Research article summary (published 30 Aug 2009):

Aging minds and twisting attitudes: an fMRI investigation of age differences in inhibiting prejudice.

Full Abstract

Cognitive capacity is believed to decline with age, but it is not known whether this decline extends to tasks involving social cognition. In the current study, social neuroscience methodologies were used to examine the effects of age-related cognitive decline on older adults' abilities to engage regulatory mechanisms (which are typically impaired by normal aging) to inhibit negative reactions to stigmatized individuals. Older and young adults were presented with images of stigmatized individuals (e.g., individuals with amputations, substance abusers) and of normal controls while they underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging. All participants were also given a battery of tests to assess their executive function capacity. Young adults showed more activity in areas associated with empathy (i.e., medial prefrontal cortex) than did older adults when viewing stigmatized faces. By contrast, older adults with relatively preserved levels of executive function had heightened activity in areas previously implicated in emotion regulation (i.e., lateral prefrontal cortex) as compared to other groups. These results suggest that although cognitive decline may interfere with older adults' attitudes toward stigmatized individuals, older adults with relatively preserved cognitive function may utilize different strategies to compensate for these deficits. (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved.

Author information

Author/s: Krendl, Anne C (AC); Heatherton, Todd F (TF); Kensinger, Elizabeth A (EA);

Affiliation: Department of Psychology, Tufts University, Medford, MA 02155, USA. anne.krendl(-atsign-)tufts.edu

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

Journal: Psychology and aging (Psychol Aging), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2009-Sep; vol 24 (issue 3) : pp 530-41

Dates: Created 2009/09/10; Completed 2009/10/13;

PMID: 19739909, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 10/13/2009, IMS Date: )

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Aged Aging - physiology; psychology Brain - physiology Brain Mapping Dominance, Cerebral - physiology Empathy Face Female Frontal Lobe - physiology Humans Image Processing, Computer-Assisted Imaging, Three-Dimensional Inhibition (Psychology)

Inhibition (Psychology) Judgment Magnetic Resonance Imaging Male Motivation Neuropsychological Tests - statistics & numerical data Pattern Recognition, Visual - physiology Prefrontal Cortex - physiology Prejudice Psychometrics Reaction Time - physiology Reference Values Young Adult

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