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The Journal of Genetic Psychology: Research and Theory on Human Development Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vgnt20
Knowledge of Memory Aging Across the Lifespan a
b
a
Katie E. Cherry , Blakeley Blanchard , Erin J. Walker , Emily A. a
a
Smitherman & Bethany A. Lyon a
Louisiana State University
b
St. Joseph's Academy Published online: 12 Dec 2014.
Click for updates To cite this article: Katie E. Cherry, Blakeley Blanchard, Erin J. Walker, Emily A. Smitherman & Bethany A. Lyon (2014) Knowledge of Memory Aging Across the Lifespan, The Journal of Genetic Psychology: Research and Theory on Human Development, 175:6, 547-553, DOI: 10.1080/00221325.2014.982069 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00221325.2014.982069
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THE JOURNAL OF GENETIC PSYCHOLOGY, 175(6), 547–553, 2014 C Taylor & Francis Group, LLC Copyright ISSN: 0022-1325 print / 1940-0896 online DOI: 10.1080/00221325.2014.982069
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BRIEF REPORT
Knowledge of Memory Aging Across the Lifespan Katie E. Cherry Louisiana State University
Blakeley Blanchard St. Joseph’s Academy
Erin J. Walker, Emily A. Smitherman, and Bethany A. Lyon Louisiana State University
ABSTRACT. The authors examined knowledge of normal and pathological memory aging in a lifespan sample of 198 individuals who ranged in age from 13 to 88 years. Participants completed the Knowledge of Memory Aging Questionnaire (Cherry, Brigman, Hawley, & Reese, 2003). The authors hypothesized that high school students would be less knowledgeable about memory aging issues than college students, middle-aged, and community-dwelling older adults. Consistent with this hypothesis, response accuracy was lower for high school students compared to their older counterparts. Follow-up analyses revealed that high school students’ responses to a subset of questions that tap ageist views of adult cognition were less accurate than the other age groups, implying a response bias toward stereotypical images of memory aging. Implications for research and the design of instructional materials to increase people’s knowledge about normative changes in adult cognition are discussed. Keywords adult cognition, memory aging knowledge, normal and pathological memory deficits, age-associated memory impairment, Alzheimer’s disease, ageism
Lapses of memory in daily life happen. Forgetfulness associated with healthy aging differs from the more severe memory dysfunction that threatens independent living. Recognizing the Received December 12, 2013; accepted October 25, 2014. Address correspondence to Katie E. Cherry, Louisiana State University, Department of Psychology, 236 Audubon Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803-5501, USA; [email protected] (e-mail).
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difference between normal memory aging behaviors of later life and pathological memory deficits that may be signaling a serious medical condition is fundamental to understanding adult cognition. The Knowledge of Memory Aging Questionnaire (KMAQ; Cherry, Brigman, Hawley, & Reese, 2003) was designed to measure knowledge of memory aging issues for research or educational purposes. Half of the questions address normal memory aging, defined as changes in later life that reflect genuine maturational processes. The other half of the questions address pathological memory aging, defined as nonnormative changes in older adults’ memory due to physiological or psychopathological conditions, pharmacological agents, and/or dementia. Prior studies have utilized the KMAQ with mental health professionals and university students (Jackson, Cherry, Smitherman, & Hawley, 2008), social workers (Cherry, Allen, Jackson, Hawley, & Brigman, 2010), caregivers and senior service providers (Cherry, Allen, Boudreaux, Robichaux, & Hawley, 2009), and police officers (Hawley, Garrity & Cherry, 2005). These studies show that respondents from different backgrounds are generally more knowledgeable about pathological than normal memory aging issues. Other evidence indicates that older adults possess greater knowledge of memory aging issues than do college students (Brigman & Cherry, 2010; Cherry, Brigman, Reese-Melancon, Burton-Chase, & Holland, 2013; Cherry et al., 2003; Reese & Cherry, 2006; Reese, Cherry, & Copeland, 2000). To our knowledge, high school students’ memory aging knowledge has not been systematically examined to date. Metacognition and critical thinking in adolescence develop through and beyond the teen years (e.g., van der Stel & Veenman, 2009). These cognitive changes in youth influence perceptions of self and their understanding of others (Eccles, Wigfield, & Byrnes, 2003). High school students may think differently about aging than do college students who have had more time for developing metacognitive skills and gaining experience. Lack of research on younger cohorts’ knowledge of aging issues is a serious gap in the literature in light of present demographic trends that predict dramatic growth in the elderly population. To fill this gap, we focused on high school students and addressed the question of how their memory aging knowledge compares to college students, middle-aged adults, and community-dwelling older adults.
