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Workers were
I
Reading 1 asked a series of questions concerning their
concepts of age. For example, they were asked
40 about subjective (the age people feel or believe
Questions 1-10 are based on the following they look), functional (the age that people see
passage and supplementary material. themselves), and organizational (age based on
job tenure) age. They were also asked questions
This passage is adapted from Charlotte M. Irby, "Older
workers-are they aging successfully?" an article
concerning their attitude toward aging, such as
published* in 2017 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 45 how they view their health and the amount of
time they have left in the future or "future time
A large percentage of the U.S. labor force is perspective."
55 and over or about to turn 55. Better known as From the responses to these questions, the
"baby boomers," these workers must now answer authors divided the participants into two groups-
Line the question: What is my optimal retirement age? 50 healthy and unhealthy. Then the authors went
5 From the inception of Social Security in 1935 a step further to determine who in these groups
until the Social Security Amendments of 1983, was aging most successfully. They looked at
the normal retirement age was 65. However, the different work motivators, such as development,
age at which retirees could draw full benefits promotion, security, and social life. These groups
was increased gradually from 65 for individuals 55 were then labeled as one of the following:
10 born in 1937 or later to 67 for those born in 1960
or later. Thus, with the retirement age extended, 1. Healthy agers-those who have high levels
many older workers are considering staying in the of development and promotion motives
labor force longer. (see themselves as very healthy) and feel
The extended retirement age is not the only more youthful
15 motivator to persuade older people to work longer. 60 2. Classic agers-those who have low levels
Several other motivators exist, such as a :financial of promotion and development motives
need or simply that workers like their job. Another (see themselves as having poorer health)
factor that they must weigh is whether they can and feel less youthful
be successful in their work as they age. In their
20 article "Who is aging successfully at work? A The authors went on to identify a smaller
latent profile analysis of successful agers and 65 subgroup of workers called organizational agers,
their work motives," Gregory R. Thrasher, Keith who had longer job tenures and were older than
L. Zabel, Reed J. Bramble, and Boris B. Baltes the healthy and classic agers yet had the same
address this uncertainty. To help older workers developmental and promotion motives as the
25 and their employers better understand successful healthy agers.
aging at work, Thrasher and his colleagues look 10 Thrasher and colleagues found that the
at several factors on the basis of the individual majority of older workers are aging successfully;
and his or her concept of aging. In addition, however, much of the success is based on the
from their findings, they also suggest ways in older workers themselves and their concepts
30 which employers can help their employees age of aging. The authors suggest that researchers
successfully at work. 75 performing future studies on the success of the
To determine if aging workers are working aging worker should consider looking more into
successfully, the authors began their research these individual subgroup differences. As for
using a "person-centered" or individual approach, employers, the authors recommend that they look
35 which examines the characteristics of individuals into ways to meet promotion and development
together and separately. The survey involved so needs that would address the motivations of
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to include less bureaucratic work and more travel
B) A worker who cannot leave the workforce at a
The main purpose of the passage is to common retirement age due to a lack of savings
A) offer a historical account of an overlooked social C) A worker who fears that retirement will lead to a
and economic trend. sense of isolation from friends and family
B) provide practical advice to those who face a D) A worker who believes that there will be further
specific health risk. changes to Social Security benefit policies
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are intellectually demanding?
Do you believe that you will
be alive ten years from now?
Yes:
No:
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Do you feel that you are in
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0 25 50 75 100
Percentage of Each Group
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II II
The recommendations from Gregory Thrasher and his Which of the following, if true, would undermine the
fellow researchers are based on the assumption that findings described in the passage?
A) workers of advanced age often face problems A) Elderly test subjects have been shown to provide
with productivity compared to younger workers. inconsistent responses to questions about aging
B) previous surveys had considered an insufficient when observed over the course of a few days.
number of variables for self-reporting. B) Researchers have identified at least one aging
C) few aging workers make long-term career plans. subgroup that can be distinguished from both
classic ager and healthy ager groups.
D) employers have an active interest in retaining
relatively elderly workers. C) A "person-centered" approach to sociological
research yields unreliable results for groups of
more than 200 people.
D) An aging worker may provide quantitatively
different responses when asked about subjective,
Which choice provides the best evidence for the
functional, and organizational age.
answer to the previous question?
