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Updated: Jul 26, 2026

A Cognitive Paradigm to Investigate Interference in Working Memory by Distractions and Interruptions
Published on: July 16, 2015
Aging, cognitive resources, and declarative learning
K C Kirasic1, G L Allen, S H Dobson
1Department of Psychology, University of South Carolina, Columbia 29208, USA. kirasic@garnet.cla.sc.edu
Abstract:
A battery of cognitive tasks designed to assess information-processing speed, working memory capability, and declarative learning was administered to a cross-sectional sample of 477 adults ranging in age from 17 to 86 years. Results showed significant age-related decrements in all three constructs. A variety of structural equation models was fit to the results. The preferred model on empirical and conceptual grounds was one that showed (a) working memory capability as the most important mediator of age effects in declarative learning; (b) working memory capability as the mediator for the effects of general processing speed on declarative learning; and (c) differentiation among verbal, numeric, and spatial processing speed and between verbal and spatial working memory capability.
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