METHOD Participants A total of 198 individuals participated in the study. Adolescents were 42 students sampled from St. Joseph’s Academy and Catholic High School in Baton Rouge, Louisiana (M = 15.93 years, SD = 1.28 years). Undergraduates were 86 students enrolled in a psychology class in lifespan developmental psychology at LSU (M = 21.44 years, SD = 4.34 years). Middle-aged adults were sampled from two sources in the community where the first author gave presentations on cognitive issues in aging. There were 30 attendees at the annual meeting of the Louisiana Gerontological Society and 15 attendees at a seminar hosted by Alzheimer Services of the Capital Area in Baton Rouge. These participants did not differ statistically in age (p = .63), so we collapsed across the subgroups to form a single group of 45 middle-aged adults (M = 48.42 years, SD = 12.00 years). Older adults were 25 attendees at a lecture given by the first author on memory
KNOWLEDGE OF MEMORY AGING
549
aging hosted by a local Continuing Care Retirement Community (M = 73.56 years, SD = 11.18 years).
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Materials and Procedure The KMAQ consists of 28 true/false/don’t know (dk) items. Half of these items cover normal memory aging topics (memory organization/systems, episodic memory phenomenon, encoding or retrieval factors, mnemonics or memory strategies, individual difference, and contextual influences), and the other half reflect pathological topics (types of abnormal deficits, identification of abnormal deficits, mental health conditions and memory, physical conditions and memory, dementia/Alzheimer’s disease [AD]). Separate proportion scores are calculated for each participant by dividing the number of correct normal and pathological memory aging items by the total in each category (14) minus the number of dk responses in each category (Cherry et al., 2003). The stereotype score is based on four normal memory aging items which may prompt activation of ageist stereotypes because the correct answer contradicts commonly held misconceptions of senescent feeblemindedness (Hawley, Cherry, Su, Chiu, & Jazwinski, 2006). Topic scores were calculated separately by rubric (five normal, five pathological). Proportion scores for each participant were based on the number of items answered correctly within a topical rubric divided by the total number of questions minus the number of dk responses within the same rubric (see Experiment 3 of Cherry et al., 2003). Means appear in Table 1. Informed consent was obtained at the beginning of the session. The procedures used in this study were reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board of Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Students completed the KMAQ as an in class exercise. Middle-aged and older adults completed the KMAQ prior to the lecture.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Analyses of Proportion Correct A 4 × 2 mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) yielded a significant age group main effect, F(3, 194) = 18.25, p < .001. Pairwise comparisons (Tukey) confirmed that high school students’ mean (0.61) was significantly lower than the other age groups’ means (ps < .001). Older adults’ mean (0.78) exceeded the college students’ mean (0.71; p = .026), replicating prior reports (Brigman & Cherry, 2010; Cherry et al., 2003; Reese & Cherry, 2006; Reese et al., 2000). The question type main effect was significant, F(1, 194) = 11.88, p < .001. Mean response accuracy was higher for pathological (0.74) than normal memory aging items (0.69). The age group by question type interaction effect was significant, F(3, 194) = 11.61, p < .001. For middle-aged adults, pathological memory aging items were answered correctly more often than the normal memory aging items, but not for the other age groups.1 A follow-up ANOVA on the stereotype scores yielded a significant age group effect, F(3, 194) = 4.83, p = .003. Pairwise comparisons (Tukey) confirmed that high school students’ mean (0.66) was significantly lower than that of the
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TABLE 1 KMAQ Mean Proportion Correct as a Function of Age Group and Question Type Question type and
High school
Middle aged
Older adults
rubric
M
SD
M
SD
M
SD
M
SD
0.62
0.20
0.70
0.13
0.66
0.15
0.76
0.10
0.52
0.33
0.50
0.32
0.37
0.29
0.41
0.28
0.42
0.66
0.27
0.73
0.25
0.56
0.24
0.77
0.19
0.68
0.58
0.27
0.64
0.22
0.77
0.21
0.85
0.18
0.71
0.67
0.36
0.84
0.24
0.80
0.25
0.91
0.18
0.81
0.73
0.39
0.89
0.23
0.92
0.27
0.88
0.26
0.86
0.59
0.16
0.71
0.14
0.84
0.11
0.80
0.15
0.47
0.29
0.55
0.29
0.78
0.27
0.76
0.27
0.64
0.38
0.36
0.61
0.37
0.81
0.29
0.88
0.27
0.67
0.67 0.64
0.30 0.30
0.73 0.81
0.20 0.23
0.80 0.89
0.17 0.17
0.77 0.81
0.24 0.28
0.74 0.79
0.73
0.29
0.82
0.26
0.91
0.21
0.82
0.20
0.82
Normal memory aging (total) Memory organization or systems Episodic memory phenomena Encoding or retrieval factors Individual difference or contextual influences Mnemonics or memory strategies Pathological memory aging (total) Identification of abnormal deficits Mental health conditions and memory Dementia/AD Types of abnormal deficits Physical conditions and memory
Undergraduate
M
Note. Means for the mnemonics or memory strategies and mental health conditions and memory rubrics are based on two items. All other rubric means are based on three items. Entries in the last column reflect the mean for each topical rubric.
