Where in an ordered sequence of variables do independent age-related effects occur?
A series of regression analyses was conducted to determine which variables in an ordered sequence had significant age-related effects after control of the immediately preceding variable in the sequence. Independent age-related effects in these types of analyses are particularly interesting because they represent age-related influences that are not mediated through earlier variables. A total of 56 analyses are reported with ordered variables representing: (a) successive trials or sessions in learning; (b) progressively more intervening events during the retention interval of a memory task; (c) successively longer stimulus presentation durations; and (d) increased processing complexity. In most of the analyses a very large proportion of the age-related effects on later variables was found to be mediated through earlier variables in the sequence.
Salthouse
T A
TA
School of Psychology, Georgia Institute of Technology, USA. Tim.Salthouse@Psych.Gatech.Edu
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D003071:Cognition; D006801:Humans; D018782:Maze Learning; D008568:Memory; D008875:Middle Aged; D010153:Paired-Associate Learning; D012044:Regression Analysis; D014796:Visual Perception