Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61820-6990, USA.
Neuropsychol Dev Cogn B Aging Neuropsychol Cogn. 2012;19(1-2):122-49. doi: 10.1080/13825585.2011.628376. Epub 2011 Dec 8.
The present study was an examination of how exposure to print affects sentence processing and memory in older readers. A sample of older adults (N = 139; Mean age = 72) completed a battery of cognitive and linguistic tests and read a series of sentences for recall. Word-by-word reading times were recorded and generalized linear mixed effects models were used to estimate components representing attentional allocation to word-level and textbase-level processes. Older adults with higher levels of print exposure showed greater efficiency in word-level processing and in the immediate instantiation of new concepts, but allocated more time to semantic integration at clause boundaries. While lower levels of working memory were associated with smaller wrap-up effects, individuals with higher levels of print exposure showed a reduced effect of working memory on sentence wrap-up. Importantly, print exposure was not only positively associated with sentence memory, but was also found to buffer the effects of working memory on sentence recall. These findings suggest that the increased efficiency of component reading processes that come with life-long habits of literacy buffer the effects of working memory decline on comprehension and contribute to maintaining skilled reading among older adults.
本研究考察了阅读印刷品对老年读者句子处理和记忆的影响。一组老年参与者（N=139；平均年龄=72）完成了一系列认知和语言测试，并阅读了一系列句子以进行回忆。记录了逐字阅读时间，并使用广义线性混合效应模型来估计代表单词级和文本级过程注意力分配的成分。印刷品接触水平较高的老年人在单词级处理和新概念的即时实例化方面表现出更高的效率，但在从句边界处的语义整合上分配了更多的时间。虽然较低的工作记忆水平与较小的收尾效应相关，但印刷品接触水平较高的个体在句子收尾方面的工作记忆效应较小。重要的是，印刷品接触不仅与句子记忆呈正相关，而且还可以缓冲工作记忆对句子回忆的影响。这些发现表明，伴随终身读写习惯而来的成分阅读过程效率的提高可以缓冲工作记忆下降对理解的影响，并有助于维持老年人的熟练阅读能力。
