The aim of this study is to focus on the verbal stimuli of the Vocabulary subtest of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale -- Fourth Edition (WAIS-IV). To our knowledge, this is the first research to examine whether the abstractness/concreteness and the lexical category of the words in the WAIS-IV vocabulary subtest influence the ability to…

This study examines cognitive diversity through performance of four attentional tasks and a vocabulary measure in relation to age and level of education. Tasks were performed by 168 participants (aged between 45 and 91 years) who were grouped according to age and level of education. Multivariate analyses of variance were applied to Z scores…

Although increased age is associated with greater errors in spatial memory tasks, it is unclear if there are age differences in error types. To investigate this, 334 participants (ages 22-88) completed a task in which they remembered object locations across multiple study-test trials. Far and close error types were categorized based on the spatial…

A community sample of 431 adults (175 men and 256 women) ages 18 to 91 across three generations (young adults, adults, and older adults) were recruited for the current study. Participants completed a demographic and technology use questionnaire that ascertained their attitudes toward, and use of, various types of technology--such as cellular…

This article investigates whether computer use for leisure could mediate or moderate the relations between age and cognitive functioning. Findings supported smaller age differences in measures of cognitive functioning for people who reported spending more hours using a computer. Because of the cross-sectional design of the study, two alternative…

In this study, the associations between Internet use and the social networks of adults over 50 years of age were examined. A sample (n = 2284) from the 2004 wave of the "Health and Retirement Survey" was used. In regression models considering a number of control variables, frequency of contact with friends, frequency of contact with family, and…

Increased longevity coupled with inadequate savings makes retirement savings and investment research increasingly important. A policy-capturing method was used to examine the relative importance of 6 demographic predictors on the retirement investment decisions of 64 working adults. All predictors were significant predictors of the investment. In…

In this study, young, middle-aged, and elderly adults read two different history texts. In the "knowledge advantage" condition, readers read a history text about an event that was well-known to readers of all ages but most familiar to elderly adults. In the "no advantage" condition, readers read a history text about a political…

A 20-year longitudinal study was conducted to examine adult performance on practical problems. Effects of independent variables of age, education, and administration time were assessed on solutions generated and quality points earned. Younger adults generated more solutions than other adults in 1983, 1993, and 2003. Both younger and middle adults…

Tested the pegword system as an aid to memory in four age categories (18-30, 31-45, 46-59, and 60-90) using familiar sayings as stimuli. Results showed improved recall equally in all groups, although age had a pronounced effect on absolute recall level. No group reported significant spontaneous use of visual imagery. (Author/ABL)

Adults aged 18-34 (n=20) and 61-77 (n=20) read 4 expository and 4 narrative passages. Both groups read narrative more quickly, with greater recall. Reading times of older adults were hindered more by expository text. Regulation of understanding was affected by text genre, and ability to reread selectively was more critical to expository text…

Reports findings from a study of dislocated workers' (N=233) experiences with retraining after job loss including whether the experience differed as a function of life stage. Findings offered some support for the notion that interpreting a life experience, such as returning to school, is at least partially a function of life stage. (Author/ABL)

Attempted cognitive training of Raven's Progressive Matrices using guided self-discovery, but without directly providing strategies. Thirty-six older and 36 younger adults were pretested, underwent training, and were posttested. Found no significant difference in improvement between younger and older adults. Failed to find evidence for successful…

Explored connection between everyday activities of different aged adults (N=54) and their performance on prose recall task. Regression analyses showed that demographic variables of age, education, and verbal ability were best predictors of prose recall. Total time spent reading and other reading variables were also significantly correlated with…

Adults (N=309) aged 18 to 90 completed a survey exploring various aspects of reminiscence. Used analysis of variance and chi-square to assess differences in reminiscent behavior across age, sex, education, and social class. On several dimensions sex emerged as a more important variable than age. (Author)