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Published on: February 14, 2014
Aging and response inhibition: Normative data for the Victoria Stroop Test
Angela K Troyer1, Larry Leach, Esther Strauss
1Psychology Department, Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. atroyer@baycrest.org
Summary
Cognitive slowing in older adults is not the sole cause of Stroop task difficulties. The Victoria Stroop Test reveals age-related declines in response inhibition and accuracy.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Gerontology
Background:
- Aging is associated with increased difficulty in response inhibition.
- Controversy exists whether Stroop task interference reflects response inhibition deficits or generalized cognitive slowing.
- The Victoria Stroop Test (VST) offers a brief, reliable measure of Stroop performance.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the association between age and VST interference measures in healthy adults.
- To determine if age-related Stroop interference is explained by cognitive slowing.
- To calculate normative data for the VST.
Main Methods:
- 272 healthy adults aged 18-94 participated.
- Performance on the Victoria Stroop Test was analyzed.
- Interference scores were corrected for baseline slowing.
Main Results:
- Age correlated negatively with speed across all VST trials.
- Age remained highly correlated with interference scores after correcting for slowing.
- Older age positively correlated with errors on the interference trial, indicating decreased accuracy.
Conclusions:
- Increased Stroop task interference with age is not solely due to cognitive slowing.
- Findings suggest age-related declines in response inhibition contribute to Stroop task performance.
- The VST provides valuable normative data for clinical and research use.
