Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, Vol 52, Issue 6 P265-P273, Copyright © 1997 by The Gerontological Society of America

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Inhibition in attention and aging

JM McDowd
University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City 66160-7602, USA. [email protected]

The literature on inhibition and aging has grown steadily in the wake of Hasher & Zacks' (1988) inhibitory deficit theory of cognitive aging. Not all of the findings support the notion of an age-related inhibitory decline, and some refinement of the theory is now required. This article has three goals: (a) to evaluate the role of inhibitory mechanisms in selective attention and aging; (b) to provide an evaluation of inhibition as a theoretical concept in theories of cognitive aging, with a specific focus on attention and aging; and (c) to consider the more general problem of evaluating progress in theory development.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				C. C. Persad, N. Abeles, R. T. Zacks, and N. L. Denburg Inhibitory Changes After Age 60 and Their Relationship to Measures of Attention and Memory J. Gerontol. B. Psychol. Sci. Soc. Sci., May 1, 2002; 57(3): P223 - 232. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				R. West, K. J. Murphy, M. L. Armilio, F. I. M. Craik, and D. T. Stuss Effects of Time of Day on Age Differences in Working Memory J. Gerontol. B. Psychol. Sci. Soc. Sci., January 1, 2002; 57(1): P3 - 10. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]