title: Relationship between control beliefs, strategy use, and memory performance in amnestic mild cognitive impairment and healthy aging.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Little information is available regarding the extent of strategy use and factors that affect strategy use in amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI). This study aimed to compare spontaneous strategy use and beliefs about the controllability of memory between aMCI and healthy older adult (HOA) samples and to explore the relationships between beliefs, strategy use, and memory performance for both groups.
  
  
  METHODS
  The aMCI and HOA groups each composed of 60 individuals matched for age and education. The Memory Controllability Inventory was used to assess control beliefs, and the extent of semantic clustering on a list-learning task provided a measure of spontaneous strategy use.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The aMCI group endorsed lower control beliefs and demonstrated poorer semantic clustering and memory performance compared with the HOA group. Although strategy use partially mediated the control beliefs-memory performance relationship for the HOA group, this was not replicated for the aMCI group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Despite the weak relationship between control beliefs and strategy use, and control beliefs and memory performance for the aMCI group, the strong relationship between strategy use and memory performance provides impetus for further research into factors that can be used as a means of enhancing strategy use in interventions for aMCI.
authors.affiliation: Address correspondence to Glynda Kinsella, School of Psychological Science, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 3086. E-mail: g.kinsella@latrobe.edu.au.
authors.forename: Rachel L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Hutchens
authors.forename: Glynda J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Kinsella
authors.forename: Ben
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ong
authors.forename: Kerryn E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Pike
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Clare
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ames
authors.forename: Michael M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Saling
authors.forename: Elsdon
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Storey
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mullaly
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rand
authors.forename: Samuel
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Parsons
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology; D000647:Amnesia / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D060825:Cognitive Dysfunction / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D056344:Executive Function / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology*; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D012649:Self Concept; D012660:Semantics
keywords: Beliefs; Memory; Mild cognitive impairment; Strategy.; Successful aging