Final answer:
Older adults are generally less sensitive to pain compared to younger adults, influenced by a decrease in sensitivity to stimuli over time and individual differences in pain perception.
Step-by-step explanation:
Compared with younger adults, older adults are less sensitive to pain. This is reflected by research that suggests with age, there is a general decrease in sensitivity to various stimuli, a concept known as decreased sensitivity to an unchanging stimulus. Furthermore, there are differences in pain sensitivity among individuals due to factors such as the density of sensory receptors in various areas of the skin and gender differences, with many studies showing that women can tolerate painful stimuli for longer durations than men.