Meanings of health – investigation

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 075

Assess the extent to which socioeconomic and environmental determinants influence the health behaviours and outcomes of young people. (8 marks)

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Judgment Statement

Socioeconomic and environmental determinants demonstrate significant influence on youth health outcomes.
This assessment examines the magnitude of health disparities caused by socioeconomic and environmental determinants and the effectiveness of intervention.

Determinants and Health Disparities

These determinants have significant impact on creating health inequalities among young people.
Environmental determinants include remoteness. Rural youth may have to travel for hours to access specialist care, producing measurable health delays.
Socio-economic determinants can include poor diets where low-income youth face triple the obesity rates due to limited healthy food access.
These determinants can also work in combination to compound health disparities. For example, wealthy suburbs offering significantly more sport facilities encourage young people to be active whereas the opposite is true in poor, lower socio-economic areas.
This demonstrates how socio-economic and environmental determinants can work in tandem to create highly divergent health pathways.

Intervention Effectiveness

Current efforts show limited success in overcoming socioeconomic and environmental determinant-based barriers.
While programs exist, rural youth may still have to travel for hours to access specialist care, producing measurable health delays.
Environmental improvements prove moderately successful – new bike paths increase activity by 25% but can’t fully compensate for socioeconomic disadvantages.
Targeted interventions achieve adequate results in specific areas but fail to address systemic inequalities.
On balance, this proves interventions remain insufficient against powerful structural forces.

Overall Assessment

When all factors are considered, socioeconomic and environmental determinants exert major influence over youth health.
These forces create substantial, persistent health gaps starting early in life.
The assessment reveals an urgent need for comprehensive policy changes addressing root causes rather than symptoms.
Without systemic intervention, these determinants will continue producing considerable health inequalities across generations.

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Judgment Statement

Socioeconomic and environmental determinants demonstrate significant influence on youth health outcomes.
This assessment examines the magnitude of health disparities caused by socioeconomic and environmental determinants and the effectiveness of intervention.

Determinants and Health Disparities

These determinants have significant impact on creating health inequalities among young people.
Environmental determinants include remoteness. Rural youth may have to travel for hours to access specialist care, producing measurable health delays.
Socio-economic determinants can include poor diets where low-income youth face triple the obesity rates due to limited healthy food access.
These determinants can also work in combination to compound health disparities. For example, wealthy suburbs offering significantly more sport facilities encourage young people to be active whereas the opposite is true in poor, lower socio-economic areas.
This demonstrates how socio-economic and environmental determinants can work in tandem to create highly divergent health pathways.

Intervention Effectiveness

Current efforts show limited success in overcoming socioeconomic and environmental determinant-based barriers.
While programs exist, rural youth may still have to travel for hours to access specialist care, producing measurable health delays.
Environmental improvements prove moderately successful – new bike paths increase activity by 25% but can’t fully compensate for socioeconomic disadvantages.
Targeted interventions achieve adequate results in specific areas but fail to address systemic inequalities.
On balance, this proves interventions remain insufficient against powerful structural forces.

Overall Assessment

When all factors are considered, socioeconomic and environmental determinants exert major influence over youth health.
These forces create substantial, persistent health gaps starting early in life.
The assessment reveals an urgent need for comprehensive policy changes addressing root causes rather than symptoms.
Without systemic intervention, these determinants will continue producing considerable health inequalities across generations.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 74

Describe how the determinants of health can impact a young person's meaning of health. (5 marks)

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Biomedical factors like physical impairments affect young people’s ability to engage in physical activity, influencing their perception of health as primarily physical.
Socioeconomic factors such as family income can determine access to quality nutrition and sports participation, shaping young people’s understanding of what constitutes good health.
Environmental determinants, particularly geographic location, impacts young people in rural areas who face barriers accessing healthcare. This leads to them valuing proximity to support as part of their health definition.
Broad features of society including cultural norms and media influence create expectations around body image that young people internalise in their health definitions.
Health behaviours established in youth, including physical activity and dietary habits, are often a result of young people’s underlying values and beliefs, which in turn influence how they conceptualise health.
The interrelationship between determinants creates compound effects – for example, a young person with low socioeconomic status living in a remote area faces multiple barriers that collectively shape their health perspective.

