Normal cognitive ageing - Memory

Question 1

General ageing effects

Answer 1

Automatic processing; smaller age effects

controlled processing: larger age effect

Question 2

Larger age effects categories

Answer 2

Generally; more controlled porcessing

Working memory
- Computation span/reading span; 1.54 items less than younger adults

Episodic memory
- Mostely in controlled and intentional compared to auto and incidental

Prospective memory

Source memory

Question 3

Smaller age effects

Answer 3

generally: more automatic processing

Short term memory
- Digit span forward; 0.53 items remembered less than younger adults

Semantic memory
- knowledge about world in long term store, facts and vocabulary small age effect

Implicit memory
- Tested w word-fragment completion, category generation etc. Priming effect still sign. but little smaller in elderly

Procedural memory

Question 4

Troyer study

Answer 4

Asked to remember names based on;

• Physical processing (Stating the first letter of the surname)
• Phonemic processing (stating a word that rhymes with the name)
• semantic processing (creating an association with the name)
• intentional learning (trying to remember the name for a later test)

Older performed worse in the intentional learning condition, not in the others, effect biggest for recall (compared to recognition.

Performance goes up from 1 to 3 in both groups

Question 5

Positivity effect

Answer 5

In elderly, more positive items than negative items are recalled. Negative bias in younger adults

Question 6

Theories explaining memory effects in normal ageing

Answer 6

1. General cognitive deficits
   - Slower information processing (when controlling for info sproc. speed, 70% of var explained)
   - Working memory reduced, less effective coding
   - Attentional resources reduced
2. Less controlled effortful processing
   - Accidental encoding of irrelevant items
   - less self-initiated processing
3. Associative deficit hypothesis
   - More difficulty connecting items to other items or to the context
4. Structural changes
   - Particularly hippocampus and frontal cortex show volume reduction
5. Beliefs/health
   - Self-fulfilling prophecy (memory decrease w ageing) or health effects