Emotion and Memory Changes in Aging AdultsElizabeth A. Kensinger, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Psychology, Boston College

Aging: Definition a continual process of change (does not begin at a particular point in time)

affects different functions at different points in timefor athletes, aging may begin in 20sfor mental activities, aging usually noticed in 50s, although there is decline from 30s onward

Aging Mind: Aging Brain The brain is constantly changing

Topics for Today What emotional and cognitive changes accompany healthy aging (with focus on memory)?

What brain changes underlie these cognitive changes?

What can a person do to minimize these changes?

Phases of MemoryInformation in the worldPerceptual Memory(very short term; about 1 sec maximum)

Visual After-Effects++Caused by fatigue in brain cells located within retina of eye. If Yankees fans get fatigued at a game, you might only hear the roar of the Red Sox fans, even if youre at a game played in NYC.

Phases of MemoryInformation in the worldPerceptual Memory(very short term; about 1 sec maximum)The short duration of sensory memory explains why the visual aftereffect does not last very long.

Phases of MemoryInformation in the worldPerceptual Memory(very short term; about 1 sec maximum)How sensory memory explains change blindness:

Our sensory stores hold the information only briefly, not for a long enough time to help us detect the change -- unless we toggle between the images very quicklyKey Researchers: D. Simons, C. Chabris

Phases of MemoryInformation in the worldPerceptual Memory(very short term; about 1 sec maximum)Perceptual memory stored within the sensory regions that process the information.Theses sensory regions undergo little change with age.

The Good News: Perceptual Memory Once sensory deficits (e.g., hearing loss, vision problems) are accounted for, aging does not usually result in a degradation in perceptual memory.

Phases of MemoryInformation in the worldPerceptual Memory(very short term; about 1 sec maximum)How sensory memory explains change blindness:

Our sensory stores hold the information only briefly, not for a long enough time to help us detect the change -- unless we toggle between the images very quickly

Phases of MemoryInformation in the worldPerceptual Memory(very short term; about 1 sec maximum)However, if you ATTEND to the information, you can transfer the information to a memory store that is of longer duration.

Phases of MemoryInformation in the worldWorking (Short-Term) Memory(~45 sec maximum)Perceptual Memory(very short term; 1-2 sec maximum)ATTENTIONWhen ATTEND to part of the environment, this helps information move beyond sensory stores and into working memory stores.

The Good News: Perceptual Memory This type of cue helps older adults more than it helps younger adults older adults more influenced by their goals and context than young adults

Older adults devote resources to the information that is important to them or to the task at hand

Phases of MemoryInformation in the worldWorking (Short-Term) Memory(~45 sec maximum)Perceptual Memory(very short term; 1-2 sec maximum)ATTENTION

Working MemoryMultiply 23 X 14 in your head

Working Memory= 322 Must hold the numbers in mind (through rehearsal) Must keep updating based on calculations that youve madeMultiply 23 X 14 in your headKey Researchers: A. Baddeley

Working MemoryReliant on prefrontal cortexa region that undergoes cell shrinkage & cell loss with ageYoung adultOlder adult

Working MemoryReliant on prefrontal cortexa region that undergoes cell shrinkage & cell loss with age

Working MemoryReliant on prefrontal cortex Working memory declines with aging because of reductionsin processing speed

Working Memory & Processing SpeedAging results in slowing of reaction time (the time it takes to respond to an event)

Key Researchers: T. Salthouse

Working Memory & Processing SpeedProcessing speed can affect the ability to hold information in mind, because by the time one part of a problem has been completed, other aspects of the problem may have been forgotten

Working Memory & Processing SpeedJimmy walks up to a store counter with 3 packs of gum, each costing 50 cents. He gives the sales clerk $5. Because the clerk is out of dollar bills, she gives Jimmy his change in quarters. How many quarters does Jimmy receive from the sales clerk?If it takes you longer to process Jimmy walks up to a store counter with 3 packs of gum, you may miss that they each cost 50 cents.If it takes you longer to multiply 3 by 50, you may have already forgotten that he gave the clerk $5.