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Biomedical factors like physical impairments affect young people’s ability to engage in physical activity, influencing their perception of health as primarily physical.
Socioeconomic factors such as family income can determine access to quality nutrition and sports participation, shaping young people’s understanding of what constitutes good health.
Environmental determinants, particularly geographic location, impacts young people in rural areas who face barriers accessing healthcare. This leads to them valuing proximity to support as part of their health definition.
Broad features of society including cultural norms and media influence create expectations around body image that young people internalise in their health definitions.
Health behaviours established in youth, including physical activity and dietary habits, are often a result of young people’s underlying values and beliefs, which in turn influence how they conceptualise health.
The interrelationship between determinants creates compound effects – for example, a young person with low socioeconomic status living in a remote area faces multiple barriers that collectively shape their health perspective.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 68

Research indicates that young people's definitions of health evolve as they move through adolescence.

How do young people's health priorities typically change between early adolescence (12-14 years) and late adolescence (17-19 years). (5 marks)

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*Cause-and-effect language that directly addresses the “How” (unofficial) keyword is bolded in the answer below.

Young adolescents (12-14) typically define health concretely through immediate, observable aspects like physical appearance and energy levels. This occurs because their developmental stage limits abstract thinking abilities.
As a result of cognitive development progressing, late adolescents (17-19) shift toward more sophisticated health concepts that include preventive behaviours, long-term wellbeing, and the integration of physical, mental and social dimensions. This demonstrates why maturity changes health understanding.
Peer influence on health definitions transforms from early adolescence, where fitting in often dictates health behaviours, to late adolescence. This happens when greater independence enables young people to balance social factors with personal values.
Biological changes during puberty initially focus younger adolescents on body-related health concerns. This process leads to increased autonomy in later adolescence, which allows broader consideration of lifestyle choices.
These elements work together to require different health approaches: concrete, socially-relevant messaging for younger adolescents versus participatory, autonomy-respecting strategies for older teens. This shows a clear connection between developmental stage and effective health communication.

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*Cause-and-effect language that directly addresses the “How” (unofficial) keyword is bolded in the answer below.

Young adolescents (12-14) typically define health concretely through immediate, observable aspects like physical appearance and energy levels. This occurs because their developmental stage limits abstract thinking abilities.
As a result of cognitive development progressing, late adolescents (17-19) shift toward more sophisticated health concepts that include preventive behaviours, long-term wellbeing, and the integration of physical, mental and social dimensions. This demonstrates why maturity changes health understanding.
Peer influence on health definitions transforms from early adolescence, where fitting in often dictates health behaviours, to late adolescence. This happens when greater independence enables young people to balance social factors with personal values.
Biological changes during puberty initially focus younger adolescents on body-related health concerns. This process leads to increased autonomy in later adolescence, which allows broader consideration of lifestyle choices.
These elements work together to require different health approaches: concrete, socially-relevant messaging for younger adolescents versus participatory, autonomy-respecting strategies for older teens. This shows a clear connection between developmental stage and effective health communication.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 67

Explain how gender influences the way young people define what is important to their health.

In your answer, provide specific examples of how young males and females might prioritise different aspects of health. (5 marks)

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*PEEL – Solution is structured using an adjusted PEEL method to show cause and effect: [P] State the cause/factor [E] Show how it causes the effect [Ev] Evidence demonstrating why/how [L] Reinforce the causal relationship.

**Language highlighting the cause-effect relationship is bolded in the answer below.

[P] Social expectations can help shape male health priorities.
[E] This can lead to males focusing on strength and athletic performance.
[Ev] This occurs because masculine ideals emphasise physical capability – young men prioritise gym workouts and sports achievements over emotional health.
[L] This shows a clear connection between gender norms and narrow health definitions.
[P] Female socialisation encourages holistic health views.
[E] As a result, females place a greater emphasis on balancing physical, emotional and social wellbeing.
[Ev] This happens when young women look at stress management and relationship quality as equally important as fitness and physical capability.
[L] These elements work together to create broader health perspectives.
[P] Media representations are important factors that generally reinforce gender differences.
[E] This causes distinct body image pressures for each gender.
[Ev] The reason for this is males see muscular physique as ideal while females face thin beauty standards, shaping each gender’s health priorities differently.
[L] This demonstrates why health definitions are specific to each gender and why they persist through cultural messaging.

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**Language highlighting the cause-effect relationship is bolded in the answer below.

