title: Top-down processing modulates older adults' susceptibility to noise.
abstract: The present study examined older and younger adults' ability to use top-down processes to mitigate the effects of display noise during simple feature, visual search. As display noise levels increased, older adults (age 60-74 years, n = 32) exhibited greater top-down search reaction time (RT) benefits (bottom-up minus top-down search RT), compared to younger adults (age 18-27, n = 32). Older adults' ability to mitigate the effects of noise was further assessed with RT variability, as measured by intra-individual standard deviations across trials. Older adults again exhibited larger top-down benefits (i.e., less RT variability) compared to younger adults, and more so when display noise was present vs. absent. These results suggest a sparing of top-down processes with age (Madden, Whiting, Spaniol, & Bucur, 2005; Psychology and Aging, 20, 317), and that top-down processes in older adults enhance search efficiency by optimizing signal-to-noise ratios.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Psychology , Washington and Lee University , Lexington , VA , USA.
authors.forename: Wythe L
authors.initials: WL
authors.lastname: Whiting
authors.forename: Camille H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Sample
authors.forename: Sarah E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Hagan
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D004192:Discrimination, Psychological; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D011930:Reaction Time; D014796:Visual Perception; D055815:Young Adult