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Memorizing while walking: increase in dual-task costs from young adulthood to old age
U Lindenberger1, M Marsiske, P B Baltes
1Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany. lindenberger@mx.uni-saarland.de
Psychology and Aging
|October 3, 2000
Summary
Cognitive aging impacts dual-task performance. Older adults show greater difficulty with memory and walking tasks, indicating increased attentional demands with age.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Gerontology
- Human Motor Control
Background:
- Aging is associated with changes in cognitive function and motor control.
- Dual-tasking, requiring simultaneous attention to multiple tasks, may reveal age-related declines in cognitive resources.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how aging affects the ability to perform memory and walking tasks concurrently.
- To determine if dual-task costs increase with age in both cognitive and motor domains.
Main Methods:
- Participants (young, middle-aged, old adults) performed a word memorization task while walking on tracks of varying complexity.
- Walking speed, accuracy, and memory recall were measured under single-task and dual-task conditions.
Main Results:
- Dual-task costs significantly increased with age.
- Older adults exhibited greater decrements in both memory and walking performance when performing the tasks simultaneously compared to younger adults.
- Effect sizes for age-related dual-task costs were substantial (0.98 for middle-aged, 1.47 for old adults).
Conclusions:
- Advanced age necessitates greater cognitive control for sensory and motor functions.
- Age-related declines in attentional resources impact dual-task performance, particularly in complex activities like walking while memorizing.