Deck 18: Cognitive Development in Late Adulthood

Question 1

Cognitive ________ are the culture-based "software programs" of the mind.

A) functions
B) perceptions
C) mechanics
D) pragmatics

Answer 1

D

Question 2

According to Paul Baltes, which of the following is a component of cognitive pragmatics?

A) categorization
B) comparison
C) visual and motor memory
D) reading and writing skills

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Recent research indicates that the greater distractibility of older adults is associated with less effective functioning in neural networks running through the ________ of the brain, which are involved in cognitive control.

A) occipital and temporal lobes
B) frontal and parietal lobes
C) cerebellum
D) medulla

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Which of the following concepts have distinctions similar to the ones between cognitive mechanics and cognitive pragmatics?

A) gross and fine motor skills
B) fluid and crystallized intelligence
C) physiological and psychological control
D) generativity and stagnation

Question 5

The term Baltes uses to describe the "hardware" of the mind, meaning the neurophysiological architecture of the brain that was developed through evolution, is

A) cognitive mechanics.
B) cognitive perceptions.
C) crystallized pragmatics.
D) crystallized intelligence.

Question 6

Which of the following is a term used to describe sustained attention?

A) executive functioning
B) transitivity
C) vigilance
D) multitasking

Question 7

Which of the following factors is most likely to contribute to the decline in fluid mechanics in late adulthood?

A) decline in writing skills
B) decline in processing speed
C) decline in language comprehension
D) decline in life skills

Question 8

Zack is having a conversation with his friend Ben in a crowded room. Despite the presence of many voices around him, Zack focuses on what Ben is saying. This is an example of ________ attention.

A) selective
B) divided
C) implicit
D) executive

Question 9

According to Paul Baltes, which of the following is most likely to deteriorate as a person's age increases?

A) reading and writing skills
B) language comprehension
C) visual and motor memory
D) professional skills

Question 10

Which of the following statements is true of the speed of processing information?

A) Moderate-intensity aerobic training improves processing speed in older adults better than high-intensity aerobic training.
B) Processing speed increases through the childhood, declines during adolescent years, and later increases during early adulthood.
C) A slowing of processing speed is linked to the emergence of dementia in succeeding years.
D) Age-related losses in processing speed are linked to improvements in neural connectivity.

Question 11

________ attention is focused and extended engagement with an object, task, event, or some other aspect of the environment.

A) Selective
B) Sustained
C) Divided
D) Executive

Question 12

Selective attention is ________, whereas divided attention is ________.

A) vigilance; focusing on a specific event
B) paying attention only occasionally; constantly paying attention
C) focusing on one thing; focusing on many things
D) paying attention to detail; paying attention to significant events

Question 13

The term ________ refers to the ability to focus on a specific aspect of experience that is relevant while ignoring others that are irrelevant.

A) divided attention
B) selective attention
C) attention deficit
D) sustained attention

Question 14

Which of the following is true of attention?

A) The more difficult the competing tasks are, the more effectively older adults divide attention than younger adults.
B) When two competing tasks are reasonably easy, age differences among adults are minimal or nonexistent.
C) On simple tasks involving a search for a feature, age differences are dramatic even when individuals are given sufficient practice.
D) Generally, older adults are more adept at selective attention than younger adults are.

Question 15

Which of the following statements about cognitive mechanics and cognitive pragmatics is true?

A) Educational qualifications and professional skills are components of cognitive pragmatics.
B) Cognitive mechanics improves in late adulthood.
C) Decline in cognitive pragmatics may begin as soon as early midlife.
D) Knowledge about the self and life skills that help people master or cope with life are components of cognitive mechanics.

Question 16

An example of ________ attention is making a decision about which stimuli to attend to when making a left turn at an intersection.

A) executive
B) divided
C) sustained
D) selective

Question 17

An example of ________ attention is the ability to focus on one voice among many in a crowded room or a noisy restaurant.

