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Psychological Research
Gepubliceerd in:

01-01-2008 | Original Article

Do working-memory executive components mediate the effects of age on strategy selection or on strategy execution? Insights from arithmetic problem solving

Auteurs: Sandrine Duverne, Patrick Lemaire, André Vandierendonck

Gepubliceerd in: Psychological Research | Uitgave 1/2008

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Abstract

Younger and older adults performed an inequality verification task (7+6 < 15, Yes/No?) in a control condition and in a dual-task condition where they simultaneously performed an executive-component task. Arithmetic-problem characteristics were manipulated in order to test strategy selection (i.e., choice of appropriate strategies in order to improve performance) and strategy execution (i.e., performance of the cognitive processes involved in each strategy). Results revealed that strategy selection changes with age: Older adults mainly selected one type of strategies in contrast to younger adults who used several types of strategies. These age-related changes were similar in the control and dual-task conditions. Strategy execution also changed with age, as shown by larger age-related differences on hardest problems. These age-related changes were larger in the dual-task condition, compared to the control condition. This impact of executive components as mediator of age-related changes depended on general age-related slowing. We discuss these findings in order to further understand the effects of age on arithmetic performance.
vorige artikel Self-regulatory strategy and executive control: implementation intentions modulate task switching and Simon task performance
volgende artikel The role of unattended distractors in sustained inattentional blindness
Voetnoten
1
Since younger adults had significantly more years of education than older adults, the same analyses of variance were performed while taking into account individuals’ years of education as a covariate. Results on mean latencies replicated the main effects of age (F(1,45) = 26.34), the Age × WM Load interaction (F(1,45) = 15.20), the Age × Problem Difficulty interaction (F(1,45) = 5.33), and the Age × WM Load × Problem Difficulty interaction (F(1,45) = 3.84, P = 0.056). None of the other effects were significant on mean latencies (Fs((2), as well as on percentages of errors (Fs((3.2). Interestingly, the lack of Age × Split interaction on mean latencies suggests that age-related differences in strategy selection disappeared when the number of years of education was statistically matched between the two age groups.
 
2
Young and older adults seemed to vary in the selection of estimation and calculation strategies as a function of problem split. Therefore, analyses of strategy execution were run on small split problems only, in order to control for the type of strategies that both age groups used. ANOVAs were performed on latencies with a 2 (Age) × 2 (Load) × 2 (Problem Difficulty) design, with repeated measures on the last two effects. Results revealed significant main effects of Age (F(1,46) = 27.02), Load (F(1,46) = 39.13), and Difficulty (F(1,46) = 23.00), as well as significant Age × Load interaction (F(1,46) = 11.40) resulting from larger effects of age on latencies with increased demands on executive components. The Age × Difficulty interaction was marginally significant (F(1,46) = 3.39), P = 0.07), showing larger problem-difficulty effects in older adults than young adults, but the Age × Load × Difficulty interaction did not reach significance (F((1). This set of results suggests that the effects of age on strategy execution and the impact of executive components as mediator of these effects can be observed when data for both small and large split problems are taken into account because older adults use calculation strategies more often than young adults on the whole set of problems.
 
3
In order to control for age-related slowing, we also conducted hierarchical regressions analyses on indices of strategy parameters, using independent measures of processing speed as assessed by the average of z-scores on the three paper-and-pencil tasks (Salthouse & Coon, 1994). Overall, the results obtained from these analyses replicated results obtained from analyses on z-scores. First, individuals’ index of strategy selection was assessed by computing the magnitude of split effects for each participant. Age-related variance in split effects decreased after control for perceptual processing speed by 70% (from R² = 0.29 to R² = 0.09) in the control condition, and by 53% (from R² = 0.27 to R² = 0.13) in the dual-task condition. In both cases, age-related variances were still significant after control for processing speed (Fs(3,44)((5.5). These results suggest that the effects of age on strategy selection were partly but not totally mediated by decline in processing speed. Second, individual’s index of strategy execution was assessed using individual regression analyses on small split latencies and problem difficulty as predictor. Results showed that age-related variance in index of calculation processing decreased after control for processing speed by 85% (from R² = 0.06 to R² = 0.009) in the control condition, and by 97% (from R² = 0.03 to R² = 0.001) in the dual-task condition. Age-related differences in calculation processes were not significant after control for processing speed in any of the conditions (Fs((1). This suggests that the effects of age on calculation processes and executive components were totally mediated by decline in processing speed.
 
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Metagegevens
Titel
Do working-memory executive components mediate the effects of age on strategy selection or on strategy execution? Insights from arithmetic problem solving
Auteurs
Sandrine Duverne
Patrick Lemaire
André Vandierendonck
Publicatiedatum
01-01-2008
Uitgeverij
Springer-Verlag
Gepubliceerd in
Psychological Research / Uitgave 1/2008
Print ISSN: 0340-0727
Elektronisch ISSN: 1430-2772
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-006-0071-5

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