Adulthood and Old Age

Chapter 5, Section 2

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What are our feelings about old people?

 “Old age” has a negative connotation in our

society; no one wants to grow old

 Historically, the biggest stars and legends are

those that die young, because they can never age

 Other names for older people are seniors, elderly,

etc.

 Decremental model of aging – mental and

physical decline are inevitable with age

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Ageism v. Reality

 Ageism is discrimination against the elderly; an

ageist is a person who doesn’t think old people
have much use in society

 Stereotypes about the elderly – poor health; live

in poverty; sit around a lot; always victims of
crime

 Senility (Senile) – actually only effects about

10% of the aged though people seem to think it is
much more

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Ageism v. Reality (cont’d)

 People don’t generally become “rigid” or

inflexible in their personality due to age; if they
are that way as a senior citizen, they were most
likely that way as a young person

 40% of old people have chronic disease; the

prevalent diseases are heart disease, arthritis,
hypertension and diabetes

 Good health and good habits in youth will follow

you into old age

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Ageism v. Reality (cont’d)

 Old age and marriage – more women than men

are widowed in old age

 Sex – older people still engage and enjoy sex if

they are physically able; only when they
internalized a lack of social acceptance do they
stop

 Old age and depression – many older people

show symptoms of depression; the loss of self-
control is difficult for some seniors

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John Horn and Intelligence

 John Horn theorized about two types of

intelligence; crystallized intelligence and
fluid intelligence

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John Horn and Intelligence (cont’d)

 Crystallized intelligence – ability to use

accumulated knowledge and learning in
appropriate situations

 Fluid intelligence – ability to solve abstract

relational problems and generate new hypothesis

 Horn believed that fluid intelligence declines

with age while crystallized intelligence increases
with age and experience

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Senile Dementia

 Senile Dementia is decreased mental abilities

experienced by some in old age

 Symptoms of dementia – memory loss,

forgetfulness, disorientation, impaired attention,
difficulty relating to others, altered personality,
and difficulty thinking

 Alzheimer’s disease – the most common form of

dementia and the fourth leading cause of death
among adults

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Senile Dementia (cont’d)

 Alzheimer's disease leads to a gradual

deterioration of cognitive functioning and
loss of all independent functioning; in the
later stages patients must be cared for 24-7

 There is currently no known cure for

Alzheimer’s Disease

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Questions To Ponder

 What are popular misconceptions

about the aged?

 How do social attitudes affect the

sexual activity of the aged?

 Explain the difference between

crystallized and fluid intelligence.
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