Kensinger: Aging Flashcards
What are 5 main aspects of aging?
- Social-emotional
- Societal
- Evolutionary
- Neurobiological
- Cognitive
What are the 3 main socio-emotional aspects of aging?
- Living with limitations (mobility, interests)
- Smaller world (loneliness)
- Purpose in life (retirement, depression, loss)
What is ageism?
Prejudice, stereotyping and discrimination based on age
What’s the difference between prejudice, stereotyping and discrimination?
Prejudice = how we feel
Stereotyping = how we think (takes individual dignity away)
Discrimination = how we act
Why isn’t ageism banned yet?
It’s more socially accepted and often meant as an innocent thing
What are the benefits of employing an older person?
- more experience
- less panic
- mentoring
- loyal
What are 5 things you can do about ageism?
- raise awareness
- speak out
- no prejudices/stereotypes
- treat everyone the same
- promote inter-generational contact
What is the consequence of exposure to ageism?
It becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy
What is a societal aspect of aging? Name three consequences of this
Due to baby-boom there are more older adults with increased longevity
- Elderly live autonomously as long as possible
- Increased pressure on family/caretakers
- Financing retirements is problematic
From an evolutionary perspective, why do we age?
- Evolutionary pressure of natural selection
- There is no evolutionary pressure to select genes that promote successful aging
How does our sleep rhythm develop over age? What are the consequences of this?
- Less deep sleep
- More active in the morning
- Need for naps
Consequences: reduced cognitive performance, weaker memory consolidation
What’s the difference between ontogenesis and fylogenesis?
Ontogenesis = individual development
Fylogenesis = development of the species
What is dual aging?
More older adults and more longevity
What are 4 main aspects of cognitive decline?
- Regulative functions
- Memory
- Self-efficacy & self-management
- Orienting
What are considered regulative functions and how does this decline with age?
- Stability and flexibility (switching tasks, shielding goals)
- Working memory (updating, remembering)
- Planning, impulse control
It declines because of deterioration PFC
Which brain regions decline first with age?
(Dorsolateral) prefrontal cortex + hippocampus
What is the difference between self-efficacy and self-management ability? How does this decline with age?
Self-efficacy = self-confidence
Self-management = capacity to control own behavior/emotions
This declines because of prefrontal decline
Which type of memory gets harder to remember with age?
Contextual details of events (where, who, when)
What are the 4 notions of orienting?
- Notion of place (where you are)
- Notion of temporal space (where were you then)
- Notion of contextual space
- Notion of autobiographical space (who are you)
Which cognitive aspect declines fast with dementia?
Memory and orienting