Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 23, 2026

A Cognitive Paradigm to Investigate Interference in Working Memory by Distractions and Interruptions
Published on: July 16, 2015
The contributions of attention and working memory to age differences in concept identification
Marilyn Hartman1, Carrie Nielsen, Brea Stratton
1Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3270, USA. hartman@email.unc.edu
Abstract:
The contributions of attention and working memory to adult age differences in concept identification were examined in two experiments using the standard version of the California Card Sorting Test plus two modified versions. Older adults demonstrated global reductions in their ability to identify concepts whether sorting stimuli, identifying concepts used by the examiner, or generating concepts from abstract cues. Although age differences in selective attention and interference control did not contribute to these deficits, reduced working memory accounted for the age-related increase in perseverative errors. Our conclusions focus on whether impairments in working memory might fully account for age differences in concept identification.
More Related Videos
07:01Working Memory Training for Older Participants: A Control Group Training Regimen and Initial Intellectual Functioning Assessment
Published on: September 20, 2020
09:05Assessing Working Memory in Children: The Comprehensive Assessment Battery for Children – Working Memory (CABC-WM)
Published on: June 12, 2017
Related Concept Videos
Working Memory
Information Processing Approach
Cognitive Development During Adulthood
Impact of Schemas
Concepts and Prototypes
The brain organizes this information using concepts, which are mental categories grouping linguistic data,...
Revisionist Views of Adolescent and Adult Cognition