Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society : JINS
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J Int Neuropsychol Soc · Jan 2000
Comparative StudyExploring the relationship between age, executive abilities, and psychomotor speed.
Age-related declines in executive abilities have been widely reported and are thought to result from neuropathological changes in the prefrontal cortex. Some investigators have suggested that age-related changes in cognition may be the result of slowed information processing speed rather than declines in specific cognitive abilities. We examined the relationships among age, executive abilities, and psychomotor speed in 40 older adults and 46 young adults. ⋯ Our results revealed that poorer executive performance was associated with increasing age. Further, although psychomotor speed attenuated the relationship, age accounted for a unique and significant proportion of variance in executive performance after controlling for psychomotor speed. These results suggest that age has an effect on prefrontally mediated executive abilities that cannot be explained solely in terms of psychomotor slowing.