AGE AND PHYSICAL-FITNESS AS PREDICTORS OF SERIAL CHOICE RESPONDING - THE INFLUENCE OF TASK DEMANDS AND MOTOR FUNCTION

Findings from research examining the moderating influence of physical fitness on age-related declines in speeded cognitive tasks have been i nconsistent. This may, in part, be due to a failure to take into accou nt the varying demands placed upon individuals by different psychomoto r tasks. Additionally, it is rare for studies to consider the motor fu nction in relation to age and physical fitness. These factors were exa mined in a sample of employed men aged between 22 and 64 years. Multip le regression analyses identified statistically significant Age x Fitn ess interactions in respect to unusually slow latencies, or blocks, in choice responding at higher levels of task demand. Significant Age x Fitness interactions were also found in predictions of motor performan ce, although that variable did not account for all of the variance exp lained in psychomotor measures. It is concluded that Age x Fitness int eractions are most likely in situations of high task demands and that limitations in attentional capacity may underlie those interactions. ( C) 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.