Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 26, 2026

An Experimental Paradigm for Measuring the Effects of Ageing on Sentence Processing
Published on: October 25, 2019
Sentence comprehension in older adults: evidence for risky processing strategies
1a Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences , University of Arizona , Tucson , Arizona , USA.
Unlabelled:
BACKGROUND/STUDY CONTEXT: Previous research has suggested that older adults compensate for age-related declines in sentence comprehension ability by reading more slowly. The purpose of this study was to investigate the hypothesis that older adults adopt a riskier strategy than younger adults, in which they rely on expectations based on probabilistic cues.
Methods:
Older and younger adults read late closure sentences in a self-paced reading task (e.g., "When the waiter served the woman the food was still too hot."). The subordinate verbs varied in whether or not they occurred in ditransitive constructions (served vs. kissed).
Results:
Older adults showed less evidence of processing disruptions at the ambiguous noun phrase (the food) than younger adults. At the main verb, the older and younger adults showed evidence of processing disruption in the same conditions, but the processing disruptions were greater in older adults.
Conclusion:
The results are interpreted as support for the hypothesis that older adults adopt "risky" strategies during sentence comprehension.
Related Concept Videos
Cognitive Development During Adulthood
Complementation Tests
Organisms heterozygous for different mutations are crossed pairwise in all combinations. If present on different genes, the mutations can complement each other by providing the missing...
Stereotypes, Prejudice, and Discrimination
Understanding Memory
Chunking
The principle behind chunking...
Language Development
The critical period for language acquisition suggests that the ability to acquire language is at its peak early in life. As people age, this proficiency decreases. Language development begins very...

