AFFECT‐RELATED METAMEMORY AND MEMORY PERFORMANCE IN A POPULATION‐BASED SAMPLE OF OLDER ADULTS

Abstract

Research evidence shows that in older individuals self‐efficacy measures of metamemory predict memory performance. However, such findings have been based on experimental samples, and studies have usually been carried out in laboratory settings. As such, they may not be representative of everyday situations in which memory is called on. We examined the metamemory‐memory relationship—using the Metamemory in Adulthood Questionnaire (MIA)—in a population‐based sample of older adults. The memory tests were carried out at the respondents’ home, with the individuals informed only about being subject to an extensive interview, not about having to perform memory tests. Achievement and Anxiety, both affect‐related MIA subscales, predicted the memory test performance in this study. The results suggest that for elderly persons, motivation and anxiety during testing are more important to memory functioning than self‐efficacy dimensions of metamemory. The setting in which memory performance is required appears to affect the kind of metamemory aspects that influence performance.