college students (0.79) and middle-aged adults (0.86) and numerically lower than older adults’ (0.81), implying that an ageist response bias may be responsible for high school students’ poorer KMAQ performance overall. Analyses by Topical Rubric To provide a more detailed analysis of what high school students know about normal memory aging, we conducted a multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA; using Wilks’ lambda criteria) that yielded significant main effects of age group, F(3, 182) = 4.985, p = .002, and rubric, F(4, 179) = 40.94, p < .001. Overall, participants were least accurate on memory organization/systems
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and most accurate on mnemonics/memory strategies, replicating our earlier findings using different samples of college students and community-dwelling older adults (Cherry et al., 2003). The age group by rubric interaction effect was significant, F(12, 473.881) = 4.12, p < .001. Follow-up ANOVAs revealed the age groups did not differ on the memory organization/systems rubric (p = .07), but did on the other rubrics (all ps ≤ .01). Pairwise comparisons (Tukey) confirmed that high school students knew significantly less about individual difference and contextual influences on memory than did the older groups who did not differ from each other. High school students were also significantly less knowledgeable about mnemonics and memory strategies than college students and middle aged-adults and marginally so relative to older adults. For pathological memory aging topics, a MANOVA (using Wilks’ lambda criteria) yielded significant main effects of age group, F(3, 187) = 26.457, p < .001, and rubric, F(4, 184) = 13.846, p < .001. Participants were least accurate on identification of abnormal deficits and most accurate on physical conditions and memory, replicating Cherry et al. (2003) and confirming the reliability and generality of their earlier findings. The age group by rubric interaction effect was also significant, F(12, 487.11) = 2.35, p = .006. Follow-up ANOVAs revealed that differences among the age groups on the dementia/AD rubric fell short of significance (p = .04) based on the more conservative alpha value of .01. However, significant age group effects were observed for the other four rubrics (all ps ≤ .008). Pairwise comparisons indicated that high school students’ knowledge about types of abnormal deficits was significantly lower than their older counterparts who did not differ from each other. For the mental health conditions and memory rubric, high school students’ mean (0.38) was significantly lower than their older counterparts’ means. College students’ mean for this rubric (0.61) was also significantly lower than middle-aged (0.81) and older adults’ means (0.88), which did not differ. This aspect of the data implies that both high school and college students’ understanding of variations in memory performance related to mental health conditions in later life may benefit from instruction on this topic. In closing, the inclusion of high school students is a strength of the study that permitted inferences across a broader sample of younger ages than in our previous work (Brigman & Cherry, 2010; Cherry et al., 2013; Hawley et al., 2006), although at least two methodological limitations should be considered. First, these data were collected from classes, lectures, and meetings. Use of convenience samples may have introduced a sampling bias. Second, we did not measure ageism directly, which is necessary to support the inference that high school students are more susceptible to ageist views of adult cognition than their older counterparts. Nonetheless, our findings provide a useful starting point for the design of educational programs and materials for the general public (Commissaris et al., 1995; Mol, de Groot, Willems, & Jolles, 2006). We suggest further that instructional programs could be tailored to a high school curriculum or serve as the focus of vocational workshops for students who may desire a career in senior services. Given current demographic trends of increasing numbers of older adults in society today, developing educational materials to improve knowledge of memory aging issues and dispel stereotypes of adult cognition is imperative. Providing accurate information that counteracts ageist stereotypes of memory aging may also improve intergenerational interactions between younger and older adults, an exciting possibility that awaits future research.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS We thank Emily O. Boudreaux, Garesia Randle, Haley Blanchard, Karri Hawley, and Dina Anbinder for assistance with data collection. We also thank Jenny Denver, Kelli Broome, Nicole Lowenhauf, Allison Eldridge, and Haley Barlow for help with data scoring.