Working Memory & Processing SpeedJimmy walks up to a store counter with 3 packs of gum, each costing 50 cents. He gives the sales clerk $5. Because the clerk is out of dollar bills, she gives Jimmy his change in quarters. How many quarters does Jimmy receive from the sales clerk?Processing speed deficits can impair performance even on tasks that are untimed!

The Aging Brain: Slowing DownChanges in the speed of neurotransmission (the passing of chemical and electrical signals from one brain cell to another) likely underlie these age-related changes in processing speed

The Aging Brain: Slowing DownThese neurotransmission changes are particularly pronounced in the prefrontal cortex

The Good News: Processing SpeedAlthough aging can lead to a slower reasoning through decisions,it can facilitate making a gut decision

These gut decisions are often the optimal ones.Key researchers: T. Hess, F. Blanchard-Fields, A. Damasio

Working MemoryReliant on prefrontal cortex Working memory declines with aging, because ofchanges in processing speed and attention

Working Memory & Attention With age, it becomes harder to ignore irrelevant information (cocktail party phenomenon)

It also becomes harder to switch between tasks with different requirements

These difficulties can make it more difficult to hold relevant information in mind and to switch between different task requirements (e.g., the multiplication task requires multiple phases: multiplication, addition, storage of information, etc)Key Researchers: L. Hasher, R. Zacks

The Good News: Working Memory & Attention Older adults have extensive expertise to draw upon

Can find connections between information that young adults have a harder time seeing

This can often compensate for the difficulties with task-switching and with attention focusing

Key Researchers: T. Hess, D. Schacter

Successful aging & working memory use it or lose it maintain mental flexibility maintain expertise organize information chunk information (think of 4 numbers together as a date): 1 9 3 7 1 8 2 4 eliminate distractions reduce attention demands make information meaningful and self-relevant

Phases of MemoryInformation in the worldWorking (Short-Term) Memory(~45 sec maximum)Perceptual Memory(very short term; 1-2 sec maximum)Long-term Memory(minutes to years)ATTENTIONOrganizing, processing meaning & self-relevance

Long-Term MemoryMust LEARN information (e.g., peoples names) Attend to information Process meaning of information Learning improves when use strategies to make information meaningful or to organize information (e.g., imagery, associations) Learning improved when stress minimized (reduce anxiety about remembering the information)

Long-Term MemoryMust STORE information (e.g., peoples names) Requires functioning of the hippocampus This is one of the regions that shrinks some with aging, and even more with Alzheimers disease

Aging & Long-Term Memory Less activity in the hippocampus when older adults are trying to learn pictures than when young adults are trying to learn May be connected to inefficient storage of the information in older adultsKey Researchers: R. Buckner, S. Corkin, D. Park, R. Sperling

Long-Term MemoryMust RETRIEVE information (e.g., peoples names)

Better when cues are given (e.g., if asked to select names from among alternatives) than when must generate the cues

Much better when no similar, interfering information

Long-Term MemoryThe loss of cells in the hippocampus means that there tends to be more overlap in the cells representing different memories, causing more interference

Also means that fewer cells may represent each memory, making memories less rich and less resilient

Aging & Long-Term MemoryThe loss of cells in the hippocampus means that there tends to be more overlap in the cells representing different memories, causing more interference

On the plus side, this may make it easier for older adults to extract commonalities among experiences, to see the whole picture rather than just the details

The Good News: Long-Term Memory

Aging enhances the ability to remember information that is emotionally positive and personally relevant

Aging helps people use their memories for directive purposes: to reflect on their sense of self and on their relationships with close others, or to regulate their emotions.Key Researchers: L. Carstensen, M. Mather, A. Gutchess, T. Hess

Successful aging & long-term memory

attend to the information think about why the information is important to remember organize the information Dont just use rote rehearsal Clump like items together when trying to learn them; this will increase the likelihood that you will have retrieval cues When leaning someones name, associate it with other information about that person Use mental imagery to help you remember (e.g., as your placing your keys on the table, close your eyes and imagine the action)

use spaced rehearsal (why cramming for an exam never did work)

