Thomas M. Hess

Adult Age Differences in Dual Information Processes Implications for the Role of Affective and Deliberative Processes in Older Adults' Decision Making

Age differences in affective/experiential and deliberative processes have important theoretical implications for judgment and decision theory and important pragmatic implications for older-adult decision making. Age-related declines in the efficiency of deliberative processes predict poorer-quality decisions as we age. However, age-related adaptive processes, including motivated selectivity in the use of deliberative capacity, an increased focus on emotional goals, and greater experience, predict better or worse decisions for older adults depending on the situation. The aim of the current review is to examine adult age differences in affective and deliberative information processes in order to understand their potential impact on judgments and decisions. We review evidence for the role of these dual processes in judgment and decision making and then review two representative life-span perspectives (based on aging-related changes to cognitive or motivational processes) on the interplay between these processes. We present relevant predictions for older-adult decisions and make note of contradictions and gaps that currently exist in the literature. Finally, we review the sparse evidence about age differences in decision making and how theories and findings regarding dual processes could be applied to decision theory and decision aiding. In particular, we focus on prospect theory (Kahneman & Tversky, 1979) and how prospect theory and theories regarding age differences in information processing can inform one another.

Memory and Aging in Context.

Much research has indicated that aging is accompanied by decrements in memory performance across a wide variety of tasks and situations. A dominant perspective is that these age differences reflect normative changes in the integrity and efficiency of the information-processing system. Contextual perspectives of development, however, argue for consideration of a broader constellation of factors as determinants of both intraindividual change and interindividual variation in memory functioning. The validity of the contextual perspective in characterizing the relationship between aging and memory is examined through a review of studies exploring a variety of alternative mechanisms associated with age differences in performance. It is concluded that a more multidimensional approach to the study of aging and memory is warranted.

Mechanisms of motivation-cognition interaction : challenges and opportunities

Recent years have seen a rejuvenation of interest in studies of motivation–cognition interactions arising from many different areas of psychology and neuroscience. The present issue of Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience provides a sampling of some of the latest research from a number of these different areas. In this introductory article, we provide an overview of the current state of the field, in terms of key research developments and candidate neural mechanisms receiving focused investigation as potential sources of motivation–cognition interaction. However, our primary goal is conceptual: to highlight the distinct perspectives taken by different research areas, in terms of how motivation is defined, the relevant dimensions and dissociations that are emphasized, and the theoretical questions being targeted. Together, these distinctions present both challenges and opportunities for efforts aiming toward a more unified and cross-disciplinary approach. We identify a set of pressing research questions calling for this sort of cross-disciplinary approach, with the explicit goal of encouraging integrative and collaborative investigations directed toward them.

Hemispheric Specialization for VOT Perception in the Preschool Child.

Abstract Auditory evoked potentials (AEP) were recorded from the left and right hemispheres of six male and six female right handed preschool age children (4 years old) in response to stop consonants with VOT values of 0, +20, +40, and +60 msec. Neuroelectrical correlates of between category phoneme discrimination were found only in the right hemisphere. A second component of the cortical response was sensitive to changes both within and between the phoneme categories. Other AEP components reflected sex and hemisphere differences.

Motivation and representational processes in adulthood: the effects of social accountability and information relevance.

The role of motivation in determining age differences in social representations was examined. Adults aged 20 to 83 years were given an impression formation task that attempted to manipulate motivation by varying the characteristics of the target and the extent to which participants would be held accountable for their impressions. It was hypothesized that increasing age would be associated with greater selectivity in the use of available cognitive resources to support the construction of accurate representations. Support for this hypothesis was obtained when trait inferences and recall were examined. Specifically, older adults made more accurate trait inferences and recalled more information when the target was similar in age or they were held accountable for their impressions. In contrast, younger adults demonstrated similar levels of accuracy across conditions. The fact that these effects were observed when cognitive resources was controlled suggests a motivational effect that is independent of age differences in cognitive ability.

Aging and social expertise: The impact of trait-diagnostic information on impressions of others.

Two studies were conducted to examine the bases for age differences in the construction of social inferences. In each study, adults aged from 20 to 80 years were presented with an impression formation task in which they first read brief behavioral descriptions of fictitious people and then made a trait inference and likability judgment about each person. Results were generally consistent with previous findings in showing that aging was associated with an increase in the weighting of trait-diagnostic information in making trait attributions. In addition, the pattern of age effects was only minimally affected by situational factors that have been known to influence the use of trait-diagnostic information. The findings are interpreted as demonstrating an aging-related increase in social expertise in which knowledge regarding the underlying bases for the behaviors of others has been translated in specific procedural knowledge.

Attitudes toward Aging and Their Effects on Behavior

Publisher Summary This chapter provides an understanding of the nature of attitudes about aging and the mechanisms through which they influence the behavior of older adults. Negative attitudes about aging are pervasive in the culture and are reflected in affective, cognitive, and behavioral responses of individuals and groups of all ages. Evidence shows that implicit attitudes may be even more strongly negative than explicit ones. People do not view old age as a homogeneous category. Stereotypes of old age contain several different subtypes of older adults, many of which are negative, but also some of which are positive. However, most of the positive subtypes of old age have a subtle, negative evaluative component. Individual and situational factors affect the nature of aging attitudes and the probability that they will influence behavior.

Age and experience influences on the complexity of social inferences.

Age differences in social-cognitive functioning were assessed by examining sensitivity to the trait implications of behavioral cues when making social inferences. Adults (age range = 23-86 years) read target descriptions containing positive and negative behaviors relating to either morality or competence. Consistent with past research, middle-aged and older adults were more likely than younger adults to make inferences consistent with the trait-diagnostic implications of the behaviors. Age was also associated with increased sensitivity to additional cues that moderated the diagnostic value of behaviors based on simple descriptive content. The authors argue that these age differences reflect a type of expertise based in accumulated social experience, a conclusion bolstered by an additional finding that social activity moderated age differences in social judgments.

Selective Engagement of Cognitive Resources: Motivational Influences on Older Adults' Cognitive Functioning

In this article, I present a framework for understanding the impact of aging-related declines in cognitive resources on functioning. I make the assumption that aging is associated with an increase in the costs of cognitive engagement, as reflected in both the effort required to achieve a specific level of task performance and the associated depletion or fatigue effects. I further argue that these costs result in older adults being increasingly selective in the engagement of cognitive resources in response to these declines. This selectivity is reflected in (a) a reduction in the intrinsic motivation to engage in cognitively demanding activities, which, in part, accounts for general reductions in engagement in such activities, and (b) greater sensitivity to the self-related implications of a given task. Both processes are adaptive if viewed in terms of resource conservation, but the former may also be maladaptive to the extent that it results in older adults restricting participation in cognitively demanding activities that could ultimately benefit cognitive health. I review supportive research and make the general case for the importance of considering motivational factors in understanding aging effects on cognitive functioning.

Aging-related changes in the processing and retention of script information

Adult age differences in the processing of script-related information were examined in two separate experiments. In both studies, no age differences were observed in the pattern of reading times across different types of script actions, with all groups reading relevant actions faster than irrelevant ones. In addition, script structure had similar effects across age groups on both recall and recognition performance, with relevant actions being recalled better than irrelevant ones, and atypical actions recognized better than typical ones. In both cases, however, the younger adults exhibited better memory than the older adults for all types of actions, but the age differences in performance decreased as the relevance and typicality of the target information increased. It is suggested that aging is associated with greater dependence upon scripts in the encoding of scripted events.