Vocabulary Ability in Later Life

A group of young adults (17 to 20 years) was compared to a group of older adults (62 to 83 years) with respect to their vocabulary test responses scored qualitatively, after having been matched on the basis of their vocabulary test responses scored in the traditional “quantitative” way. The qualitative score analysis was based upon categories of response which differentiated among levels of good performances, levels of poor performances, and types of errors.

The results of this study cast doubt as to the validity of the generalization that vocabulary function is maintained throughout adult life. The best possible response—i.e., superior synonym—was seen to decline with age.

This decline, however, was compensated for by very satisfactory, although less good, performance. This made the overall level of correct response appear similar for the two age groups, which may account for the usual report of stability of function in the course of adult aging. The compensation also made for very high correlations between qualitative and quantitative scores. It may be reasonable to speculate that, if performances on other verbal tasks were analyzed for qualitative differences in response precision, the often reported aging pattern (verbal skills maintained but not perceptual integrative ones) would not be observed.