Response inhibition and everyday memory complaints in older adult women.
OBJECTIVE
To explore the association of executive functions to the everyday memory complaints of healthy older adults.


METHODS
Ninety-nine community-dwelling women aged 60 and above were administered a battery that included neuropsychological tests of executive functions and memory, along with self-report measures of everyday memory complaints, depression, and anxiety.


RESULTS
Multivariate regression analyses revealed that a measure of response inhibition (Stroop Color-Word) accounted for unique variance in predicting memory complaints above and beyond measures of episodic memory, depression, and anxiety. Depression, however, accounted for the largest variance in memory complaints.


CONCLUSIONS
Higher frequency of everyday memory complaints among older adults was associated with decreased response inhibition independent of episodic memory and affective state. Further research is needed to understand the interrelationships among these and other predictors of everyday memory complaints.
Potter
Guy G
GG
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27701, USA. guy.potter@duke.edu
Hartman
Marilyn
M
D000339:Affect; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D007266:Inhibition, Psychological; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales