Aging, expertise, and narrative processing.

D. G. Morrow, V. O. Leirer, P. A. Altieri

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

In a study of how aviation expertise influences age differences in narrative processing, young and older pilots and nonpilots read and recalled aviation and general narratives. They chose referents for sentences referring to a protagonist or minor character mentioned 1 sentence (recent character) or 3 sentences (distant character) before this target sentence. All groups chose referents less accurately for sentences about distant and minor characters than about recent and protagonist characters, perhaps because these referents were less likely to be in working memory. Young readers and pilots were more accurate for distant and minor character target sentences in aviation narratives, and recalled aviation narratives more accurately. Expertise did not reduce age differences. Expertise differences may reflect decreased demands on working memory capacity, and age declines may reflect reduced capacity.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)376-388
Number of pages13
JournalPsychology and aging
Volume7
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 1992
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Social Psychology
  • Aging
  • Geriatrics and Gerontology

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