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NOTE 1. Mean educational attainment was higher for the middle-aged and older adult groups compared to their younger counterparts. Therefore, we conducted an analysis of covariance on the KMAQ scores with educational level as a covariate. High school students were omitted from this analysis due to the lack of variability in their educational attainment scores. Results yielded non-significant main effects of age group and question type (ps > .10). However, the two-way interaction effect was significant, F(2, 151) = 7.65, p = .001, and followed the same form as before: Middle-aged adults were more knowledgeable about pathological than normal memory aging items (p = .03), while response accuracy did not differ by question type for college students and older adults (ps > .55). The two-way interaction did not lose its significance when educational attainment was statistically controlled; therefore, we did not control for education (and high school students were included) in all analyses reported in this article.
AUTHOR NOTES Katie E. Cherry, Ph.D., is a professor in the Department of Psychology at Louisiana State University (LSU). She is the Executive Director of the LSU Life Course and Aging Center and the Emogene Pliner Distinguished Professor of Aging Studies. Her research interests focus on cognition in later life and healthy aging. Blakely Blanchard is a graduate of St. Joseph’s Academy in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Erin J. Walker, Ph.D., completed her doctorate in industrial/organizational psychology at the University of South Florida. Her research interests focus on leadership and healthy aging. Emily A. Smitherman, B.S., is a graduate of Louisiana State University and is now in the Department of Pediatrics at Duke University School of Medicine. Bethany A. Lyon, M.A., is a graduate student in the Department of Psychology at Louisiana State University. Her research interests focus on cognition in later life and healthy aging.
REFERENCES Brigman, S., & Cherry, K. E. (2010). Perceptions of forgetfulness in adulthood: Does memory knowledge matter? In L. C. Eklund & A. S. Nyman (Eds.), Learning and memory developments and intellectual disabilities (pp. 105–128). Happague, NY: Nova Science. Cherry, K. E., Allen, P. D., Boudreaux, E. O., Robichaux, M., & Hawley, K. S. (2009). Knowledge of memory aging in students, caregivers and senior service providers. Educational Gerontology, 35, 541–552. Cherry, K. E., Allen, P. D., Jackson, E. M., Hawley, K. S., & Brigman, S. (2010). Knowledge of normal and pathological memory aging in college students, social workers and health care professionals. Educational Gerontology, 36, 281–297. Cherry, K. E., Brigman, S., Hawley, K. S., & Reese, C. M. (2003). The Knowledge of Memory Aging Questionnaire: Effects of adding a “don’t know” response option. Educational Gerontology, 29, 427–446.
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Cherry, K. E., Brigman, S., Reese-Melancon, C. M., Burton-Chase, A., & Holland, K. (2013). Memory aging knowledge and memory self-appraisal in younger and older adults. Educational Gerontology, 39, 168–178. Commissaris, K., Ponds, R., Verhey, F., Jolles, J., Damoiseaux, V., & Kok, G. (1995). Public education about normal forgetfulness and dementia: Effectiveness of a systematically developed information brochure. Educational Gerontology, 21, 763–777. Eccles, J. S., Wigfield, A., & Byrnes, J. (2003). Cognitive development in adolescence. In R. M. Lerner, M. A. Easterbrooks, & J. Mistry (Eds.), Handbook of psychology: Vol. 6. Developmental psychology (pp. 325–350). New York, NY: Wiley Hawley, K. S., Cherry, K. E., Su, L. J., Chiu, Y.-W, & Jazwinski, S. M. (2006). Knowledge of memory aging in adulthood. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 63, 317–334. Hawley, K. S., Garrity, A. W., & Cherry, K. E. (2005). Knowledge of normal versus pathological memory aging in police officers. Educational Gerontology, 31, 1–17. Jackson, E. M., Cherry, K. E., Smitherman, E. A., & Hawley, K. S. (2008). Knowledge of memory aging and Alzheimer’s disease in college students and mental health professionals. Aging and Mental Health, 12, 258–266. Mol, M. E., de Groot, R. H. M., Willems, D., & Jolles, J. (2006). Public education about memory and aging: Objective findings and subjective insights. Educational Gerontology, 32, 843–858. Reese, C. M., & Cherry, K. E. (2006). Effects of age and ability on self-reported memory functioning and knowledge of memory aging. The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 167, 221–240. Reese, C. M., Cherry, K. E., & Copeland, A. L. (2000). Knowledge of normal versus pathological memory aging in younger and older adults. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition, 7, 1–8. Van der Stel, M., & Veenman, M. V. J. (2009). Development of metacognitive skillfulness: A longitudinal study. Learning and Individual Differences, 20, 220–224.
