Chapter 7

Question 1

Problems in Measuring the Psychological Status of Older People
Introduction

Answer 1

• Criticism of general assumptions and methodologies

Question 2

Confounding variables and the search for “pure” ageing

Answer 2

• No time limit, physical impairment
• Confounding variables: education, genetic inheritance, general health, level of exercise, level of motivation, practice of skill, sensory functioning, social networks, ses
• Participants from different groups
• Benchmark controls are needed
• Pure ageing : nature, cohort effects: nurture pure ageing could only be measured in isolated individual, maybe cohort effects are part of intellect
• Results are as much dependent on statistical technique than on data

Question 3

The relevance of findings to everyday life

Answer 3

• IQ and number of real teeth r=.7
• IQ poor predictor of actual performance in real life and on specific task
• IQ good for predicting trends
• Psychometrics
• Difference between young and old often 2SD like children with special needs old do not behave like children
• Measures for young ppl applied on old how far off
• Old may use other set of intellectual skills
• Development has no goal, no right path