title: Influence of task-specific processing speed on age differences in memory.
abstract: Two studies were conducted to investigate the aspect(s) of processing involved in the hypothesized speed mediation of adult age differences in memory. Both studies involved a serial memory task in which information was to be recalled either in the original order of presentation, or in a reordered sequence. Results from both studies indicated that task-specific processing durations were slower among older adults than among young adults, but that the attenuation of the age-related variance in memory was nearly as great after statistical control of a task-independent speed measure as after control of task-specific speed measures. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that a substantial proportion of the adult age-related differences in memory is associated with a decrease with increased age in the speed of executing many cognitive processes, and not simply the speed of one or two specific processes.
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, Georgia Institute of Technology.
authors.forename: T A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Salthouse
authors.forename: V E
authors.initials: VE
authors.lastname: Coon
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology*; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology*; D011939:Mental Recall / Q000502:physiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual; D011930:Reaction Time; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis