Distraction as a determinant of processing speed |
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Authors: | Cindy Lustig Lynn Hasher Simon T Tonev |
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Institution: | Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, 530 Church Street, Ann Arbor 48109-1043, USA. clustig@umich.edu |
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Abstract: | Processing speed is often described as a fundamental resource determining individual (e.g., I.Q.) and group (e.g., developmental)
differences in cognition. However, most tests that measure speed present many items on a single page. Because many groups
with slowed responding are also distractible, we compared younger and older adults on high-distraction (i.e., standard) versus
low-distraction versions of two classic speed tasks. Reducing distraction improved the performance of older adults but had
little or no effect on younger adults, suggesting that the ability to limit attentional access to task-relevant information
can affect performance on tests designed to measure processing speed. |
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Keywords: | |
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