[P] Social expectations can help shape male health priorities.
[E] This can lead to males focusing on strength and athletic performance.
[Ev] This occurs because masculine ideals emphasise physical capability – young men prioritise gym workouts and sports achievements over emotional health.
[L] This shows a clear connection between gender norms and narrow health definitions.
[P] Female socialisation encourages holistic health views.
[E] As a result, females place a greater emphasis on balancing physical, emotional and social wellbeing.
[Ev] This happens when young women look at stress management and relationship quality as equally important as fitness and physical capability.
[L] These elements work together to create broader health perspectives.
[P] Media representations are important factors that generally reinforce gender differences.
[E] This causes distinct body image pressures for each gender.
[Ev] The reason for this is males see muscular physique as ideal while females face thin beauty standards, shaping each gender’s health priorities differently.
[L] This demonstrates why health definitions are specific to each gender and why they persist through cultural messaging.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 59 MC

A researcher compared how young people from different socioeconomic backgrounds define health priorities.

Which combination of factors would most likely influence differences in these definitions?

1. Access to healthcare resources in their communities
2. Cultural beliefs and practices around health
3. Individual genetic predispositions to certain health conditions
4. Social media representation of health and fitness

1 and 2
1 and 3
2 and 4
3 and 4

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\(A\)

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A is correct because resource access shapes awareness of health options while cultural beliefs fundamentally determine how health is understood within different communities.

Other options:

B is incorrect because genetic predispositions don’t systematically influence how different socioeconomic groups conceptualise health.
C is incorrect because social media has less fundamental impact than resource access on how different groups define health priorities.
D is incorrect because neither genetics nor social media are primary determinants of socioeconomic differences in health definitions.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 58 MC

Research shows that young people's definitions of health often differ from traditional medical models.

Which of the following best represents how adolescents typically conceptualise health?

Primarily as the absence of disease or physical illness.
Mainly through their ability to participate in physical activities.
Through a combination of physical, social, and emotional wellbeing.
Predominantly through their body image and appearance.

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\(C\)

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C is correct because research consistently shows adolescents define health holistically across multiple dimensions rather than through any single aspect.

Other options:

A is incorrect because adolescents rarely limit their health definition to just the absence of disease or illness.
B is incorrect because while physical activity matters to many adolescents, they don’t generally reduce health primarily to physical function alone.
D is incorrect because although appearance concerns exist during adolescence, most young people recognise health encompasses much more than just looks.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 66

A researcher wants to investigate adolescents' experiences with physical activity and mental wellbeing. They have designed a study using online surveys with multiple-choice and rating scale questions.

Evaluate the validity, reliability and credibility of this data collection method for understanding adolescent health experiences. (8 marks)

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Evaluation Statement

Online surveys with fixed responses prove partially effective for researching adolescent health experiences.
This evaluation examines validity, reliability and credibility of a study using online surveys with multiple-choice and rating scale questions.

Validity

The method partially fulfils validity requirements for capturing complex health experiences.
The research involves a method that can gather large samples quickly.
However, predetermined response options fail to capture nuanced adolescent perspectives, especially for subjective concepts like mental wellbeing.
While strong in measuring basic activity levels through quantifiable data, it proves less suitable for exploring personal health experiences that involve deeper meanings.

Reliability

The survey approach inadequately fulfils reliability standards without proper testing and diverse sampling.
A lack of pilot testing increases the risk of inconsistent question interpretation across age groups.
Also, without demographic information about participants, findings cannot reliably apply to all adolescents.

Credibility

Single-method data collection severely limits credibility of findings.
Online surveys alone prove insufficient for understanding lived experiences of adolescents.
A critical weakness is relying solely on quantitative data when health experiences require qualitative exploration.
Evidence shows mixed methods combining surveys with interviews produce superior insights.

Final Evaluation

Weighing these factors, the data collection method described provides limited insight into adolescent health experiences.
All three criteria reveal significant weaknesses in capturing complex teen health realities.
The overall evaluation demonstrates urgent need for mixed methods approaches.
Implications suggest researchers must combine quantitative surveys with qualitative interviews to achieve credible, valid and reliable understanding of adolescent wellbeing.

Show Worked Solution

Evaluation Statement

Online surveys with fixed responses prove partially effective for researching adolescent health experiences.
This evaluation examines validity, reliability and credibility of a study using online surveys with multiple-choice and rating scale questions.

Validity

The method partially fulfils validity requirements for capturing complex health experiences.
The research involves a method that can gather large samples quickly.
However, predetermined response options fail to capture nuanced adolescent perspectives, especially for subjective concepts like mental wellbeing.
While strong in measuring basic activity levels through quantifiable data, it proves less suitable for exploring personal health experiences that involve deeper meanings.

Reliability

The survey approach inadequately fulfils reliability standards without proper testing and diverse sampling.
A lack of pilot testing increases the risk of inconsistent question interpretation across age groups.
Also, without demographic information about participants, findings cannot reliably apply to all adolescents.

Credibility

Single-method data collection severely limits credibility of findings.
Online surveys alone prove insufficient for understanding lived experiences of adolescents.
A critical weakness is relying solely on quantitative data when health experiences require qualitative exploration.
Evidence shows mixed methods combining surveys with interviews produce superior insights.

Final Evaluation

Weighing these factors, the data collection method described provides limited insight into adolescent health experiences.
All three criteria reveal significant weaknesses in capturing complex teen health realities.
The overall evaluation demonstrates urgent need for mixed methods approaches.
Implications suggest researchers must combine quantitative surveys with qualitative interviews to achieve credible, valid and reliable understanding of adolescent wellbeing.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 57 MC

A researcher is collecting data on adolescent health behaviours through an anonymous online survey.

Which combination of approaches best addresses ethical requirements when studying sensitive topics?

1. Obtaining both parental consent and adolescent assent before participation
2. Including only questions that parents have pre-approved
3. Providing contact information for relevant support services
4. Clearly explaining the limits of confidentiality in the consent process

1 and 2
1 and 3
1 and 4
3 and 4

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\(D\)

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Option 1 (obtaining parental consent and adolescent assent) is generally good practice but may not be feasible or appropriate for truly anonymous online surveys.
Option 2 (only including parent-approved questions) could compromise research validity and adolescent autonomy.
Option 3 ensures participants have access to appropriate support resources.
Option 4 ensures transparency about confidentiality limitations in the consent process.

\(\Rightarrow D\)

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 64

Describe THREE ethical considerations that are present when collecting data from adolescents about their meaning of health.

Include a way in which researchers can address each ethical consideration in your answer. (5 marks)

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Sample Answer

When collecting data from adolescents about health, researchers must get informed consent from both the teenagers and their parents.
- Researchers should make sure the participant (and parents) understand what the research involves and that they can withdraw at any time.
Confidentiality is essential, so researchers should keep all personal information private.
- Researchers should use anonymous surveys where possible to protect participants’ identities.
Researchers should also be careful that their questions about health aren’t too personal or sensitive.
- Where appropriate, researchers should provide support resources in case talking about health issues causes any emotional distress.

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Sample Answer

When collecting data from adolescents about health, researchers must get informed consent from both the teenagers and their parents.
- Researchers should make sure the participant (and parents) understand what the research involves and that they can withdraw at any time.
Confidentiality is essential, so researchers should keep all personal information private.
- Researchers should use anonymous surveys where possible to protect participants’ identities.
Researchers should also be careful that their questions about health aren’t too personal or sensitive.
- Where appropriate, researchers should provide support resources in case talking about health issues causes any emotional distress.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 56 MC

A researcher collected the following sets of data while investigating young people's health behaviours:

1. The percentage of adolescents who exercised at least three times per week
2. Patient identification numbers from a youth mental health clinic database
3. Daily caloric intake recorded by teenagers in a nutrition study
4. BMI measurements of all individual participants

Which combination correctly identifies all the quantitative data sets?

1 and 2
1, 2 and 3
1, 3 and 4
3 and 4

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\(C\)

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C is correct as all statements listed provide a numerical percentage that can be statistically analysed, which is characteristic of quantitative data.

Explanation:

1 – Quantitative data (numerical measurement that can be mathematically analysed).
2 – Qualitative data. Even though these are numbers, they function as labels or identifiers rather than measurements.
3 – Quantitative data (numerical measurements of food consumption).
4 – Quantitative data. BMI (Body Mass Index) is a numerical measurement calculated from height and weight that can be used for statistical analysis.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 55 MC

A researcher is investigating young people's meanings of health. Which of the following is an example of quantitative data?

A survey that asks each participant their postcode.
Interview responses describing what health means to participating students.
A survey showing the percentage of Year 10 students who believe mental health is important.
Written reflections from students about their personal health journeys.

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\(C\)

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C is correct as it provides a numerical percentage that can be statistically analysed, which is characteristic of quantitative data.

