RESPONSE LATENCIES FOR FALSE MEMORIES - GIST-BASED PROCESSES IN NORMAL AGING

Three experiments have demonstrated that age-related increases in both probability and speed of false recognitions for word lists depended o n the use of a gist-based memory strategy. When test conditions promot ed a gist strategy, both younger and older participants were as likely to falsely recognize a thematically associated lure as to correctly r ecognize a studied item, and both groups were equally fast in making t hese decisions. However, when test conditions deemphasized a gist-base d strategy, older adults were more likely than younger adults, and fas ter, to falsely recognize both strong and weakly associated lures. The se findings suggest an age-related increase in reliance on gist-based processing that may underlie age differences in false memory.