Citation

Davis ET, Fujawa G, Shikano T. J. Gerontol. B Psychol. Sci. Soc. Sci. 2002; 57(4): 324-337.

Affiliation

School of Psychology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta 30332-0170, USA. ed15@prism.gatech.edu

Copyright

(Copyright © 2002, Gerontological Society of America, Publisher Oxford University Press)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

12084783

Abstract

The reasons that visual search may sometimes be difficult, especially for older adults, remain important research issues. This study investigated (a) whether age-related differences can occur in simple-feature search, (b) if so, whether slowing adequately accounts for these differences, (c) whether other perceptual/cognitive factors are involved, and (d) the role of perceptual strategies. The authors tested 15 young adults (ages 18-30) and 15 older adults (ages 65-78). The target was a red disc presented among red diamonds in an array of 16 or 36 items. The forced-choice staircase procedure emphasized perceptual processing while deemphasizing decision-making and psychomotor processing. Although perceptual slowing may affect older adults' search performance, the perceptual slowing model is not simple, and other perceptual/cognitive factors, such as spatial resolution and distractibility, also are implicated. Moreover, perceptual strategies involving perceptual grouping or suppression of distractors play a key role in explaining why search efficiency is actually better for the larger set size.

Language: en