Exam 2 Flashcards
Stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination towards others or oneself based on age
Ageism
socially shared beliefs about characteristics and behaviors of a particular social group
stereotypes
active endorsement of/agreement with cultural stereotypes
prejudice
when prejudices lead to overt behaviors that somehow limit the stereotyped group
discrimination
What is this an example of?
not hiring someone because they are “overqualified” or “lack energy”
discrimination
What is this an example of?
our culture views older people as unattractive
stereotype
What is this an example of?
young people are so lazy
prejudice
Why is ageism tough to eliminate?
we learn age-based stereotypes when we are young
When people who are members of a stereotyped group internalize them and use it to guide their own behavior
self-stereotyping OR self stigma
Agist beliefs are associated with ___ outcomes in older adulthood
poor
becoming internalized across the lifespan, operating unconsciously, gaining salience by becoming self-relevant, and using multiple cognitive pathways
Stereotype Embodiment Theory
Stereotype activations tends to be what?
strong, automatic, unconscious
stereotypes about aging tend to influence how we perceive the competence of older adults
perceived competence
What is a common stereotype with groups of low social class?
older adults viewed as “warm but incompetent”
memory of cognitive failures in older people being judged more harshly than the same failure in younger people
age-based double standard
Four stereotype content model attributes
high warmth/low competence
high warmth/high competence
low warmth/low competence
low warmth/high competence
combating ageism interventions are more effective when ____ and ____ is combined
education and contact
What cognitive age-related brain changes are linked to secondary processes?
Stroke and white matter changes
When are age-related brain changes considered a disease process?
If a person’s ability to do ADLs/IADLs that it impairs their performance
What are 3 brain changes that typically happen?
reduction in # of synapse, reduction in characteristics of dendrites, and reduction of neurons and connections between neurons
What does the white matter contain?
axons of neurons that connect different cortical areas
How can you tell the white matter on an MRI?
Hyperintensities to indicate degradation
White matter hyperintensities are more likely and severe in people with what?
cardiovascular risks
what neurotransmitters are involved in cognitive, motivational, and motor function?
dopamine
what neurotransmitter is involved in cognitive function?
acetylcholine
What neurotransmitter is involved in memory and sleep?
Serotonin
Decreasing volume of frontal cortex
gray matter
Gray matter may be related to decreases in the efficiency of what neurotransmitter?
dopamine
What may increase vulnerability to Alzheimer’s disease?
decreased volume of the hippocampus
taking information in from the outside world through input devices
information processing model
working memory capacity shrinks
when you age
cognitive processes that require working memory become more what?
difficult
places minimal demands on attention and occurs without awareness
automatic processing
requires all of the available attentional capacity and engages in executive function
effortful processing
aging tends to ____ automatic processing and _____ effortful processing
spare; impair
humans rely more on what type of processing?
automatic
involved knowledge that is available to conscious awareness and can be accessed by recall or recognition tests
Explicit/declarative memory
pulling a piece of information from your mind without any hints or cues
recall tests
type of explicit memory that involves information that is not tied to a specific time and place
semantic memory
type of explicit memory that involved event information and is tied to a specific time and place
episodic memory
during encoding, older adults show more difficulties in _____ multiple pieces of information into a single ‘unit’ of memory
binding (deficit)
repeated, similar events make it difficult to sufficiently distinguish among different occurrences
interference with episodic memory
mental processes that aren’t available to conscious awareness
implicit memory
non-verbal learned skills that typically involve motor systems
procedural memory
normal aging does not typically impact what?
non-declarative/explicit memory
a family of diseases involving permanent damage to the brain, which causes cognitive and behavioral impairments
Dementia
most common type of dementia
Alzheimer’s Disease
made of collapsed protein tau, and found inside nerve cells
tangles
made of beta-amyloid, abnormal bits of protein and found outside of nerve cells
plaques
dementia disease progression
asymptomatic, mild cognitive impairment, mild dementia, moderate dementia, to severe dementia
concern of change in cognition over time, impairment in one or more cognitive domain, and preservation of independent functioning/not demented
MCI/Mild Neurocognitive Disorder
slow onset, clear history of worsening of symptoms, cognitive deficits in memory or language, visuospatial abilities and executive function
Alzheimer’s Disease/Major Neurocognitive Disorder
poor judgement and decision making, inability to manage a budget, losing track of date/season, difficulty in conversation, and misplacing things
Signs of Alzheimer’s and Dementia
making bad decision once in a while, missing a monthly payment, forgetting the day and remembering it later, sometimes forgetting which word to use, and losing things from time to time
Typical age-related changes
not enough physical activity, cigarette smoking, excessive alcohol use, obesity, hypertension, diabetes, depression, and hearing loss
Risks related to Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias
drugs to treat cognitive symptoms of dementia
cholinesterase inhibitors and glutamate regulators
anti-amyloid drugs that help clear plaques from the brain in people with mild AD
Donanemab and Lecanemab
the efficiency of various cognitive processes that work together behind the scenes to process information
construct of intelligence
score on an intelligence test that reflect general intellectual capacity
intelligence quotient and measurement
which type of intelligence declines earlier?
fluid intelligence
a way of thinking about real-world problems
post formal reasoning
there is always a single right answer to a problem
pre reflective reasoning
there is never a right answer to a problem, everyone has to decide for themselves
quasi-reflective reasoning
some answers are better than others, but which is better depends on the context
reflective reasoning
cognitive screening tool appropriate for detecting mild cognitive impairment
montreal cognitive assessment
