Exam 2 adult development and aging

Sensation

Registration of physical stimulation by the sense organs

Perception

Subsequent processing and interpretation of the stimuli (higher order)

Common Cause Hypothesis

The link between sensory processes and cognitive functioning becomes stronger in older adulthood than it was earlier in life.

Cross-sectional data

Data collected from different age groups at one point in time, such as vision, hearing, and intellectual abilities.

Threshold

Minimum intensity of stimulation needed for a sensory organ to register its presence.

Sensitivity

Capability of responding to stimulation; the inverse of threshold.

Signal Detection

Takes into account sensitivity and decisional criteria, used in memory to assess hearing ability.

Reaction Time

Interval that elapses between stimulus onset and completion of response.

Premotor time

Time from stimulus onset to response initiation.

Motor time

Time from response initiation to completion.

Simple Reaction Time

1 stimulus and 1 response.

Choice Reaction Time

2 stimuli and 2 responses.

Complex Reaction Time

More than 2 stimuli and more than 2 responses.

Age-Complexity Hypothesis

The more complex the task, the greater the age-related gap in speed of response.

Flynn effect

The observed rise over time in standardized intelligence test scores.

Cohort trends

Differences in performance between individuals from different cohorts.

Classic aging pattern

Fluid intelligence is affected while crystallized intelligence remains stable.

Psychometric approaches to intelligence

Quantitative approach for measuring IQ.

Dementia

A decline in cognitive function that affects memory, thinking, and social abilities.

Age-related differences in attention

Decline in attention capabilities with age.

Longitudinal data

Data collected from the same subjects over a period of time.

Intellectual ability composite

A combined measure of various intellectual abilities.

Visual ability

The capacity to perceive and interpret visual stimuli.

Hearing ability

The capacity to perceive and interpret auditory stimuli.

Stimulus Persistence Theory

Age differences are caused by less efficient information processing.

Aqueous humor

Fluid in the eye that can be affected by conditions like glaucoma.

Glaucoma

Elevated pressure in the eye that affects peripheral vision, then central vision may be affected.

Pupil

Diameter decreases with age, letting in less light and requiring higher illumination.

Lens

Increased size and thickness with age, leading to presbyopia and yellowing that impacts color vision.

Senile cataracts

Cloudiness in the lens that creates glare.

Retina

Contains photoreceptors (rods and cones) and can be affected by macular degeneration.

Macular degeneration

Loss of nerve cells in the retina.

Useful Field of View (UFOV)

Visual area that can be recognized without eye or head movements, which becomes more restricted with age.

Motion Perception

Older adults are less sensitive to differences in speed and slower to respond to moving objects.

Depth Perception

Declines starting from the 50s.

Conductive hearing loss

Changes in the structure of the ear that raise the threshold for hearing, affecting all sound frequencies.

Sensorineural hearing loss

Damage or degeneration of cochlear hair cells, affecting specific sound frequencies.

Presbycusis

Type of sensory hearing loss common in older adulthood, associated with sensorineural loss.

Phonemic regression

Ability to hear sounds but difficulty understanding them.

Hearing loss & dementia

Strong relationship exists between hearing loss and the risk of developing dementia.

Lin et al. (2011)

Study showing increased risk of developing dementia correlated with levels of hearing loss.

Hearing loss risk factors

Includes common physiological causes, increased cognitive load, loss of grey matter in auditory cortex, and social isolation.

Hearing aids & cochlear implants

Treatment options for hearing loss, though many who need them cannot afford them.

Elderspeak

Communication style that tends to have a negative impact, characterized by reduced complexity of grammar, use of simpler words and more repetition, slower speech, shorter sentences, and patronizing speech.

Terms of endearment

Words like 'Honey' and 'dear' used in communication, often associated with elderspeak.

Communication Predicament of Aging Model

A model that describes stereotyped expectations that older adults cannot hear and are dependent and cognitively incompetent, leading to patronizing communication.

Reduced Attentional Resources/Capacity Model

A model suggesting that the quantity of processing resources declines with age, resulting in insufficient resources for cognitive tasks.

Inhibitory Deficit Model

A prominent cognitive aging theory explaining the decreased ability to filter out distractions and focus on relevant stimuli as age increases.

Frontal Lobe Model

A model explaining cognitive aging through changes in the frontal lobe, affecting decision making and processing of multiple streams of stimuli.

