Lifespan changes in multi-tasking: concurrent walking and memory search in children, young, and older adults.
We investigated dual-task performance of cognitive (semantic fluency) and sensorimotor tasks (walking) in 120 children and adults from four age groups (9-year olds, M=9.52 years; 11-year olds, M=11.51 years; young adults, M=25.34 years; older adults, M=64.28 years; N=30 per group). Distances walked during 90 s and numbers of category exemplars generated in the semantic fluency task showed an inverted U-shape function with age. In line with general resource models proportional dual-task costs in walking also showed a U-shaped relation as a function of age with pronounced decrements in the youngest and oldest groups. Only 9-year olds showed significant costs in the cognitive task. Individual differences in single-task performance accounted for more than half of the variance in dual-task performance. Reliable age-related residual variance implicated additional factors particularly in children's developing multi-tasking performances.
Department of Psychology, University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Tiensestraat 102, bus 3715, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium. Ralf.Krampe@psy.kuleuven.be
Ralf Th
RT
Krampe
Sabine
S
Schaefer
Ulman
U
Lindenberger
Paul B
PB
Baltes
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology; D002648:Child; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008570:Memory, Short-Term / Q000502:physiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D011594:Psychometrics; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D012016:Reference Values; D012307:Risk Factors; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology; D055815:Young Adult