title: Mediator-based encoding strategies in source monitoring in young and older adults.
abstract: Past research has examined the contribution of mediator-based encoding strategies (interactive imagery and sentence generation) to individual (particularly age-related) differences in associative memory exclusively in the paired-associates paradigm. In the present study, we examined young and older adults' mediator-based strategy use on source-monitoring tasks. Participants spontaneously used mediator-based strategies to encode about 30% to 40% of word-source pairs and were able to follow instructions to use the specific mediator-based strategy of interactive imagery; mediator-based strategy use was associated with higher source memory and explained variance in source memory. There were no age-related differences in the patterns of mediator-based strategy production and utilization. Age-related differences in source memory were explained by age-related declines in the ability to bind information in memory (incidental memory for digit-symbol associations) but not by encoding strategy production. Results underscore the importance of assessing encoding strategy use for understanding individual differences in source memory.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina, Greensboro, NC 27402-6170, USA.
authors.forename: Beatrice G
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Kuhlmann
authors.forename: Dayna R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Touron
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001245:Association Learning / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D019018:Imagery, Psychotherapy; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D014825:Vocabulary; D055815:Young Adult