A) selective
B) divided
C) sustained
D) executive

Question 18

Speed and accuracy of the processes involved in sensory input, attention, visual and motor memory, discrimination, comparison, and categorization are components of

A) cognitive perceptions.
B) cognitive pragmatics.
C) cognitive mechanics.
D) cognitive intelligence.

Question 19

________ attention involves concentrating on more than one activity at the same time.

A) Sustained
B) Selective
C) Divided
D) Executive

Question 20

Cognitive ________ declines in old age, whereas cognitive ________ appears to improve.

A) mechanics; pragmatics
B) pragmatics; mechanics
C) pragmatics; reasoning
D) learning; reasoning

Question 21

Which of the following statements about the relationship between semantic memory and aging is true?

A) Episodic memory declines more than semantic memory in older adults.
B) Older adults are usually unable to retrieve semantic information.
C) Episodic memory and semantic memory remain unchanged in older adults.
D) Older adults can retrieve semantic information from long ago but not from the recent past.

Question 22

Frank, aged 67, recites a poem that he learned in grade school, much to the amazement of his grandchildren. This is an example of Frank's ________ memory.

A) procedural
B) implicit
C) semantic
D) functional

Question 23

Jonas is being tested for decline in cognitive functioning. The test involves assessing his ability to plan actions, allocate attention to goals, detect errors, monitor progress on tasks, and deal with novel or difficult circumstances. The researchers are testing Jonas' ________ attention.

A) sustained
B) executive
C) divided
D) selective

Question 24

Remembering the name of a person's favorite toy from years ago when he or she was a child is an example of ________ memory.

A) prospective
B) implicit
C) semantic
D) episodic

Question 25

A recent study of older adults found that the greater the variability in their ________ attention, the more likely they were to experience falls.

A) sustained
B) selective
C) divided
D) executive

Question 26

The retention of information about the details of life's happenings is called ________ memory.

A) episodic
B) prospective
C) source
D) semantic

Question 27

________ is a cognitive resource that involves the ability to perform tasks such as deciding whether pairs of two-digit or two-letter strings are the same or different or determining the time required to step on the brakes when the car directly ahead stops.

A) Sustained attention
B) Executive attention
C) Episodic memory
D) Perceptual speed

Question 28

Which of the following is an example of explicit memory?

A) John summarizes the plot of a novel that he has just read to his friend.
B) Max drives the car from his office to his home.
C) Linda turns off the lights before going to bed.
D) Maria types on her computer while talking to her friend.

Question 29

Perceptual speed shows considerable decline in late adulthood and is strongly linked to declines in

A) selective attention.
B) semantic memory.
C) working memory.
D) divided attention.

Question 30

Remembering where a person went on vacation last summer is an example of ________ memory.

A) situational
B) semantic
C) prospective
D) episodic

Question 31

Travis, who is 25 years old, knows that Beijing is the capital of China, but he cannot remember when or where he learned this. This is an example of how semantic memory

A) improves with age.
B) is closely linked to an individual's personal identity with the past.
C) begins to decline in early adulthood.
D) is independent of an individual's personal identity with the past.

Question 32

According to a study by Mahoney and others (2010), a lower level of ________ attention in older adults is linked to low blood pressure, which likely is related to reduced blood flow to the brain's frontal lobes.

A) sustained
B) executive
C) divided
D) selective

Question 33

Which of the following is a probable reason for the decline in working memory in older adults?

A) increased distractibility
B) efficient inhibition
C) tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon
D) lowered implicit memory

Question 34

A common memory problem for older adults is ________, in which individuals cannot quite retrieve familiar information but have the feeling that they should be able to retrieve it.

A) dementia
B) the tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon
C) temporary memory loss
D) mental block

Question 35

Helen's knowledge of calculus and statistics is part of her ________ memory.

A) semantic
B) episodic
C) prospective
D) implicit

Question 36

________, which is closely linked to short-term memory, allows children and adults to manipulate and assemble information when making decisions, solving problems, and comprehending written and spoken language.

A) Working memory
B) Episodic memory
C) Working cognition
D) Source memory

Question 37

Although Alicia has a great memory for trivia, she has difficulty remembering important events in her life. Alicia has good ________ memory but poor ________ memory.

A) episodic; procedural
B) procedural; semantic
C) semantic; episodic
D) explicit; implicit

Question 38

Older adults have more difficulty determining the time required to step on the brakes when a traffic light suddenly turns red. This is because they have

A) a decline in explicit memory.
B) slower perceptual speed.
C) inferior semantic memory.
D) lost the ability to use their episodic memory.

Question 39

A person's knowledge about the world is called ________ memory.

A) schematic
B) functional
C) normative
D) semantic

Question 40

Hashim, a 69-year-old, makes errors while performing tasks. He is unable to detect and correct the errors. He is also unable to deal effectively with difficult or novel circumstances. Given this information, it can be said that:

A) Hashim's brain receives increased supplies of blood.
B) hashim has deficiencies in executive attention.
C) hashim has high blood pressure.
D) Hashim's selective attention has increased.

Question 41

Michael's mother always forgets to take her heart medication. So, every night Michael calls her after dinner to remind her about her medicines. This demonstrates that Michael's mother is experiencing a decline in ________ memory.

A) source
B) episodic
C) prospective
D) implicit

Question 42

Which of the following is an example of implicit memory?

A) being at a grocery store and remembering what an individual wanted to buy
B) typing on a computer while talking to a friend
C) being able to name the capital of Illinois
D) recounting the events of a movie an individual has seen

Question 43

Older adults especially perform well when decision making

A) is not constrained by time pressures.
B) does not hold any meaning for them.
C) involves high risks.
D) requires high perceptual speed.

Question 44

80-year-old Lucia has difficulty remembering to call her son every Sunday at noon. This is most likely due to a decline in her ________ memory.

A) source
B) episodic
C) implicit
D) prospective

Question 45

________ tend to overestimate the memory problems they experience on a daily basis.

A) Adolescents
B) Younger adults
C) Middle-aged adults
D) Older adults

Question 46

Which of the following is true of decision making and aging?

A) Older adults perform well when decision making is constrained by time pressures.
B) Older adults are far more inconsistent in their choices compared with younger adults.
C) Older adults perform well when decisions involve high risks.
D) Older adults' decision-making skills are more likely to be unaffected by age-related decreases in memory.

Question 47

Which of the following is true of executive function?

A) It involves managing one's thoughts to engage in goal-directed behavior and to exercise self-control.
B) It is unrelated to health, emotion regulation, and social functioning.
C) It consists of a number of low-level cognitive processes.
D) It shows considerable increase in late adulthood and is strongly linked to increase in working memory.

Question 48

Which of the following is true of implicit memory?

A) It is also known as declarative memory.
B) It is more likely to be adversely affected by aging than explicit memory is.
C) It involves skills and routine procedures that are performed automatically.
D) It is memory of facts and experiences that individuals consciously know and can state.

Question 49

Venette recounts a funny story that she had recently heard to her friend Clarice. Clarice tells her that she has heard the story before, and, in fact, she had been the one to originally tell the story to Venette. From the scenario, it can be said that Venette has poor ________ memory.

A) prospective
B) source
C) fluid
D) procedural

Question 50

Remembering how to ride a bike without having to consciously think about it is a part of an individual's ________ memory.

A) declarative
B) prospective
C) implicit
D) explicit

Question 51

According to research by Baltes and his colleagues, which of the following statements about wisdom is true?

A) Wisdom does not require experience, practice, or complex skills.
B) Wisdom increases dramatically from midlife to late adulthood.
C) Cognitive factors are better predictors of wisdom than personality-related factors.
D) High levels of wisdom are rare.

