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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 2, 2025

A Method for Investigating Age-related Differences in the Functional Connectivity of Cognitive Control Networks Associated with Dimensional Change Card Sort Performance

A Method for Investigating Age-related Differences in the Functional Connectivity of Cognitive Control Networks Associated with Dimensional Change Card Sort Performance

Published on: May 7, 2014

Task difficulty modulates age-related differences in functional connectivity during word production.

Haoyun Zhang¹, Michele T Diaz²

¹University of Macau, Taipa, Macau; The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16801, USA.

Brain and Language

|April 16, 2023

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Older adults exhibit reduced language network connectivity and less segregation, especially under higher task difficulty, indicating less efficient neural processing compared to younger adults.

Keywords:

Aging Functional connectivity Language production Task difficulty

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An Experimental Paradigm for Measuring the Effects of Ageing on Sentence Processing

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Published on: October 25, 2019

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Cognitive Psychology
Linguistics

Background:

Language production difficulties are common in older adults, but the underlying neural mechanisms remain unclear.
Understanding age-related changes in neural networks involved in language is crucial for cognitive health research.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the neural bases of age-related differences in word-level language production.
To examine how task difficulty modulates functional connectivity within the language network in older versus younger adults.

Main Methods:

Utilized an English phonological Go/No-Go picture naming task with manipulated trial difficulty.
Analyzed task-based functional connectivity within the language network.
Compared behavioral performance and neural connectivity between younger and older adult groups.

Main Results:

Older adults performed worse and showed greater sensitivity to task difficulty than younger adults.
Older adults exhibited lower within-language network connectivity compared to younger adults.
The language network in older adults became less segregated with increasing task difficulty.

Conclusions:

Findings support the Compensation-Related Utilization of Neural Circuits Hypothesis.
Suggests that neural networks become less specified and efficient with increased task difficulty, particularly in older adults.
Highlights age-related dedifferentiation in neural processing during demanding language tasks.