The Journal of Genetic Psychology: Research and Theory on Human Development Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vgnt20
Knowledge of Memory Aging Across the Lifespan a
b
a
Katie E. Cherry , Blakeley Blanchard , Erin J. Walker , Emily A. a
a
Smitherman & Bethany A. Lyon a
Louisiana State University
b
St. Joseph's Academy Published online: 12 Dec 2014.
Click for updates To cite this article: Katie E. Cherry, Blakeley Blanchard, Erin J. Walker, Emily A. Smitherman & Bethany A. Lyon (2014) Knowledge of Memory Aging Across the Lifespan, The Journal of Genetic Psychology: Research and Theory on Human Development, 175:6, 547-553, DOI: 10.1080/00221325.2014.982069 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00221325.2014.982069
PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content. This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms &
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Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/termsand-conditions
THE JOURNAL OF GENETIC PSYCHOLOGY, 175(6), 547–553, 2014 C Taylor & Francis Group, LLC Copyright ISSN: 0022-1325 print / 1940-0896 online DOI: 10.1080/00221325.2014.982069
Downloaded by [Georgetown University] at 12:22 07 March 2015
BRIEF REPORT
Knowledge of Memory Aging Across the Lifespan Katie E. Cherry Louisiana State University
Blakeley Blanchard St. Joseph’s Academy
Erin J. Walker, Emily A. Smitherman, and Bethany A. Lyon Louisiana State University
ABSTRACT. The authors examined knowledge of normal and pathological memory aging in a lifespan sample of 198 individuals who ranged in age from 13 to 88 years. Participants completed the Knowledge of Memory Aging Questionnaire (Cherry, Brigman, Hawley, & Reese, 2003). The authors hypothesized that high school students would be less knowledgeable about memory aging issues than college students, middle-aged, and community-dwelling older adults. Consistent with this hypothesis, response accuracy was lower for high school students compared to their older counterparts. Follow-up analyses revealed that high school students’ responses to a subset of questions that tap ageist views of adult cognition were less accurate than the other age groups, implying a response bias toward stereotypical images of memory aging. Implications for research and the design of instructional materials to increase people’s knowledge about normative changes in adult cognition are discussed. Keywords adult cognition, memory aging knowledge, normal and pathological memory deficits, age-associated memory impairment, Alzheimer’s disease, ageism
Lapses of memory in daily life happen. Forgetfulness associated with healthy aging differs from the more severe memory dysfunction that threatens independent living. Recognizing the Received December 12, 2013; accepted October 25, 2014. Address correspondence to Katie E. Cherry, Louisiana State University, Department of Psychology, 236 Audubon Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803-5501, USA; [email protected] (e-mail).
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difference between normal memory aging behaviors of later life and pathological memory deficits that may be signaling a serious medical condition is fundamental to understanding adult cognition. The Knowledge of Memory Aging Questionnaire (KMAQ; Cherry, Brigman, Hawley, & Reese, 2003) was designed to measure knowledge of memory aging issues for research or educational purposes. Half of the questions address normal memory aging, defined as changes in later life that reflect genuine maturational processes. The other half of the questions address pathological memory aging, defined as nonnormative changes in older adults’ memory due to physiological or psychopathological conditions, pharmacological agents, and/or dementia. Prior studies have utilized the KMAQ with mental health professionals and university students (Jackson, Cherry, Smitherman, & Hawley, 2008), social workers (Cherry, Allen, Jackson, Hawley, & Brigman, 2010), caregivers and senior service providers (Cherry, Allen, Boudreaux, Robichaux, & Hawley, 2009), and police officers (Hawley, Garrity & Cherry, 2005). These studies show that respondents from different backgrounds are generally more knowledgeable about pathological than normal memory aging issues. Other evidence indicates that older adults possess greater knowledge of memory aging issues than do college students (Brigman & Cherry, 2010; Cherry, Brigman, Reese-Melancon, Burton-Chase, & Holland, 2013; Cherry et al., 2003; Reese & Cherry, 2006; Reese, Cherry, & Copeland, 2000). To our knowledge, high school students’ memory aging knowledge has not been systematically examined to date. Metacognition and critical thinking in adolescence develop through and beyond the teen years (e.g., van der Stel & Veenman, 2009). These cognitive changes in youth influence perceptions of self and their understanding of others (Eccles, Wigfield, & Byrnes, 2003). High school students may think differently about aging than do college students who have had more time for developing metacognitive skills and gaining experience. Lack of research on younger cohorts’ knowledge of aging issues is a serious gap in the literature in light of present demographic trends that predict dramatic growth in the elderly population. To fill this gap, we focused on high school students and addressed the question of how their memory aging knowledge compares to college students, middle-aged adults, and community-dwelling older adults.
