N. Meiran et al., Old age is associated with a pattern of relatively intact and relatively impaired task-set switching abilities, J GERONT B, 56(2), 2001, pp. P88-P102
Citations number
53
Categorie Soggetti
Public Health & Health Care Science","Medical Research General Topics
Journal title
JOURNALS OF GERONTOLOGY SERIES B-PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES
In three experiments, we examined the effects of old age on the reaction ti
me (RT) decrement associated with task alternation. Old age was associated
with increased miring-cost, which is the RT difference between two conditio
ns: mired-task, where trials involving two tasks were intermixed, and singl
e-task, where all the trials involved the same task. Old age was also assoc
iated with an increased switching-cost, which is the RT difference between
trials in which the task was just changed and trials in which it was repeat
ed. There was also indication of a slowed passive dissipation of task set a
dopted in the preceding trial. In contrast to these impairments, old age wa
s also associated with an almost intact ability to prepare for an upcoming
task switch. This ability was indicated by a normal reduction in switching-
cost due to an increase in the time allowed to prepare for the switch. We d
iscuss the implications of the results in relation to theories of task-swit
ching and to the underlying brain mechanisms, especially with respect to th
e effect of old age on the prefrontal cortex.