Processing speed

The rate at which an individual can process information, which can be influenced by age.

Letter comparison task

An experimental task where participants compare letter strings to determine if they are the same or different, measuring average reaction time.

Age by condition interaction

The effect of different conditions on processing speed, showing age differences in cognitive tasks.

Changes in the visual system with age

Alterations in the structure of the eyes, pupil, lens flexibility, and perception of motion.

Hearing loss and dementia

The relationship between hearing loss and an increased likelihood of developing dementia, linked to changes in hair cells.

Changes in visual perception

Alterations in visual acuity, motion perception, and depth perception as one ages.

Cognitive deficits

Declines in cognitive functioning associated with aging, explained by various models including the frontal lobe model.

Distraction task

An experimental task where participants read while ignoring distractor words, measuring their ability to focus.

Average reaction time

The mean time taken by participants to respond in tasks, which can vary by age and task complexity.

Older adults

Individuals typically classified as being in the later stages of life, often experiencing changes in cognitive and sensory functions.

Young adults

Individuals typically classified as being in the early stages of adulthood, often showing different cognitive processing capabilities compared to older adults.

Cognitive aging theories

Theoretical frameworks that explain the changes in cognitive function as individuals age, including the inhibitory deficit and frontal lobe models.

Visual system changes

The structural and functional alterations in the visual system that occur with aging.

Hair cells

Sensory cells in the inner ear that can be damaged with age, leading to hearing loss.

Attention

The cognitive process of selectively concentrating on one aspect of the environment while ignoring others, which can decline with age.

Cognitive implications of hearing loss

The potential effects of hearing loss on cognitive functions, including the increased risk of dementia.

Episodic Memory

Most vulnerable type of memory to aging.

Implicit Memories

Memories that remain relatively intact during aging without conscious awareness.

Information Processing Model

A model that discusses memory components and how information is processed through them.

Sensory Store

Momentary perceptual trace that holds information for a fraction of a second.

Short-Term Store

Primary memory that holds information in the same form it was entered.

Working Memory

Holds information and actively manipulates it, involving more complex processes.

Long-Term Store

Where information is held for an unlimited time.

Procedural Memory

Type of long-term memory for skills and tasks.

Semantic Memory

General or world knowledge that shows little age-related decline.

Central Executive (CE)

Selects and controls which information is temporarily held in working memory.

Age-related Decline in Memory

Modest decline in sensory store and little decline in procedural and semantic memory.

Tip of the Tongue (TOT)

A phenomenon where individuals are slower to access or find words, indicating age-related decline.

Encoding Phase

The initial phase where information is presented and needs to be maintained.

Set Size

The number of items presented that affects task difficulty in working memory.

Distractor Condition

A condition where irrelevant information is presented in different colors and shapes.

EEG and Event Related Potential

Techniques used to measure how many items are being held in working memory.

Age Differences in Working Memory

Older adults take longer to focus on relevant information compared to younger adults.

Unlimited Capacity

Characteristic of long-term store where information can be stored indefinitely.

Memory for Space and Time

Involves the ability to remember the sequence of events and locations.

Forward Span

Example of primary memory where information is held in the same format.

Backward Span

Example of working memory that involves actively manipulating information.

Age-related Changes in Encoding and Retrieval

Changes in how older adults encode and retrieve information compared to younger adults.

Momentary Perceptual Trace

A brief holding of information in the sensory store.

Significant age-related decline

Don't have capacity for how much memory can be stored.

Source memory

When answering questions on a test, you can remember when you learned that memory.

Temporal memory

Memory for sequence of events.

Frequency-of-occurrence memory

How frequently did an event occur?

Relative vs. absolute judgment

Absolute is episodic memory of a meeting happening; relative is just seeing them.

Episodic memory in older adults

Episodic memory is not vivid for them; their memories don't contain the same information.

Primary memory

Not manipulating that information, only holding memory in the same format.

Familiarity without episodic memory

Being familiar with a person but lacking episodic memory.

Different memory systems

Come from HM; Milner's results showed that memory uses different brain regions.

Hippocampus and memory consolidation

Can't perform memory consolidation without the hippocampus.

HM's memory of 1929

Could remember what happened in 1929, which was the stock market crash.

Impact of memory loss

Almost impossible to establish new relationships; hard to live unsupervised.