A) Lines 19-24 ("In their ... uncertainty")
B) Lines 28-31 ("In addition ... work")
C) Lines 36-37 ("The survey ... 50 to 71 ")
D) Lines 43-47 ("They ... perspective")
•According to the graph, the highest uncertainty level,
in terms of percentage of individuals for the relevant
group, can be traced to the question of
A) intellectually demanding activity for the control
group.
The primary effect of the words "labeled" (line 55) B) intellectually demanding activity for the healthy
and "identify" (line 64) is to create a tone that is agers.
A) assertive, through dismissal of earlier systems. C) lifespan for the control group.
B) concerned, through response to aging stereotypes. D) lifespan for the healthy agers.
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The author poses questions in lines 1-2 and lines 9-10
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Response to Chatbot 2 (Human Inflection) A) anticipate specific responses that help to move
along a discussion.
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As used in line 14, "Advanced" most nearly means
A) well-informed.
f 25 B) challenging.
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2-minute mark 20-minute mark
D) enlightened.
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II II
As used in line 41, "share" most nearly means Which choice provides the best evidence for the
A) propagate. answer to the previous question?
II
Within the passage, the author calls attention to
software-based tools that are notable for their Which of the following statements accurately reflects
A) unpredictability. the information in the three graphs?
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II
What does the chronology presented in the first two
II paragraphs indicate about the funds linked to Social
Based on the passage, which choice best describes Security?
how Social Security benefits relate to children?
A) Social Security was simultaneously seen as an
A) Children are only eligible for benefits if they economic necessity and a political liability.
belong to families that do not have any reliable
B) No actual payments were issued in the year that
income sources.
the Social Security Act was signed into law.
B) Children represent a relatively small yet steadily
C) The complete Social Security administrative
growing proportion of all benefit recipients.
system took four years to put in place.
C) Children may receive benefits either due to
D) Social Security was designed to be regularly and
specific adverse circumstances or through family
radically altered over time.
connection to a beneficiary.
D) Children are more likely to be upwardly mobile
later in life if they receive benefits in times of
greatest financial need.
•Which of the following situations would NOT fit the
current structure of Social Security?
A) Social Security benefits represent a higher
II proportion of income for a lower-earning
As used in the first paragraph, the words "reset" and
individual than for a higher-earning individual.
"rewrote" help to portray Social Security as
B) Social Security benefits are marginally higher for
A) preferable to comparable programs.
a lower-earning individual than for a higher-
B) susceptible to further evolution. earning individual.
C) contested at the time of its emergence. C) A lower-earning individual and a higher-earning
D) transformative in its ultimate impact. individual pay the same Social Security tax rate.
D) A lower-earning individual and a higher-earning
individual both receive annually increasing
benefit payments.
is
2.5 " :>-. D) immune to economic and political instability.
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1935 1955 1975 1995 2015
Tax Rate:
- Individuals Covered: ••••• Which of the following is the most likely outcome
if the trends depicted in the graph remain consistent
from 1995 into the foreseeable future?
A) The Social Security tax rate increases; the
number of individuals covered increases.
Which choice provides the best evidence for the B) The Social Security tax rate increases; the
answer to the previous question? number of individuals covered remains
unchanged.
A) Lines 29-33 ("More ... paycheck")
C) The Social Security tax rate remains unchanged;
B) Lines 40-42 ("Qualifying ... saved") the number of individuals covered increases.
C) Lines 45-50 ("Benefit ... levels") D) The Social Security tax rate remains unchanged;
D) Lines 60-65 ("It's true ... children") the number of individuals covered remains
unchanged .
Shortest: D
Fastest:
Most Scenic: •
Most Cost- •
Efficient:
II
All of the following are mentioned by the author as Which of the sub-groups represented in the graph
being factors that affect route choice EXCEPT yielded results that are most different from those
across the entire 2014 study?
A) fuel consumption.
B) simplicity. A) Group 1
D) enjoyableness. C) Group 3
D) No group, since the sub-groups all yielded similar
results.
II
The example ofWaze primarily serves to
A) offer justification for the primary point of the
passage.
B) support the statement that follows the
• A driver who exhibits the behavior described in
lines 63-68 ("Landmarks ... two points") would
mostly likely be placed in which category present in
introduction of this example. the graph?
C) explain how technology leads to distracted A) Shortest
driving.
B) Fastest
D) posit a contrast with an earlier example of
C) Most Scenic
technology.
D) Most Cost-Efficient