Exam 17: Health and Aging

Which of the following is a criterion for admitting immigrants to Canada?

What is the differential in aging between women and men in Canada?

What are the major areas of inquiry for sociologists of health and aging?

Outline and evaluate the various explanations that have been proposed to explain socioeconomic and other inequalities in health in later life.

List and discuss the five interrelated themes that characterize apocalyptic demography.

What is a likely consequence of abolishing mandatory retirement?

Many sociologists argue that economic globalization is necessary to support a health-care system that will be appropriate for an aging society.

Omar is an 88-year-old man living alone, whose family lives nearby and checks on him frequently. There are weekly Sunday meals at Omar's house that include his children, his grandchildren, and his great-grandchildren. Which of the following concepts best explains Omar's vitality?

Danielle still lives on her own, although she needs help to clean her home and prepare meals. Who is she most likely to turn to first for assistance?

It has been noted that the answers that we as a society give to questions about what causes health problems and inequalities will influence how we go about dealing with them. Discuss this statement with reference to older adults and the Canadian health-care system.

Ralph is living independently despite a knee problem that gives him mobility problems. Which of the following services would NOT be included in the homecare he receives?

Two friends are discussing aging and disability, when the one says, "Look, I don't care who you are, Bill Gates or a bag lady, the longer you live, the more likely you are to get sick." Which of the following hypotheses best matches this argument?

The notion of apocalyptic demography has important consequences for society. Discuss.

Some sociologists are employed by Statistics Canada, where they examine Canadian trends in our aging population. What term is used to identify the specific focus of their expertise?

Prem Gupta, like many people coming to Canada recently, belongs to a group of people who are less likely to have chronic diseases. Which of the following describes the effect of this trend?

Whitefeather's statuses include being elderly, Aboriginal, and female. What hypothesis might be applied to her?

Most Canadians consider individual behaviours such as diet, smoking, exercise, and stress important - but another important factor gets relatively little consideration. What is it?

Deaths in old age usually result from chronic degenerative diseases.

In a recent Canadian study on health changes over a three-year period among adults ages 50 and over, it was found that the likelihood of remaining in good health was greater for those men and women in the highest educational and income groups.

Jimmy is a poorly paid groundskeeper, who works at least 10 hours of overtime every week spraying pesticides on massive lawns in the upscale neighbourhoods of his city. After work, he grabs a meal at a fast-food restaurant that he takes home and eats in front of the television, all the while thinking of how easy life must be for the people whose lawns he looks after. Which of the following perspectives would Jimmy exemplify?