Deck 16: The Politics of Aging

Question 1

The major issue in the generational equity debate is that there is more spending by the government for the elderly than for the youth. An international study on trends in spending on children and the elderly in Western nations found that:

A) higher spending for the elderly was associated with lower spending for children.
B) there is no relationship between spending for the elderly and spending for children.
C) high spending for the elderly was not associated with low spending on children.
D) there is equal spending for the elderly and children.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

The main role of old age interest groups has been that of:

A) lobbying for benefits.
B) winning new benefits.
C) protecting existing benefits.
D) proposing new benefits.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

The first social movement which attracted older people was the:

A) Gray Panthers.
B) Senior Power Movement.
C) Intergenerational Movement.
D) Townsend Movement.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

The age at which the Constitution mandates that a person can be president is:

A) 35.
B) 36.
C) 38.
D) 40.

Question 5

Identify an accurate statement about the Red Hat Society.

A) It is an organization dedicated to improving the image of older women.
B) It is strongly in favor of the privatization of Social Security and Medicare.
C) It proposed that all women 70 or older should receive a monthly pension of $400.
D) It uses violence and physical threats to protest against unfair policies.

Question 6

The organization that was created by AFL-CIO to lobby for Medicare is the:

A) National Council of Senior Citizens.
B) Gray Panthers.
C) National Association of Retired Federal Employees.
D) American Association of Retired Persons.

Question 7

Most older people do not engage in bloc voting because:

A) they belong to a homogenous group.
B) old age physically disables them from exercising their voting rights.
C) they are less likely than younger voters to register and actually vote.
D) they do not know how their representatives vote on most issues.

Question 8

All of the following are findings from a representative sample of Floridians regarding their attitudes toward the elderly except:

A) younger respondents viewed older Floridians as an economic burden.
B) people with the most critical attitudes toward the elderly came from a county with a low proportion of older adults.
C) younger respondents viewed older Floridians as an unconstructive community element.
D) younger respondents viewed older Floridians an economically selfish voting bloc.

Question 9

The ownership society is designed to appeal to _____ workers who like the idea of having an opportunity to build wealth.

A) middle-income
B) middle-aged
C) old
D) young

Question 10

The generational equity debate first gained notice in 1984 by the demographer:

A) Charles Longino.
B) Maggie Kuhn.
C) Samuel Preston.
D) Paul Erlich.

Question 11

Identify an accurate statement about the Townsend movement.

A) It recommended that only wives should be eligible for spouse or widow's benefit.
B) It called for the privatization of Social Security and Medicare.
C) It was a movement dedicated to improving the image of older women.
D) It proposed that all people 65 or older should receive a pension of $150 a month.

Question 12

Proof that age does impact voting preferences is shown by the percentage of young people who voted for Barack Obama in 2012. That percentage was:

A) 45.
B) 28.
C) 11.
D) 60.

Question 13

The largest senior voluntary organization is the:

A) National Council of Senior Citizens.
B) Gray Panthers.
C) National Association of Retired Federal Employees.
D) American Association of Retired Persons (AARP).

Question 14

Research has found lower voter turnout among people with:

A) health disabilities.
B) little or no employment.
C) caregiving responsibilities.
D) limited transportation.

Question 15

Older people are not only involved in voting and holding offices. All of the following are other examples of involvement except:

A) watching a party convention on television.
B) working in voter's registration drive.
C) helping to recruit local candidates to run for office.
D) attending national party conventions.

Question 16

Critics who feel that there is an entitlement crisis note that:

A) the federal budget is out of control.
B) spending on entitlement programs should cease.
C) there is a disproportionate share of the budget being spent on the elderly, crowding out other social needs.
D) entitlement programs will increase.

Question 17

Retrospective voting is a type of bloc voting and occurs when:

A) voters give votes to candidates based on promises made.
B) the elderly voters withhold votes to candidates based on a judgment of past performance.
C) voters tell their friends not to vote for a candidate based on the candidates' past performance.
D) elderly voters do not vote but think about the past times in which they have voted.

Question 18

Identify an accurate statement about voting.

A) Younger people are more likely than older people to register to vote.
B) Voter turnout is higher among people with disabilities than among those without disabilities.
C) Voter turnout is consistently low among older people for all election years.
D) Voting increases with age in any single election year.

Question 19

Older people are _____ likely of all age groups to be involved in a social movement.

A) most
B) highly
C) least
D) rarely

Question 20

All of the following are factors in the increase of the "gray lobby" except:

A) battle over health insurance.
B) convening of the White House Conference on Aging.
C) the consideration by President Carter to cut Social Security benefits as a solution to the declining reserves in the program trust fund in 1977.
D) the Townsend Movement.

Question 21

Voter turnout is consistently low among older people for all election years.

Question 22

A main goal of the National Council of Senior Citizens is to lobby for health insurance legislation.

Question 23

In the United States, Medicare is provided to all citizens regardless of their age or income.

Question 24

The first major social movement consisting primarily of older people was the Townsend movement.

Question 25

Most surveys show that people of all ages do not agree that Social Security taxes are at the right level.

Question 26

Did you vote in the last election? What factors went into your decision to vote or not to vote? What factors influenced your candidate of choice?

Question 27

The entitlement program debate is really a struggle over the future of Social Security and Medicare.

Question 28

Older people are more likely to engage in bloc voting than any other age group.

Question 29

Older people, more so than any other age group, are more likely to be adherents to a social movement.

Question 30

Many citizens mistakenly believe that Social Security will run out of money.

Question 31

The main reason that generational equity is not viewed as a problem in Canada is the national health insurance system that it has for all its citizens.

Question 32

What evidence is there that an entitlement crisis exists?

Question 33

Older people are much less likely than young people to register and actually vote.

Question 34

Older people are more likely to hold political offices because of their wisdom.