Age, Reasoning, and Memory in Adults

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Abstract
Equal numbers of men and women in each of four age groupings, 21 to 35, 36 to 50, 51 to 65, and 66 to 80, performed a battery of relatively easy, concept identification tasks. The battery was designed to vary the memory component of reasoning tasks along several dimensions in order to assess the relation between age differences in reasoning or problem solving performance and several aspects of memory functioning. The results indicated a decline in reasoning scores beginning in the 36-to 50-year-age group. Three of the four memory variables did not interact with age. These were variables associated with opportunities for reviewing information, with the amount of information to be retained, and with the use of negative and positive information. However, the results did suggest that there were age differences in the efficiency of reasoning performance specifically associated with difficulty in encoding, storing, or utilizing information in relation to a simple (2 × 2) multi-dimensional classification system. There was no evidence for sex differences.

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