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Published on: July 16, 2015
Divided attention, aging, and priming in exemplar generation and category verification
L L Light1, M W Prull, R F Kennison
1Department of Psychology, Pitzer College, Claremont, CA 91711, USA. llight@hal.pitzer.edu
Memory & Cognition
|September 13, 2000
Summary
This study explored how divided attention and aging affect cognitive priming tasks. Findings suggest that while attention impacts semantic tasks like exemplar generation, category verification remains largely unaffected by attention or age.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Human Aging Research
Background:
- Transfer-appropriate processing theories distinguish between conceptual and perceptual priming.
- Conceptual priming depends on processing at study, while perceptual priming is sensitive to study-test format changes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the influence of divided attention and aging on priming in exemplar generation and category verification tasks.
- To test predictions derived from transfer-appropriate processing theories regarding semantic and perceptual priming.
Main Methods:
- Experiments involved encoding tasks under full or divided attention, followed by test phases using exemplar generation and category verification.
- Participants included young and older adults.
- Modality shifts and levels of processing were manipulated during encoding.
Main Results:
- Divided attention affected priming in exemplar generation but not category verification.
- Priming effects in exemplar generation were comparable between young and older adults, irrespective of attention during encoding.
- Category verification showed no consistent effects of age, divided attention, or levels of processing, but was insensitive to modality shifts.
Conclusions:
- Priming in category verification appears to be independent of semantic processing depth and attentional manipulations.
- Findings challenge a strict perceptual basis for category verification priming, suggesting a complex interplay of factors.
- The study contributes to understanding cognitive aging and the mechanisms underlying different types of cognitive priming.
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