Self-referencing enhances recollection in both young and older adults.

ABSTRACT: Processing information in relation to the self enhances subsequent item recognition in both young and older adults and further enhances recollection at least in the young. Because older adults experience recollection memory deficits, it is unknown whether self-referencing improves recollection in older adults. We examined recollection benefits from self-referential encoding in older and younger adults and further examined the quality and quantity of episodic details facilitated by self-referencing. We further investigated the influence of valence on recollection, given prior findings of age group differences in emotional memory (i.e., "positivity effects"). Across the two experiments, young and older adults processed positive and negative adjectives either for self-relevance or for semanti

SUBMITTER: Leshikar ED 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4377313 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature