Aging, cognitive resources, and declarative learning

A battery of cognitive tasks designed to assess information-processing speed, working memory capability; and declarative learning was administered to a cross-sectional sample of 477 adults ranging in age from 17 ro 86 Fears. Results showed significant age-related decrements in ail three constructs. A variety of structural equation models was lit to the results. The preferred model on empirical and conceptual grounds was one thar showed (a) working memory capability as the most important mediator of ag effects in declarative learning; (b) working memory capability as thr mediator for the effects of general processing speed on declarative learning; and (c) differentiation among verbal, numeric, and spatial processing speed and between verbal and spatial working memory capability.