Sociology Exam Study Notes

• The number of elderly people (people over 65) is increasing more than twice as fast as the population as a whole
• In 2011, 14.8% of the population was 65 or older
• By 2041, 23.8% of the population will be 65 or older
• Life expectancy in Canada has doubled in just over a century
• The largest populations of elderly people are all on the East Coast
• Population aging characterizes some parts of Canada more than others
• The birth rate in Canada (in all but the baby boom years) has been falling for more than a century
• This is a trend in industrialized countries
• Children are an economic liability to families in industrial societies

  As more women achieve higher education, work outside the home, and commit to careers, they choose to have fewer children
• At the beginning of the 1900s, life expectancy was 50.2 years for women and 47.2 years for men
• People born after 2007 now expect 83 years for women and 79 years for men
• This is the result of medical advances
• People older than 85 are already more than 20 times more numerous than they were at the beginning of the twentieth century
• The proportion of non-working adults is about 10 times greater than in 1900
• The old-age dependency ratio: The ratio of elderly to working-age population will almost double in the next 50 years
• Ever-greater demands for health care and other social services
• Canada has advanced in alleviating poverty among the elderly
• Interacting with elderly people will become commonplace
• The elderly are now healthier and more active in the workplace or their communities
• Reduced age segregation will lead to greater familiarity and fewer negative stereotypes
• Two cohorts of elderly people

  • Young elderly; 65-74 years: autonomous, with good health and financial security, likely to be living as couples
  • Older elderly; 75+ years: likely to be dependent on others because of health and money problems
• Women outnumber men in both cohorts due to greater longevity
• Gerontology


  The study of aging and elderly people
• Biological changes with aging

  • Wrinkles
  • Loss of vitality
  • Chronic illnesses
  • Dementias: cognitive impairment, loss of memory
• Health becomes more fragile with advancing age but the vast majority of elderly are not disabled by their physical condition
• The ability to learn new material and think quickly declines after around the age of 70
• The ability to apply familiar ideas holds steady with advancing age
• The capacity for thoughtful reflection increases
• By about 1900 longevity had been extended to about age 50 in North America and Western Europe
• Now increasing affluence has added 30 years
• But the 1900 longevity is still the figure in many low-income countries today
• Most industrial societies do not attach much importance to their elders, pushing them to the margins
• Indigenous elders are highly respected
• Age stratification


  The unequal distribution of wealth, power, and privilege among people at different stages of the life course
• Age stratification in different societies

  • Hunter/Gatherer Societies: seen as an economic burden
  • Pastoral, Horticultural, and Agrarian Societies: the most privileged are typically older
  • Gerontocracy: a form of social organization in which older people have the most wealth, power, and prestige
  • Industrial and Post-industrial Societies: give little power and prestige to the elderly
• Japan's more traditional culture gives elders great importance
• In many Japanese corporations, the oldest employees enjoy the greatest respect
• A large majority of senior men and women consider themselves to be happy—especially if they and their partners are in good health
• People with integrated personalities cope best with the challenges of growing old
• Isolation is most common among elderly people