Aging and prose memory: tests of the resource-deficit hypothesis

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Neuroscience of Aging

Background:

• Age-related declines in cognitive function are well-documented.
• Processing resources are hypothesized to underlie age differences in memory tasks.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if age differences in prose recall are mediated by processing resource limitations.
• To examine the impact of taxing processing resources on prose recall in younger and older adults.

Main Methods:

• Two experiments manipulated topic familiarity, text length, and presentation speed.
• Measures of processing resources were collected.
• Prose recall was assessed in younger and older adults.

Main Results:

• Recall was lower in older adults, but age differences did not increase with manipulations.
• Experimental manipulations affected recall quality more in older adults.
• Processing resource measures partially explained age-related variance in recall.

Conclusions:

• The findings do not fully support the resource-deficit hypothesis for prose recall.
• Other factors beyond measured processing resources may explain age differences in recall.