Age Differences in the Processing of Health Care Information

This study seeks to extend evidence for preservation of emotional processes relative to a decline in cognitive processes among older adults to the healthcare domain, in order to improve the presentation of healthcare information for older adults. Younger and older samples will be given descriptions of health care plans with increasing information across trials. In the cognitive condition, participants will be asked to recall facts, and in the emotional condition, participants will be asked about their feelings pertaining to a specific statement. It is predicted that age differences will emerge in trials with more information, where older adults will have poorer recall in the cognitive condition. But, it is also expected that older adults will perform just as well in the emotional condition, regardless of amount of information given.

This study is a seed project for the Center on Advancing Decision Making for Aging.