Abstract
A recent study by Ben-David et al. (2014) indicated that older adults process redundant targets with a larger workload capacity than younger adults, even though older adults exhibit generally slower response times (RTs). To investigate the organization of mental processes that underlie age-related differences, we conducted four experiments with redundant-target tasks. In a series of discrimination-type redundant-target tasks (Experiments 1–3), we replicated the age-related capacity advantage; however, the differences were eliminated in a detection-type redundant-target task (Experiment 4). Our results supported the distractor inhibition account, which suggests that age-related differences were due to less efficiency in attentional control to resolve the response conflict when making discrimination decisions. Moreover, we conducted a simulation using a Poisson parallel interactive model, which assumes an inhibitory interaction between two parallel channels that is a result of a limited attentional capacity. An analysis of the model's predictions indicated the two key findings that may account for the age-related capacity differences: the older adults (1) processed the redundant targets with a higher decision criterion (i.e., more conservative in decision-making) and (2) exhibited a greater violation of context invariance (i.e., less degree of controlled attention in dealing with the response conflict). The extensive modeling analyses highlighted the effect of a decline in attentional control on age-related differences in workload capacity.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 102280 |
| Journal | Journal of Mathematical Psychology |
| Volume | 92 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2019 Oct 1 |
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All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Psychology(all)
- Applied Mathematics
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An examination of age-related differences in attentional control by systems factorial technology. / Yang, Cheng-Ta; Hsieh, Shulan; Hsieh, Cheng Ju; Fifić, Mario; Yu, Yen Ting; Wang, Chun-Hao.
In: Journal of Mathematical Psychology, Vol. 92, 102280, 01.10.2019.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article
TY - JOUR
T1 - An examination of age-related differences in attentional control by systems factorial technology
AU - Yang, Cheng-Ta
AU - Hsieh, Shulan
AU - Hsieh, Cheng Ju
AU - Fifić, Mario
AU - Yu, Yen Ting
AU - Wang, Chun-Hao
PY - 2019/10/1
Y1 - 2019/10/1
N2 - A recent study by Ben-David et al. (2014) indicated that older adults process redundant targets with a larger workload capacity than younger adults, even though older adults exhibit generally slower response times (RTs). To investigate the organization of mental processes that underlie age-related differences, we conducted four experiments with redundant-target tasks. In a series of discrimination-type redundant-target tasks (Experiments 1–3), we replicated the age-related capacity advantage; however, the differences were eliminated in a detection-type redundant-target task (Experiment 4). Our results supported the distractor inhibition account, which suggests that age-related differences were due to less efficiency in attentional control to resolve the response conflict when making discrimination decisions. Moreover, we conducted a simulation using a Poisson parallel interactive model, which assumes an inhibitory interaction between two parallel channels that is a result of a limited attentional capacity. An analysis of the model's predictions indicated the two key findings that may account for the age-related capacity differences: the older adults (1) processed the redundant targets with a higher decision criterion (i.e., more conservative in decision-making) and (2) exhibited a greater violation of context invariance (i.e., less degree of controlled attention in dealing with the response conflict). The extensive modeling analyses highlighted the effect of a decline in attentional control on age-related differences in workload capacity.
AB - A recent study by Ben-David et al. (2014) indicated that older adults process redundant targets with a larger workload capacity than younger adults, even though older adults exhibit generally slower response times (RTs). To investigate the organization of mental processes that underlie age-related differences, we conducted four experiments with redundant-target tasks. In a series of discrimination-type redundant-target tasks (Experiments 1–3), we replicated the age-related capacity advantage; however, the differences were eliminated in a detection-type redundant-target task (Experiment 4). Our results supported the distractor inhibition account, which suggests that age-related differences were due to less efficiency in attentional control to resolve the response conflict when making discrimination decisions. Moreover, we conducted a simulation using a Poisson parallel interactive model, which assumes an inhibitory interaction between two parallel channels that is a result of a limited attentional capacity. An analysis of the model's predictions indicated the two key findings that may account for the age-related capacity differences: the older adults (1) processed the redundant targets with a higher decision criterion (i.e., more conservative in decision-making) and (2) exhibited a greater violation of context invariance (i.e., less degree of controlled attention in dealing with the response conflict). The extensive modeling analyses highlighted the effect of a decline in attentional control on age-related differences in workload capacity.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85072045450&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85072045450&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jmp.2019.102280
DO - 10.1016/j.jmp.2019.102280
M3 - Review article
AN - SCOPUS:85072045450
VL - 92
JO - Journal of Mathematical Psychology
JF - Journal of Mathematical Psychology
SN - 0022-2496
M1 - 102280
ER -