Jack Botwinick

Speed Functions, Vocabulary Ability, and Age:

The present study investigated the relationship between verbal ability (as exemplified by Vocabulary test performance) and the ability to perform quickly (as exemplified by three tests varied in how important perceptual-integrative skills were thought to be involved in successful performance). In addition, the influence of Ss age on this relationship was examined. The WAIS Vocabulary, WAIS Digit Symbol, a pencil-and-paper Crossing-off test, plus a reaction-time procedure were given to Ss aged about 19 and about 71 yr. As the importance of speed relative to perceptual-integrative ability increased in successful performance, correlations with Vocabulary decreased. Principal component analyses suggested that Digit Symbol and Vocabulary performances shared equal variance in Cognition. Digit Symbol performance was also associated with Speed. While older age was associated with poorer performances, correlations among test scores were similar for old and young Ss.

Age differences in memory as a function of depth of processing

It has been proposed that the old do not process information as deeply as the young and therefore show poorer memory. This study manipulated level of processing via type of instruction given to subjects prior to the memory tasks (recall followed by recognition). Five types of instructions were employed: non-semantic, non-semantic + intentional, intentional, semantic, and semantic + intentional. Type of instruction affected the two age groups differentially on recall memory but not on recognition memory. The young and old recalled at the same level following a non-semantic (shallow) instruction, but parted ways thereafter; the young became disproportionately superior with semantic instructions. The addition of an intentional component to the non-semantic instruction benefited the recalll performance of the young to a greater extent than the old. The addition of an intentional component to a semantic component benefited the recal performance of the young, but not the old. It was concluded that the old have more difficulty than the young in dealing with two instructional components simultaneously when recall performance is under consideration.

Disparate time spans in sequential studies of aging

In several published studies of intelligence and adult age, a sequential design was used in which birth cohort and time of measurement were the independent variables in an ANOVA. The time span of these two variables were quite disparate; the cohort variable covered about 50 years whereas the time-of-measurement variable covered 7 or 14 years. It was demonstrated here that when time spans are disparate, even when all differences are attributable entirely to age changes, the F values typically will be larger for the cohort variable and errors in interpretations became likely. When cohort differences are statistically significant and time-of-measurement differences are not, the conclusion that age differences are generational and not due to age changes within individuals may be wrong.

Age differences in the effects of contextual framework and word-familiarity on episodic memory

The effect of contextual framework on episodic memory for words was investigated by asking young and older adults either to study a list of words for intentional recall, or to place the words into a story context, with subsequent incidental recall. The story context orienting task was no more beneficial for recall than the study task, and this was true for both young and old. Providing the story at both encoding and retrieval, however, was beneficial, but equally so for both age groups. Pre-experimental familiarity with word items in terms of cohort relevance was an important determinant of recall for both age groups.

Sensation and Set in Reaction Time.

Simple auditory RT was measured in relation to 6 levels of stimulus intensity (55, 60, 65, 70, 75, and 85 db) and 2 variations of regular preparatory intervals (0.5 and 6.0 sec.). The results showed the louder the stimulus, the quicker the RT; more equivocally, and to a lesser extent, as stimulus intensity decreases, the role of preparatory interval increases. These results were discussed in terms of the factors set and sensation.

Learning in Children and in Older Adults

ABSTRACT Learning studies based on children were integrated with comparable studies based on older adults. Classical conditioning studies were represented primarily by the eyeblink response with the processes of habituation and extinction receiving special attention. Learning based upon prior experience, including pretraining studies, was discussed giving emphasis to the distinction between learning (process) and performance (act). The problem of speed of response was examined in the context of paired-associate and serial learning; and finally, studies on incidental learning were reviewed indicating that typical growth and decline curves do not always apply to abilities across the life-span.

Stimulus persistence and age.

Stimulus persistence theory states that the effects of stimulation are longer lasting in the nervous system of the old person than the younger one. This concept and its relation to perceptual functioning and age was examined via two perceptual aftereffect tasks, the Spiral and the Waterfall. Twenty-four elderly adults (mean age = 65.5) and twenty-four young adults (mean age = 24.8) were each exposed to both stimulus displays, at four exposure durations: 45, 60, 90, and 120 seconds. Following the offset of each display, the duration of any apparent motion aftereffect was recorded. Although on the basis of stimulus persistence theory it was expected that the elderly would exhibit longer mean aftereffects than the young, no support for this hypothesis was noted. Possible explanations of these results and their relation to previous findings, in terms of fatigue effects and sample characteristics, are discussed.

AGE DIFFERENCES IN SELF-RATINGS OF CONFIDENCE

The hypothesis of decreased self-confidence in later life was tested by comparing self-ratings of 18 elderly and young adult Ss (Ns = 40, 18) with two questionnaires. When specific information was involved, old and young were similar with respect to confidence in the correctness of response. When judgments about oneself were involved, the older Ss indicated more self-confidence than the young, not less. The relation between age and confidence seems to be a matter of context.