Question 52

Why are older adults more likely to forget what items they wanted to buy at a grocery store (unless they write them down on a list and take it with them) than forget how to drive a car?

A) Perceptual speed declines with aging.
B) Implicit memory is less likely to be adversely affected by aging than explicit memory.
C) Source memory is more likely to decline with aging than prospective memory.
D) Explicit memory declines more rapidly with aging than implicit memory.

Question 53

Which of the following is true of the influence of education on the cognitive functioning of older adults?

A) Today's older adults were less likely to go to college when they were young adults than were their parents or grandparents.
B) Fewer older adults are returning to college today to further their education than in past generations.
C) For older adults with less education, frequently engaging in cognitive activities improve their episodic memory.
D) Educational experiences have no impact or are negatively correlated with scores on intelligence tests and information-processing tasks.

Question 54

According to research by Baltes and his colleagues, the time frame of ________ is the main age window for wisdom to emerge.

A) early midlife and late midlife
B) midlife and late adulthood
C) late adolescence and early adulthood
D) young-old and oldest-old

Question 55

Explicit memory is also called ________ memory.

A) collective
B) procedural
C) declarative
D) false

Question 56

Adeline, aged 90, still drives her car to the senior center every Friday. Last week, she tells her friends that someone they know from her church died. When they ask her for the person's name she says, "I can't remember her name. She sits near the altar and always has a hat on." Clearly, Adeline has better ________ memory than ________ memory.

A) explicit; implicit
B) implicit; explicit
C) explicit; procedural
D) source; trait

Question 57

Which of the following statements is true of prospective memory?

A) Prospective memory involves remembering to do something in the future.
B) Planning strategies are not associated with older adults' prospective memory.
C) Declines in prospective memory occur more often in real-life settings than in laboratories.
D) Age-related deficits occur less often in prospective memory tasks that are time-based than in those that are event-based.

Question 58

Which of the following is true of memory and aging?

A) Memory decline occurs primarily in explicit, episodic, and working memory.
B) Successful aging means reducing the decline and adapting to it.
C) Memory decline occurs primarily in implicit memory or semantic memory.
D) Successful aging means eliminating memory decline altogether.

Question 59

________ is expert knowledge about the practical aspects of life that permits excellent judgment about important matters.

A) Enlightenment
B) Wisdom
C) Proficiency
D) Competence

Question 60

________ memory is memory without conscious recollection.

A) Implicit
B) Prospective
C) Source
D) Explicit

Question 61

Which of the following statements accurately describes the difference in language skills between older adults and younger adults?

A) A higher working memory capacity of older adults compared with younger adults improves their comprehension of sentences.
B) Older adults' speech is typically lower in volume, slower, and less fluent than younger adults' speech.
C) Older adults are less likely than younger adults to omit key elements, creating discourse that is more fluent and easy to follow.
D) When retelling a story, older adults are less likely than younger adults to compress discourse and more likely to improve the cohesiveness of their narratives.

Question 62

Which of the following can be attributed to giving Americans the option to retire?

A) the Age Discrimination Act of 1967
B) the deletion of mandatory retirement in 1986
C) establishment of the Social Security system in 1935
D) the extension of the mandatory retirement age in 1978

Question 63

According to Denise Park and Patricia Reuter-Lorenz, neurocognitive ________ involves the use of complementary, neural circuits to protect cognitive functioning in an aging brain.

A) scaffolding
B) bypassing
C) extension
D) regeneration

Question 64

The concept of "use it or lose it" is a significant component of the ________ model of cognitive optimization that addresses strategies to buffer age-related declines in intellectual development.

A) engagement
B) constructivist
C) peer-to-peer
D) social learning

Question 65

According to Phyllis Moen, which of the following statements is true of the life path that individuals follow when they reach their 60s?

A) Some individuals engage in volunteer work even before retiring from their career jobs.
B) Some individuals retire from a post-retirement job and go on to yet another job.
C) Some individuals who are laid off define it as "resignation."
D) Some individuals continue working even in poor health to avoid moving to a disability status.

Question 66

Which of the following is one of the best predictors of job performance in older adults?

A) cognitive ability
B) educational attainment
C) distaste for retirement/complexity of work
D) being married to a working spouse

Question 67

________ refers to extended verbal expression in speech or writing.

A) Narrative
B) Embellishing
C) Discourse
D) Characterization

Question 68

Mae is 87 years old. She is most likely to have difficulty in understanding a person when he or she

A) speaks slowly.
B) has a face-to-face conversation with her.
C) calls her on the phone.
D) picks a quiet place to have a conversation.

Question 69

In the context of work and aging, which of the following statements is true of older adults?

A) When older adults engage in complex working tasks and challenging daily work activities, their cognitive functioning shows less age-related decrease.
B) Employment gaps involving unemployment or sickness are associated with a lower risk of cognitive impairment in older adults.
C) Working in a job with a high level of mental demands is linked to lower levels of cognitive functioning before retirement in older adults.
D) For older adults who work in low-complexity jobs, experiencing novelty in their work is linked with a reduction in processing speed and working memory.

Question 70

A study reported by Lachman and others (2010) revealed that older adults with less education had ________ than those with more education.

A) lower interpersonal skills
B) lower cognitive abilities
C) higher incidence of mental disorders
D) higher distractibility

Question 71

The concept of ________ emphasizes that changes in cognitive activity patterns might result in disuse and consequent atrophy of cognitive skills.

A) multiple intelligence
B) "mind over matter"
C) terminal decline
D) "use it or lose it"

Question 72

In 2017, in the U.S., the average age of retirement was ________ for men and ________ for women.

A) 65; 67
B) 64; 62
C) 66; 64
D) 70; 72

Question 73

Which of the following has been linked to lower cognitive performance, not only in older adults but also in young and middle-aged adults?

A) hypertension
B) arthritis
C) cancer
D) congestive heart disease

Question 74

The concept of ________ emphasizes that changes in cognitive functioning may be linked more to distance from death or cognition-related pathology than to distance from birth.

A) terminal decline
B) terminal slide
C) cognitive shift
D) cognitive slide

Question 75

In the context of links between aging, the brain, and cognitive functioning, which of the following statements is true of older adults?

A) Compared with younger adults, older adults often show less activity in the frontal and parietal lobes of the brain on simple tasks.
B) The functioning of the hippocampus increases to a higher degree than the functioning of the frontal lobes in older adults.
C) Older adults perform better on tasks involving complex reasoning when neural circuits in specific regions of the brain's prefrontal cortex decline.
D) Older adults are more likely than younger adults to use both hemispheres of the brain to compensate for declines in attention.

Question 76

Which of the following statements about older workers is true?

A) Older workers have more accidents than younger workers.
B) Older workers have higher rates of absenteeism than younger workers.
C) Older workers are of considerably less value to a company than younger workers.
D) Older workers experience more job satisfaction than younger workers.

Question 77

Which of the following is one of the earliest symptoms of Alzheimer disease?

A) increased irritability and aggressiveness
B) word-finding/generating difficulties
C) decrease in ability to produce well-formed sentences
D) decreased hand-eye coordination

Question 78

According to a study conducted by Gow, Pattie, and Deary, which of the following is linked to less cognitive decline in late adulthood?

A) avoiding intellectually engaging activities
B) reading a sedentary lifestyle
C) retiring before the age of retirement
D) engaging in physical activity

Question 79

One of the most common language difficulties that older adults experience is

A) expressive aphasia.
B) stuttering.
C) making up new words that other people do not understand.
D) the tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon.

Question 80

On average, today's workers in the U.S. will spend ________ to ________ percent of their lives in retirement.

A) 1; 5
B) 5; 10
C) 10; 15
D) 15; 20