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Abstract
The current study demonstrates that when a strong inhibition process is invoked during multimodal (auditory-visual) language understanding: older adults perform worse than younger adults, visible speech does not benefit language-processing performance, and individual differences in measures of working memory for language do not predict performance. In contrast, in a task that does not invoke inhibition: adult age differences in performance are not obtained, visible speech benefits language performance, and individual differences in working memory predict performance. The results offer support for a framework for investigating multimodal language processing that incorporates assumptions about general information processing, individual differences in working memory capacity, and adult cognitive aging.
Notes
*p < .005 between groups.
Note. Correlation coefficients for young adults (N = 40) are above the diagonal and those for older adults (N = 40) are below the diagonal.
*p < .05;
**p < .01.
Note. Self-reported hearing loss was a non-significant predictor of variance in both analyses, and age did not significantly predict recall in the speech − alone condition, p values > .05.
****p < .00001.
Note. L and R refer to left and right ears. A and B refer to the two female speakers.
*Side participants in that condition were instructed to shadow. SA = speech + articulatory condition. S = speech (visual information on the screen was inconsistent with the words shadowed).
Note. The t values for backward digit span, reading span, and self-reported hearing loss were non-significant predictors of variance in this analysis, p < .05.
****p < .0001.