1. False. The majority of old people are not senile. Only about 2 or 3% of persons age 65 or over are institutionalized as a result of psychiatric illness (Busse & Pfeiffer, 1977). A series of eight community surveys found the prevalence of psychosis to range from 4 to 8% (Riley & Foner, 1968). Four studies did find large age differences in free recall of words, but two found no age differences in recognition of words in a list (Woodruff & Birren, 1975). Long-term memory is affected in about 20% of the aged (Botwinick, 1976; Pfeiffer, 1975). Thus, it is clear that the majority of aged do not have serious memory defects.

2. False. The majority of persons past age 65 continue to have both interest in, and capacity for, sexual relations. Masters and Johnson (1966) found that the capacity for satisfying sexual relations continues into the decades of the 70s and 80s for healthy couples. The Duke Longitudinal Studies resulted in similar findings (Palmore, 1974).

3. True. All five senses do tend to decline in old age. Most studies agree that various aspects of vision, hearing, and touch tend to decline in old age. Some studies of taste and smell have not found a significant decline, but the best evidence indicates increases in taste and smell thresholds with age (Riley & Foner, 1968). Studies of structural atrophy in the tongue and nose with old age support the experimental evidence of decline in taste and smell (Birren, 1959).

4. True. Lung capacity does tend to decline in old age. Both vital lung capacity (the volume of air that can be forcibly expelled in one breath) and maximum breathing capacity declines on the average from age 30 onward (Shock, 1962).

5. False. The majority of old people do not feel miserable most of the time. Studies of happiness, morale, and life satisfaction either find no significant difference by age groups or find about one-fifth to one-third of the aged score "low" on various happiness or morale scales (Riley & Foner, 1968). A recent national survey found that the majority of aged are as happy now as when they were younger (Harris, 1975).