Executive function across the life span

The development and determinants of executive function (EF) were studied in children (mean age=8.8 years), young adults ( M=22.3 years), and elderly adults ( M=71.1 years). EF was indexed by perseverative responding on two bidimensional sorting tasks (Visually Cued Color-Shape task and Auditorily Cu...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Acta psychologica 2004-02, Vol.115 (2), p.167-183
Main Authors: Zelazo, Philip David, Craik, Fergus I.M, Booth, Laura
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Aged
Ageing
Child
Consciousness
Cues
Executive functions
Female
Human Development
Humans
Lifespan
Male
Memory
Psychomotor Performance
Regression Analysis
Task-switching
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Summary:The development and determinants of executive function (EF) were studied in children (mean age=8.8 years), young adults ( M=22.3 years), and elderly adults ( M=71.1 years). EF was indexed by perseverative responding on two bidimensional sorting tasks (Visually Cued Color-Shape task and Auditorily Cued Number-Numeral task), and age-related changes in EF were considered in relation to estimates of conscious vs. unconscious memory that were obtained using the process dissociation procedure (PDP). Results revealed the rise and fall of EF across the life span, with significant quadratic trends found for performance on both sorting tasks and for the conscious recollection component (C) of the PDP task. Regression analyses indicated that PDP estimates of conscious memory accounted for variation in performance on the visual sorting task, but not on the auditory sorting task. The findings are discussed in terms of their implications for hierarchical models of EF and its development.
ISSN:0001-6918
1873-6297
DOI:10.1016/j.actpsy.2003.12.005