AGING QUIZ - ANSWERS

This quiz was created by the Ontario Seniors Secretariat

The older you get, the less sleep you need.
False
In later life it's the quality of sleep that declines, not the total sleep time.
Researchers have found that sleep tends to become more fragmented as people
age. A number of reports suggest that older people are less likely than younger
people to stay awake throughout the day, and that older people tend to take more
naps.
As your body changes with age, so does your personality.
False
Research has found that, except for the changes that can result from Alzheimer
Disease and other forms of dementia, personality is one of the few constants of
life. That is, you are likely to age as you have lived and your personality will
remain the same throughout your life.
Intelligence declines with age.
False.
Most people maintain their intellect, or improve, as they grow older. While studies
have shown that the elderly typically take somewhat longer to learn something
new, and have somewhat slower reaction times than younger people, this does
not impair their ability to reason and function well.
Most older people live alone.
False
The large majority of Canadian seniors live with their family, either as a family
head or spouse, or with their extended family, such as the family of a daughter or
son.
In 1996, 69% of all people aged 65 and over lived with family members. That
year, 57% were living with their spouse, 1% were living with common-law
partners, and 4% were lone parents. Almost 7% lived with members of their
extended family.

Most people will become "senile" if they live long enough

False
Dementia is not a normal part of aging, and "senility" is a meaningless term that
should be discarded in favour of a specific description of a cognitive impairment.
Alzheimer Disease is the most common form of dementia and accounts for 64%
of all dementias. Seniors in the older age range are more likely than younger
seniors to be afflicted with this disease.
Age breakdowns are as follows:
1 in 13 Canadians over age 65 is affected by Alzheimer Disease and related
dementias.

1 in 50 between ages 65-74

1 in 9 between ages 75-84
1 in 3 over age 85

1 in 20 Canadians over age 65 is affected by Alzheimer Disease.

1 in 100 between ages 65-74

1 in 14 between ages 75-84
1 in 4 over age 85

Physical strength tends to decline in old age

True
Physical strength does tend to decline in old age. However, exercise can
counteract and limit the amount of loss. A senior who exercises regularly may be
in better physical shape than an inactive middle-aged person.
Most seniors limit their travel to be closer to home
False
In some age ranges, seniors are even more likely to travel abroad than younger
adults.
In 1997, people aged 65 and over made an average of 0.7 international trips per
person, compared to 0.6 trips per person for 25- to 44-year olds; 45- to 64-year
olds averaged 1 trip per person.
Seniors have the lowest income of all adult groups

True
In 1997, 19% of all seniors had incomes below Statistics Canada's low-income
cut off.* However, women are more than twice as likely (24%) as men (11.7%) to
have low incomes. Among unattached seniors, women are more likely to have
low incomes (49%) than men (33%). These percentages are much higher than
for people between the ages of 18 and 64.
Nevertheless, seniors' incomes have risen at a faster rate than those of other age
groups over the past 15 years.
Most older adults have no interest in, or capacity for, sexual relations
False
Our society generally associates sexuality with youth. However, growing older
does not mean the loss of capacity for, or interest in, sexual expression.
Methods of expressing sexual feelings may change with age, while opportunities
may decrease due to loss of a partner, physical changes or living arrangements,
interest generally does not.
People tend to become more religious with age
False
The perception may be that people tend to become more religious with age.
However, this may be more of a difference between generations, rather than a
characteristic of aging.
In 1996, 93% of seniors reported they were affiliated with a religious group,
compared to 85% of those between the ages of 15 and 64.
People tend to change their driving habits as they age.
True
Many people voluntarily modify their driving behaviour to accommodate changes
associated with aging. Specifically, they may choose to:

Plan their trips -- avoid rush hour driving, planning routes to avoid difficult
situations (e.g., left turns, dangerous intersections)
Drive less
Limit highway travel
Avoid driving in bad weather or at night

There are many courses available to help senior drivers recognize and develop
strategies to address some of these challenges
Older people are more likely to commit suicide than younger people
False
Overall, Canadian seniors are somewhat less likely than younger adults to
commit suicide.
However, senior men in older age ranges are more likely than their younger
counterparts to commit suicide. In 1996, there were 37 suicides for every
100,000 men aged 85 and over, compared with 27 among those aged 75 to 84,
and 24 among those aged 65 to 74. In fact, men aged 85 and over were more
likely to commit suicide than men in any other age category that year. In contrast,
women in the 85 and over age group were least likely to commit suicide.
An older person's concern with suicide should be taken very seriously, and
professional help should be sought quickly.
Many older people are preoccupied with death.
False
Attitudes towards death are highly variable, but some general trends can be
noted.
In general, older adults are less anxious and more matter-of-fact about death. As
people move though their life span, they lose friends and family members, and
begin to accept their own mortality. This enables the older adult to speak more
freely about death and dying. Most young adults avoid thinking about or
discussing death.
Most seniors who are new to Canada speak neither English nor French.
True
From 1996 to 1999, 6,346 senior immigrants landed in Ontario. Of those, 61%
spoke neither English nor French. The percentage of female newcomers who
speak neither of the two official languages is higher (64%) than their male
counterparts (56%). English as a Second Language (ESL) and French as a
Second Language (FSL) classes are available to new Canadians of all ages.

Information found in your quiz results comes from the following sources:

Statistics Canada, A Portrait of Seniors in Canada, 1999

What is your Aging IQ?, National Institute on Aging
Palmore, E.B. (1977). Facts on Aging Quiz, The Gerontologist, 17, 315320
Miller, R.B. & Dodder, R.A. (1980). A Revision of Palmore's Facts on Aging
Quiz. The Gerontologist, 20, 673-679.
Costa, P.T. & McCrea, R.R. (1998). Trait Theories of Personality. In D.F.
Barone & M. Hersen (Eds.), Advanced Personality (pp.103-121). New
York: Plenum.
Millar, W. & Adams, O. (1991). Accidents in Canada. Statistics Canada
Kruse, A. (1991). Sozialkontakte. In Oswald, W.D., Herrmann, W.M.,
Kanowski, S., Lehr, U.M., & Thomae, H.. Gerontologie. Stuttgart: Verlag
W. Kohlhammer.

Schaie, K.W. (1991). Intelligenz. In Oswald, W.D., Herrmann, W.M., Kanowski,

S., Lehr, U.M., & Thomae, H.. Gerontologie. Stuttgart: Verlag W. Kohlhammer.