Increasing age expectancy Life span biological maximum length of life that could be achieved under ideal conditions 120 years now Life expectancy average length of time the members of a population can expect to live How has the age of the U.S population changed in the last 100 years or so? How is it predicted to change in the next several decades? Individuals are living longer Convergence the decrease in the Black/White difference in life expectancyīlack males who make it to 80 have life expectancies almost equal to white males Crossover effect the eventual reversal of the difference in remaining years of expected life by is called the crossover effect What is demographic transition theory The demographic transition is a set of interrelated social and demographic changes that result in rapid growth and aging of the population.' (M&K, p.

Progressive aging of the oldest populationģ. Population of aging is driven by declines in fertility and improvements in health and longevity.Ģ. How culture and social institutions shape the pattern of individual lives List 3 reasons why population aging is important 1.Ways in which a person's life has been synchronized with family members' lives across time.The sequence of significant events, experiences, and transitions in a person's life from birth to death.My personal troubles cannot be solved merely as troubles but must be understood as public issues and problems of historyĮX- Social security was developed as a consequence of the Great Depression when poverty became seen as a public matter and not an individual problem Life course perspective Looks at how chronological age, relationships, common life transitions, and social change shape people's lives from birth to death. See how problems we see in our own lives are rooted in society Japan example- One of the least diverse countries and is going down hill because of it Sociological Imagination Suggests that the promise and the responsibility of sociology lie in giving individuals the tools to make the distinction between and see the connections between. Our generation has a character of living in fear and uncertainty because of the 9-11 attacks Heterogeneity Extent to which older individuals are different from each other Diversity Patterns of difference across groups of people in different social locations Each generation has its own identity but it can be easy and dangerous to over generalize Each generation reacts to its social and historic time, sharing these experiences gives each generation character

Generation is a combination of a state of mind and an age grouping.

Generational consciousness arose from being exposed to the same kinds of experiences and historical events in a common social and political environment.

Inevitable Detour by S.R. Grey