Phases of MemoryInformation in the worldWorking (Short-Term) Memory(~45 sec maximum)Perceptual Memory(very short term; 1-2 sec maximum)Long-term Memory(minutes to years)Remote Memory(many years)Semantic Memory(factual knowledge)

Remote Memory & Semantic Memory Over time, memory is no longer is dependent on the hippocampus Instead, the surrounding cortical regions become able to support the memory These memories tend to be more resilient, and are less affected by brain damage, aging, or the initial stages of Alzheimers diseaseKey Researchers: L. Nadel, M. Moscovitch

Remote Memory & Semantic Memory Lots and lots of repetition spread out over many years causes this transition

Semantic Memory No longer contains details about the time and place in which the learning occurred There was a specific time when you learned that the Eiffle Tower was in France but most of you probably cannot tell me when that was

World knowledge & factual information (vocabulary, etc)

Semantic Memory Reliant on the temporal lobe cortex

This region is preserved with aging

In fact, older adults tend to have much better semantic memory than young adults (perform better on tasks of vocabulary & world knowledge)

Remote Memory These memories can include information about the time and place in which an event occurred. Often, this feels like family lore, or the re-telling of stories that you have often heard. These memories are typically preserved with aging.- It can be harder to remember what happened last week than to remember what happened 40 years ago.

Phases of MemoryInformation in the worldWorking (Short-Term) Memory(~45 sec maximum)Perceptual Memory(very short term; 1-2 sec maximum)Long-term Memory(minutes to years)Remote Memory(many years)Semantic Memory(factual knowledge) primary sensory regions frontal lobeneocortex (outer layers of brain)neocortex (outer layers of brain) hippocampus

Phases of MemoryInformation in the worldWorking (Short-Term) Memory(~45 sec maximum)Perceptual Memory(very short term; 1-2 sec maximum)Long-term Memory(minutes to years)Remote Memory(many years)Semantic Memory(factual knowledge) primary sensory regions frontal lobeneocortex (outer layers of brain)neocortex (outer layers of brain) hippocampus

Phases of MemoryInformation in the worldWorking (Short-Term) Memory(~45 sec maximum)Perceptual Memory(very short term; 1-2 sec maximum)Long-term Memory(minutes to years)Remote Memory(many years)Semantic Memory(factual knowledge)Rehearsal over long periods of time organizing info. & avoiding distraction allows for better learning use of strategies (associations, mental imagery) increases accessibility & durability of memory attending to, rehearsing, and noting importance of information increases the likelihood of conversion to long-term memory

Strategies for Successful AgingUse it or lose it!Individuals who remain mentally active perform better on cognitive tasks than those who engage in mental activity less often

Use strategies to help remember informationOne of the largest changes with age is the decline in the spontaneous use of mnemonic strategies to remember informationYet when told what strategies to use, older adults can use them just as effectively as young adults

Avoid distraction and excessive worry as try to learn information

Research supported by funding from NIH MH080833, the National Science Foundation, the Dana Foundation, and the Searle Scholars Programelizabeth.kensinger @ bc.edu http://www2.bc.edu/~kensinelBoston CollegeEric AllardRanga AtapattuAlisha HollandAnne KrendlChristina LeclercBrendan MurrayKeely MuscatellKatherine SchmidtKatherine Mickley SteinmetzJill WaringHarvard UniversityDaniel SchacterBob Stickgold

Notre DameJessica Payne

Massachusetts General HospitalRobert Waldinger

University of AucklandDonna AddisBrandeis UniversityAngela Gutchess

Texas A&M CommerceBenton Pierce

Thank You

***Why youre less likely to remember a phone number if an operator talks with you a lot after giving you the number (disrupts rehearsal)*Doesnt mean that we perform worse on all cognitive tasks with advancing age -- we can use our world knowledge in order to make better decisions and to offset these changes in RT -- but it does often mean that with advancing age we take longer to make a decision*Read numbers: 1 3 8 9 1 7 2 6 *Read numbers: 1 3 8 9 1 7 2 6 *Read numbers: 1 3 8 9 1 7 2 6 *1 9 3 7 1 8 2 3 *1 9 3 7 1 8 2 3 *1 9 3 7 1 8 2 3 *