Effect of aging on prose recall

Abstract

The current study is part of a pilot project investigating the effect of aging on prose memory by comparing the performance on prose recall between 1st-year university undergraduates (n = 22, M age = 19.6) and normal healthy elderly (n = 12, M age = 76.3), both of whom were Cantonese-speaking Chinese. The mean years of education received were 4.8 and 14.0 for the elderly and university participants respectively. Instrument used was a short Chinese prose passage consisting of 119 words covering 35 idea units. The prose passage was read to the participants and verbatim immediate recall was recorded. Multiple scores including (1) recall accuracy, (2) temporal sequence accuracy, (3) within-context distortions, and (4) out-of-context distortions were obtained. Initial analysis showed that our elderly participants were significantly worse ( p < .05) than university participants in terms of recall accuracy, temporal sequence accuracy, and out of context distortions. Taken the differences in education level into account, the current data support the view that prose memory declines with increasing age as other aspects of memory do and exemplify the need for a comprehensive approach to assessing prose memory by focusing on both recall accuracy and processing efficiency.