Two generation tasks: Age -related differences in item and source memory.
Item
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Title
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Two generation tasks: Age -related differences in item and source memory.
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Identifier
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AAI9986337
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identifier
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9986337
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Creator
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Heth, Inbahl.
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Contributor
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Adviser: Wilma A. Winnick
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Date
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2000
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Psychology, Cognitive | Psychology, Experimental
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Abstract
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Young and old adults studied words under three encoding conditions: A baseline Read condition requiring the target word to be read along with its definition; a Generate Word condition which presented a definition as cue to word generation; and a Generate Definition condition where the target word was the cue for the generation of its definition. Elaborative definitions were presented in the Read and Generate Word conditions of Experiment 1, while shorter definitions were used in Experiment 2.;Memory for the target words was tested after a short delay. Following recognition of a word (item memory), participants indicated the study condition in which it was encountered (source memory). Results of both experiments showed that for both age groups, item and source memory scores were directly related to the amount of generative processing, i.e., lowest scores following the Read condition, and highest following the Generate Definition condition. Older adults benefited from generative processing at least to the same extent as younger adults. Age differences in recognition scores were greatest for items from the Generate Word condition and smallest for items from the Generate Definition condition.;Results of Experiment 2 showed that shortening the definitions reduced item and source memory scores in the older group but had no effect on the younger group. These results reflect the ability of young adults to process material in an elaborative manner spontaneously, making up for the missing details, while older adults depend on receiving elaborately processed material in the form of more detailed definitions. The Generate Definition condition was unaltered between the two experiments, and indeed yielded very similar recognition and source memory scores in both age groups, confirming reliability of procedures. Both experiments showed better source memory in the young compared with the old group, even when recognition memory was no different from that of young adults (Experiment 1), demonstrating that source memory is weaker than item memory and more susceptible to age-related decline.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