Other options:

A is incorrect. Although it provides numerical data, the data cannot be ranked.
B is incorrect as interview responses are qualitative data providing in-depth descriptions.
D is incorrect as written reflections are qualitative data providing descriptive insights.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 65

Describe the difference between quantitative and qualitative data in health research, providing an example of each data type that could be used to investigate the meanings of health for young people. (3 marks)

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Quantitative data is numerical information that can be measured and analysed statistically, while qualitative data provides descriptive, non-numerical information about qualities, opinions or experiences.
An example of quantitative data when investigating meanings of health for young people could be survey results showing what percentage of high school students rated their physical health as 5 or above on a 1-10 scale.
In contrast, qualitative data might include focus group responses where students give their opinion on whether “health means being able to jog 5 kilometres without walking”.

Show Worked Solution

Quantitative data is numerical information that can be measured and analysed statistically, while qualitative data provides descriptive, non-numerical information about qualities, opinions or experiences.
An example of quantitative data when investigating meanings of health for young people could be survey results showing what percentage of high school students rated their physical health as 5 or above on a 1-10 scale.
In contrast, qualitative data might include focus group responses where students give their opinion on whether “health means being able to jog 5 kilometres without walking”.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 62

Describe TWO methods of collecting data and what type of data is collected in each example. (4 marks)

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Answers could include two of the following examples:

Interviews

Face-to-face interactions where researchers ask questions to gather personal opinions and experiences.
Collect primarily qualitative data allowing for detailed explanations and follow-up questions.

Surveys

Series of consistent questions administered in person or online.
Collect both quantitative data (ratings, multiple choice) and qualitative data (open-ended responses).

Focus Groups

Guided discussions with selected individuals where a moderator facilitates conversation on a topic.
Collect primarily qualitative data through interactive responses where participants build on each other’s ideas.

Show Worked Solution

Answers could include two of the following examples:

Interviews

Face-to-face interactions where researchers ask questions to gather personal opinions and experiences.
Collect primarily qualitative data allowing for detailed explanations and follow-up questions.

Surveys

Series of consistent questions administered in person or online.
Collect both quantitative data (ratings, multiple choice) and qualitative data (open-ended responses).

Focus Groups

Guided discussions with selected individuals where a moderator facilitates conversation on a topic.
Collect primarily qualitative data through interactive responses where participants build on each other’s ideas.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 54 MC

What is the primary function of surveys in research methodology?

To gather systematic data from a target population
To conduct qualitative focus group discussions
To analyse statistical patterns in existing databases
To collect data in a face-to-face process

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\(A\)

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A is correct because surveys are designed to collect information systematically from a defined group of respondents.

Other options:

B is incorrect as focus groups are a different research methodology involving group discussions.
C is incorrect because analysis is performed after data collection; surveys are a data collection method.
D is incorrect as this describes observational research, not surveys.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 53 MC

A researcher is investigating young people's perceptions of health using a survey. Which of the following would be most important to ensure the reliability of the data collection?

Using open-ended questions exclusively
Asking the same questions to all participants
Conducting the survey only in person
Focusing only on quantitative measurements

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\(B\)

Show Worked Solution

B is correct because asking the same questions to all participants helps maintain consistency and reliability in the research.

Other options:

A is incorrect as closed questions are also valuable in surveys and help with standardisation.
C is incorrect as surveys can be reliable whether conducted in person or through other means.
D is incorrect as qualitative data can also be collected reliably through surveys.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 52 MC

When conducting research on the meanings of health for young people, what is the primary advantage of using a survey over other data collection methods?

Surveys eliminate all forms of researcher bias.
Surveys can only be administered to large groups.
Surveys are quick to complete and provide easily collectable data.
Surveys provide more in-depth responses than interviews.

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\(C\)

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C is correct because surveys are efficient for collecting data and can be completed quickly.

Other options:

A is incorrect as researcher bias can still influence survey design and administration.
B is incorrect as surveys can be conducted with individuals or small groups.
D is incorrect as interviews typically provide more in-depth responses than surveys.

HMS, HIC EQ-Bank 51 MC

Which of the following best describes a key difference between surveys and questionnaires in research?

Surveys are usually conducted with the researcher present, while questionnaires are typically completed without the researcher's presence.
Surveys can only collect quantitative data, while questionnaires can collect both quantitative and qualitative data.
Surveys are always paper-based, while questionnaires are exclusively digital.
Surveys are designed for adults, while questionnaires are designed for young people.

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\(A\)

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A is correct because surveys involve the researcher asking questions and recording responses, while questionnaires are usually completed independently by participants.

Other options:

B is incorrect as both surveys and questionnaires can collect both types of data.
C is incorrect as both methods can be implemented in various formats.
D is incorrect as both can be designed for any age group with appropriate language.