Neural sensitivity to semantic neighbors is stable across the adult lifespan.

ABSTRACT: As we age, language reflects patterns of both stability and change. On the one hand, vocabulary and semantic abilities are largely stable across the adult lifespan, yet lexical retrieval is often slower and less successful (i.e., slower picture naming times, increased tip of the tongue incidents). Although the behavioral bases of these effects have been well established, less is known about the brain regions that support these age-related differences. We used functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) to examine the neural basis of picture naming. Specifically, we were interested in whether older adults would be equally sensitive to semantic characteristics, specifically the number of semantic near neighbors. Near neighbors, defined here as items with a high degree of semantic feature ov

SUBMITTER: Diaz MT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10022434 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature