Week 7

Question 1

Some possible predictions of what might happen if more people lived to 120?

Answer 1

Retirement age may be pushed back
Higher divorce rates
Increased healthcare expenditure and burden
Reach Earth’s theoretical capacity faster

Question 2

What were the characteristics of the oldest person on record?

Answer 2

She was wealthy (lack of stress, high SES)
She didn’t smoke cigarettes until much later in life
She had a great social life

Question 3

What are the trends between level of social support and age?

Answer 3

People report higher level of social support as age increases
Overall, social support is pretty higher (over 80%)

Interesting because of less societal roles, peers dying…
However, may have more time to engage in social events

Question 4

Do older adults feel like they are getting enough social support overall?

Answer 4

Yes
Over 70% overall report high levels of social support
Regardless of sex, living arrangements, area of residence, immigrant status and family income, mental status and mobility

Question 5

Who feels the most socially supported? (out of the categories sex, living arrangements, areas of residence, immigrant status, family income, mental health, mobility)?

Answer 5

Female
Lives with spouse only
Rural
Canadian-born
Higher tax brackets
Sometimes, rarely or never experience mental issues
Doesn’t matter for mobility

Question 6

What is the trend throughout the years of living alone by age?

Answer 6

Greater proportion of men living alone now than before (higher divorce rates, social acceptability, women no longer are financially dependent)

Greater proportion of women living alone then men in older age (men die earlier, men remarry often more often)

Question 7

Some steps you could take to ensure you have strong social support networks in old age?

Answer 7

Fostering a community
Volunteering and giving back to the community
Engaging in senior centres
New opportunities for social interaction
Learning to develop quality friendships
Developing hobbies and finding like minded individuals

Question 8

Fictive Kin

Answer 8

Families of choice, not relatives in the formal sense, whose members provide the kind of love and support that caring family members do for each other

Question 9

4-2-1 Phenomenon

Answer 9

4 grandparents, 2 parents, 1 child
lower birth rates and older demographic

Burden on the 1 child when caregiving