abuse

occurs when a caretaker intentionally deprives an older person of care or harms the person in his or her charge / caregivers may be family members, relatives, friends, health professionals, or employees of senior housing or nursing car

the old-old

over age eighty-five

Supercentenarians

people living to 110 years or more

Centenarians

people living to be 100 years old, and they are approximately 1,000 times more common than supercentenarians

people's transition toward death

per Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, the process had five distinct stages: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance

Social gerontology

refers to a specialized field of gerontology that examines the social (and sociological) aspects of aging / in a strong position to advocate for older adults

senescence

refers to the aging process, including biological, emotional, intellectual, social, and spiritual changes

functionalist DISENGAGEMENT THEORY

suggests that withdrawing from society and social relationships is a natural part of growing old / Because men focus on work and women focus on marriage and family, when they withdraw they will be unhappy and directionless until they adopt a role to replace their accustomed role that is compatible with the disengaged state

baby boomers

the cohort born between 1946 and 1964 and now reaching their 60s / Coming of age in the 1960s and early 1970s, the baby boom generation was the first group of children and teenagers with their own spending power and therefore their own marketing power

functionalist CONTINUITY THEORY

the elderly make specific choices to maintain consistency in internal (personality structure, beliefs) and external structures (relationships), remaining active and involved throughout their elder years

symbolic interactionist GEROTRANSCENDENCE

the idea that as people age, they transcend the limited views of life they held in earlier times. Tornstam believes that throughout the aging process, the elderly become less self-centered and feel more peaceful and connected to the natural world

life course

the period from birth to death, including a sequence of predictable life events such as physical maturation / Each phase comes with different responsibilities and expectations, which of course vary by individual and culture.

Define redlining

the practice of routinely refusing mortgages for households and business located in predominately minority communities

For individual people of a certain culture, the life course is ________

the typical sequence of events in their lives

physician-assisted suicide

the voluntary or physician-assisted use of lethal medication provided by a medical doctor to end one's life.