单选题
Who takes care of the elderly in the United States today? The fact is that family members provide over 80% of the care that elderly people need. In most cases the elderly live in their own homes. A very small percentage of America"s elderly people live in nursing homes.
Samuel Preston, a sociologist at the University of Pennsylvania, studied how the American family is changing. He reported that by the time the average American couple reaches about 40 years of age, their parents are usually still alive. The statistics show the change in lifestyles and responsibilities of aging Americans. The average middle aged couple can look forward to caring for elderly parents sometime after their own children have grown up. Moreover, because people today live longer after an illness than people did years ago, family members must provide long-term care. These facts also mean that after caregivers provide for their elderly parents, who will eventually die, they will be old and may require care too. When they do, their husbands or wives will probably take care of them because they have had fewer children than their parents did.
Because Americans are living longer than ever, more social workers have begun to study ways of care giving to improve the care of the elderly. They have found that all caregivers share a common characteristic: They believe that they are the best people for the job. The social workers have also discovered three basic reasons why the caregivers take on the responsibility of caring for an elderly, dependent relative. Many caregivers believe they had an obligation to help their relatives. Some think that helping others makes them feel more useful. Others hope that by helping someone now, they will deserve care when they become old and dependent.
单选题
Who will most probably take care of the middle aged Americans when they need care themselves?
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】[解析] 事实细节题。题干的意思是：当中年的美国人需要照顾的时候，谁是最可能照顾他们的人?因为Samuel Preston的研究表明美国的中年人希望能够等到孩子成年后再去照顾老人，但是作为中坚力量的他们将来又靠谁来照顾呢?根据文中第二段最后一句话“their husbands or wives will probably take care of them because they have had fewer children than their parents did”可知，跟他们的父母比起来，他们的孩子很少，所以很可能是由另一方配偶照顾。
单选题
All caregivers believe that they can ______.
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 事实细节题。题干的意思是：所有的照看者都相信他们能……根据文中第三段第二句话“They believe that they are the best people for the job.”(他们相信自己是做这份工作最合适的人选)可知，应选择A项。
单选题
Which of the following is NOT a reason why people look after their relatives?