Paper-Based Assessment of the Effects of Aging on Response Time: A Diffusion Model Analysis
by
Judith Dirk 1,*, Gesa Katharina Kratzsch 2
, John P. Prindle 3, Ulf Kröhne 4, Frank Goldhammer 5,6 and Florian Schmiedek 1
Judith Dirk 1,*, Gesa Katharina Kratzsch 2, John P. Prindle 3, Ulf Kröhne 4, Frank Goldhammer 5,6 and Florian Schmiedek 1
1
Department of Education and Human Development, German Institute for International Educational Research (DIPF), 60486 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
2
Department of Psychology, Goethe University, 60232 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
3
Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90007, USA
4
Department of Educational Quality and Evaluation, German Institute for International Educational Research (DIPF), 60486 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
5
Department of Educational Quality and Evaluation, German Institute for International Educational Research (DIPF), 60486 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
6
Centre for International Student Assessment (ZIB), 60486 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
J. Intell. 2017, 5(2), 12; https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence5020012
Received: 4 May 2016 / Revised: 29 March 2017 / Accepted: 5 April 2017 / Published: 10 April 2017
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mental Speed and Response Times in Cognitive Tests)
The effects of aging on response time were examined in a paper-based lexical-decision experiment with younger (age 18–36) and older (age 64–75) adults, applying Ratcliff’s diffusion model. Using digital pens allowed the paper-based assessment of response times for single items. Age differences previously reported by Ratcliff and colleagues in computer-based experiments were partly replicated: older adults responded more conservatively than younger adults and showed a slowing of their nondecision components of RT by 53 ms. The rates of evidence accumulation (drift rate) showed no age-related differences. Participants with a higher score in a vocabulary test also had higher drift rates. The experiment demonstrates the possibility to use formal processing models with paper-based tests.
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Keywords:
processing speed; paper-based assessment; aging; diffusion model
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MDPI and ACS Style
Dirk, J.; Kratzsch, G.K.; Prindle, J.P.; Kröhne, U.; Goldhammer, F.; Schmiedek, F. Paper-Based Assessment of the Effects of Aging on Response Time: A Diffusion Model Analysis. J. Intell. 2017, 5, 12.
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