Predicting response of older adults to mnemonic training: who will benefit?
OBJECTIVE
To identify profiles of subjects who respond to mnemonic training for serial word and proper name recall.


METHODS
Analysis of J. O. Brooks et al.'s (1999) mnemonic training data using Quality Receiver Operating Characteristic (QROC) and longitudinal regression analyses (LRA).


METHODS
Community.


METHODS
224 community-dwelling adults 55 years of age and older who wished to improve their memory.


METHODS
Performance on serial word and proper name tests; performance on cognitive ability tests.


RESULTS
Although the QROC and LRA identified several common predictors (baseline performance, mental rotation ability, and paired associate learning), the QROC identified additional predictors and cognitive ability profiles associated with successful response.


CONCLUSIONS
Similar degrees of response to mnemonic training are associated with heterogeneous cognitive profiles. This finding highlights the fact that participants rely on a variety of abilities to derive benefit from mnemonic training and thus suggests different avenues from which to approach this training.
McKitrick
L A
LA
Stanford University School of Medicine, California, USA.
Friedman
L F
LF
Brooks
J O
JO
Pearman
A
A
Kraemer
H C
HC
Yesavage
J A
JA
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001245:Association Learning; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005544:Forecasting; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology*; D008875:Middle Aged