Table 2. Characteristics of Participants in Experiment 2.
| Variable | Young adults (n = 40) |
Old adults (n = 40) |
|---|---|---|
| Sex (women/men) | 82.5%/17.5% | 50%/50% |
| Age (in years) | 24.58 ± 7.03 | 62.46 ± 4.64 |
| Self-rated healtha | ||
| Day of test | 4.10 ± 0.63 | 4.03 ± 0.78 |
| Over last 2 months | 3.83 ± 0.78 | 3.90 ± 0.82 |
| Percentage taking medication | 10% | 35% |
| Education (in years) | 13.60 ± 2.13 | 14.41 ± 3.23 |
| Word vocabulary test (MWT) | 30.33 ± 3.31 | 32.10 ± 3.32 |
| Digit substitution | 65.98 ± 10.25 | 46.28 ± 10.61 |
| Digit span | 14.40 ± 3.68 | 12.50 ± 2.84 |
| Stroop (in seconds) | 18.08 ± 3.82 | 30.50 ± 10.74 |
| PRMQb | ||
| Prospective | 18.65 ± 3.70 | 17.35 ± 3.55 |
| Retrospective | 19.05 ± 3.96 | 19.03 ± 3.83 |
Note. Unless specified otherwise, data are given in M ± 1 SD. MWT = Mehrfachwahl-Wortschatz-Test; PRMQ = Prospective and Retrospective Memory Questionnaire.
a
Self-rated health responses varied from 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent).
b
PRMQ subscales ranged from 8 (no memory errors) to 40 (very often memory errors).