METHOD Participants A total of 198 individuals participated in the study. Adolescents were 42 students sampled from St. Joseph’s Academy and Catholic High School in Baton Rouge, Louisiana (M = 15.93 years, SD = 1.28 years). Undergraduates were 86 students enrolled in a psychology class in lifespan developmental psychology at LSU (M = 21.44 years, SD = 4.34 years). Middle-aged adults were sampled from two sources in the community where the first author gave presentations on cognitive issues in aging. There were 30 attendees at the annual meeting of the Louisiana Gerontological Society and 15 attendees at a seminar hosted by Alzheimer Services of the Capital Area in Baton Rouge. These participants did not differ statistically in age (p = .63), so we collapsed across the subgroups to form a single group of 45 middle-aged adults (M = 48.42 years, SD = 12.00 years). Older adults were 25 attendees at a lecture given by the first author on memory
KNOWLEDGE OF MEMORY AGING
549
aging hosted by a local Continuing Care Retirement Community (M = 73.56 years, SD = 11.18 years).
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Materials and Procedure The KMAQ consists of 28 true/false/don’t know (dk) items. Half of these items cover normal memory aging topics (memory organization/systems, episodic memory phenomenon, encoding or retrieval factors, mnemonics or memory strategies, individual difference, and contextual influences), and the other half reflect pathological topics (types of abnormal deficits, identification of abnormal deficits, mental health conditions and memory, physical conditions and memory, dementia/Alzheimer’s disease [AD]). Separate proportion scores are calculated for each participant by dividing the number of correct normal and pathological memory aging items by the total in each category (14) minus the number of dk responses in each category (Cherry et al., 2003). The stereotype score is based on four normal memory aging items which may prompt activation of ageist stereotypes because the correct answer contradicts commonly held misconceptions of senescent feeblemindedness (Hawley, Cherry, Su, Chiu, & Jazwinski, 2006). Topic scores were calculated separately by rubric (five normal, five pathological). Proportion scores for each participant were based on the number of items answered correctly within a topical rubric divided by the total number of questions minus the number of dk responses within the same rubric (see Experiment 3 of Cherry et al., 2003). Means appear in Table 1. Informed consent was obtained at the beginning of the session. The procedures used in this study were reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board of Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Students completed the KMAQ as an in class exercise. Middle-aged and older adults completed the KMAQ prior to the lecture.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Analyses of Proportion Correct A 4 × 2 mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) yielded a significant age group main effect, F(3, 194) = 18.25, p < .001. Pairwise comparisons (Tukey) confirmed that high school students’ mean (0.61) was significantly lower than the other age groups’ means (ps < .001). Older adults’ mean (0.78) exceeded the college students’ mean (0.71; p = .026), replicating prior reports (Brigman & Cherry, 2010; Cherry et al., 2003; Reese & Cherry, 2006; Reese et al., 2000). The question type main effect was significant, F(1, 194) = 11.88, p < .001. Mean response accuracy was higher for pathological (0.74) than normal memory aging items (0.69). The age group by question type interaction effect was significant, F(3, 194) = 11.61, p < .001. For middle-aged adults, pathological memory aging items were answered correctly more often than the normal memory aging items, but not for the other age groups.1 A follow-up ANOVA on the stereotype scores yielded a significant age group effect, F(3, 194) = 4.83, p = .003. Pairwise comparisons (Tukey) confirmed that high school students’ mean (0.66) was significantly lower than that of the
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TABLE 1 KMAQ Mean Proportion Correct as a Function of Age Group and Question Type Question type and
High school
Middle aged
Older adults
rubric
M
SD
M
SD
M
SD
M
SD
0.62
0.20
0.70
0.13
0.66
0.15
0.76
0.10
0.52
0.33
0.50
0.32
0.37
0.29
0.41
0.28
0.42
0.66
0.27
0.73
0.25
0.56
0.24
0.77
0.19
0.68
0.58
0.27
0.64
0.22
0.77
0.21
0.85
0.18
0.71
0.67
0.36
0.84
0.24
0.80
0.25
0.91
0.18
0.81
0.73
0.39
0.89
0.23
0.92
0.27
0.88
0.26
0.86
0.59
0.16
0.71
0.14
0.84
0.11
0.80
0.15
0.47
0.29
0.55
0.29
0.78
0.27
0.76
0.27
0.64
0.38
0.36
0.61
0.37
0.81
0.29
0.88
0.27
0.67
0.67 0.64
0.30 0.30
0.73 0.81
0.20 0.23
0.80 0.89
0.17 0.17
0.77 0.81
0.24 0.28
0.74 0.79
0.73
0.29
0.82
0.26
0.91
0.21
0.82
0.20
0.82
Normal memory aging (total) Memory organization or systems Episodic memory phenomena Encoding or retrieval factors Individual difference or contextual influences Mnemonics or memory strategies Pathological memory aging (total) Identification of abnormal deficits Mental health conditions and memory Dementia/AD Types of abnormal deficits Physical conditions and memory
Undergraduate
M
Note. Means for the mnemonics or memory strategies and mental health conditions and memory rubrics are based on two items. All other rubric means are based on three items. Entries in the last column reflect the mean for each topical rubric.
college students (0.79) and middle-aged adults (0.86) and numerically lower than older adults’ (0.81), implying that an ageist response bias may be responsible for high school students’ poorer KMAQ performance overall. Analyses by Topical Rubric To provide a more detailed analysis of what high school students know about normal memory aging, we conducted a multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA; using Wilks’ lambda criteria) that yielded significant main effects of age group, F(3, 182) = 4.985, p = .002, and rubric, F(4, 179) = 40.94, p < .001. Overall, participants were least accurate on memory organization/systems
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and most accurate on mnemonics/memory strategies, replicating our earlier findings using different samples of college students and community-dwelling older adults (Cherry et al., 2003). The age group by rubric interaction effect was significant, F(12, 473.881) = 4.12, p < .001. Follow-up ANOVAs revealed the age groups did not differ on the memory organization/systems rubric (p = .07), but did on the other rubrics (all ps ≤ .01). Pairwise comparisons (Tukey) confirmed that high school students knew significantly less about individual difference and contextual influences on memory than did the older groups who did not differ from each other. High school students were also significantly less knowledgeable about mnemonics and memory strategies than college students and middle aged-adults and marginally so relative to older adults. For pathological memory aging topics, a MANOVA (using Wilks’ lambda criteria) yielded significant main effects of age group, F(3, 187) = 26.457, p < .001, and rubric, F(4, 184) = 13.846, p < .001. Participants were least accurate on identification of abnormal deficits and most accurate on physical conditions and memory, replicating Cherry et al. (2003) and confirming the reliability and generality of their earlier findings. The age group by rubric interaction effect was also significant, F(12, 487.11) = 2.35, p = .006. Follow-up ANOVAs revealed that differences among the age groups on the dementia/AD rubric fell short of significance (p = .04) based on the more conservative alpha value of .01. However, significant age group effects were observed for the other four rubrics (all ps ≤ .008). Pairwise comparisons indicated that high school students’ knowledge about types of abnormal deficits was significantly lower than their older counterparts who did not differ from each other. For the mental health conditions and memory rubric, high school students’ mean (0.38) was significantly lower than their older counterparts’ means. College students’ mean for this rubric (0.61) was also significantly lower than middle-aged (0.81) and older adults’ means (0.88), which did not differ. This aspect of the data implies that both high school and college students’ understanding of variations in memory performance related to mental health conditions in later life may benefit from instruction on this topic. In closing, the inclusion of high school students is a strength of the study that permitted inferences across a broader sample of younger ages than in our previous work (Brigman & Cherry, 2010; Cherry et al., 2013; Hawley et al., 2006), although at least two methodological limitations should be considered. First, these data were collected from classes, lectures, and meetings. Use of convenience samples may have introduced a sampling bias. Second, we did not measure ageism directly, which is necessary to support the inference that high school students are more susceptible to ageist views of adult cognition than their older counterparts. Nonetheless, our findings provide a useful starting point for the design of educational programs and materials for the general public (Commissaris et al., 1995; Mol, de Groot, Willems, & Jolles, 2006). We suggest further that instructional programs could be tailored to a high school curriculum or serve as the focus of vocational workshops for students who may desire a career in senior services. Given current demographic trends of increasing numbers of older adults in society today, developing educational materials to improve knowledge of memory aging issues and dispel stereotypes of adult cognition is imperative. Providing accurate information that counteracts ageist stereotypes of memory aging may also improve intergenerational interactions between younger and older adults, an exciting possibility that awaits future research.
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS We thank Emily O. Boudreaux, Garesia Randle, Haley Blanchard, Karri Hawley, and Dina Anbinder for assistance with data collection. We also thank Jenny Denver, Kelli Broome, Nicole Lowenhauf, Allison Eldridge, and Haley Barlow for help with data scoring.
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NOTE 1. Mean educational attainment was higher for the middle-aged and older adult groups compared to their younger counterparts. Therefore, we conducted an analysis of covariance on the KMAQ scores with educational level as a covariate. High school students were omitted from this analysis due to the lack of variability in their educational attainment scores. Results yielded non-significant main effects of age group and question type (ps > .10). However, the two-way interaction effect was significant, F(2, 151) = 7.65, p = .001, and followed the same form as before: Middle-aged adults were more knowledgeable about pathological than normal memory aging items (p = .03), while response accuracy did not differ by question type for college students and older adults (ps > .55). The two-way interaction did not lose its significance when educational attainment was statistically controlled; therefore, we did not control for education (and high school students were included) in all analyses reported in this article.
AUTHOR NOTES Katie E. Cherry, Ph.D., is a professor in the Department of Psychology at Louisiana State University (LSU). She is the Executive Director of the LSU Life Course and Aging Center and the Emogene Pliner Distinguished Professor of Aging Studies. Her research interests focus on cognition in later life and healthy aging. Blakely Blanchard is a graduate of St. Joseph’s Academy in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Erin J. Walker, Ph.D., completed her doctorate in industrial/organizational psychology at the University of South Florida. Her research interests focus on leadership and healthy aging. Emily A. Smitherman, B.S., is a graduate of Louisiana State University and is now in the Department of Pediatrics at Duke University School of Medicine. Bethany A. Lyon, M.A., is a graduate student in the Department of Psychology at Louisiana State University. Her research interests focus on cognition in later life and healthy aging.
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Cherry, K. E., Brigman, S., Reese-Melancon, C. M., Burton-Chase, A., & Holland, K. (2013). Memory aging knowledge and memory self-appraisal in younger and older adults. Educational Gerontology, 39, 168–178. Commissaris, K., Ponds, R., Verhey, F., Jolles, J., Damoiseaux, V., & Kok, G. (1995). Public education about normal forgetfulness and dementia: Effectiveness of a systematically developed information brochure. Educational Gerontology, 21, 763–777. Eccles, J. S., Wigfield, A., & Byrnes, J. (2003). Cognitive development in adolescence. In R. M. Lerner, M. A. Easterbrooks, & J. Mistry (Eds.), Handbook of psychology: Vol. 6. Developmental psychology (pp. 325–350). New York, NY: Wiley Hawley, K. S., Cherry, K. E., Su, L. J., Chiu, Y.-W, & Jazwinski, S. M. (2006). Knowledge of memory aging in adulthood. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 63, 317–334. Hawley, K. S., Garrity, A. W., & Cherry, K. E. (2005). Knowledge of normal versus pathological memory aging in police officers. Educational Gerontology, 31, 1–17. Jackson, E. M., Cherry, K. E., Smitherman, E. A., & Hawley, K. S. (2008). Knowledge of memory aging and Alzheimer’s disease in college students and mental health professionals. Aging and Mental Health, 12, 258–266. Mol, M. E., de Groot, R. H. M., Willems, D., & Jolles, J. (2006). Public education about memory and aging: Objective findings and subjective insights. Educational Gerontology, 32, 843–858. Reese, C. M., & Cherry, K. E. (2006). Effects of age and ability on self-reported memory functioning and knowledge of memory aging. The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 167, 221–240. Reese, C. M., Cherry, K. E., & Copeland, A. L. (2000). Knowledge of normal versus pathological memory aging in younger and older adults. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition, 7, 1–8. Van der Stel, M., & Veenman, M. V. J. (2009). Development of metacognitive skillfulness: A longitudinal study. Learning and Individual Differences, 20, 220–224.
