It is not abnormal for an elderly person to have trouble in communicating efficiently. And this is often attributed to the memory power. But a study conducted by the National Institute of Aging states a reason entirely different.
The study which was carried out by Professor Susan Kemper from the University of Kansas points fingers at the slow processing of brain for the communication problems in older adults. The researcher carried out a dual tasking experiment on both young and older adults. The experiment comprised of the volunteers managing dual task by placing the cursor on a moving target on a computer screen and simultaneously answering questions that was posed. This enabled the scientists to track the communication abilities of the volunteers.
The findings revealed that though the younger adults did better in dual asking when compared to their counterparts, but both groups more or less faced difficulties in switching the tasks, especially when it required longer responses to questions being asked. Kemper, the researcher, said that both the groups restricted to short and simple sentences instead of indulging in complex sentences to avoid losing the moving target. However the researcher adds that one disparity observed between the two groups is that the younger group would limit their responses owing to the fear of losing the target but the older group very often sacrificed the target to communicate efficiently.
"We didn't find much evidence that working memory or long-term memory play a role in dual-tasking, but we think that processing speed does," said Kemper. "What I think is going on is that you have to rapidly switch your attention from tracking to talking, going back and forth pretty rapidly, and that's where the processing speed really comes in. Older adults seem to be slower at switching between tasks so their functional ceiling is lower." The study also analyzed the factors that affected tracking performance such as whether it was planning what to say or actually saying it or even recovering after saying it. They found that both planning and actually saying it cost both the young and older groups the tracking precision but for older groups it was additional in terms of recovering from saying it.
Kemper, however, ruled out any evidence of long term memory affecting the dual tasking. She said since it required rapidly switching the attention from one task to another and the processing speed comes into picture here and it is generally slow in older people.
Kemper called it a milestone in methodology and in the precise measurement of language and communication problems. She further stated that such language and communication problems, especially in the context of dual tasking, can be considered as indicators for the onset of dementia such as Alzheimer's disease. She also added that this same methodology can be used to find out the efficiency of neuropathologies.
"We know that there are brain markers even for people in their 40s who may be on the verge of developing dementia. But those are revealed by very expensive tests that are not widely available. So perhaps language and communication might provide early warning signs that might be picked up and also serve as an access point for trying to develop interventions," said Kemper.
