A Quick Test of Cognitive Speed: patterns of age groups 15 to 95 years

Percept Mot Skills. 2007 Jun;104(3 Pt 2):1067-75. doi: 10.2466/pms.104.4.1067-1075.

Abstract

A Quick Test of Cognitive Speed color, form, and color-form naming were administered to 300 normal participants (ages 15-95 years) to explore the effects of age on perceptual (single-dimension naming) and cognitive speed (dual-dimension naming). Naming time means (sec.) were consistent with previous findings. Correlations between age and naming time were low, but significant. Linear regression with age as a factor indicated time increases of 1 sec. per decade for colors and color-form combination naming and of 6 sec. per decade for form naming. Participants were divided into age cohorts, each covering a decade, and naming times were transformed to normalized z scores. The normalized means were similar for color, form, and color-form naming and increased by about 1 SD between ages 15-25 and 75-85 years. The ranges were similar across cohorts, about 2 SD. The findings concur with age patterns for visual-pattern comparison speed, fluid intelligence, and working memory reported by Salthouse in 2004.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Age Distribution
  • Age Factors
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Aging / psychology*
  • Cognition*
  • Cohort Studies
  • Color Perception*
  • Form Perception*
  • Humans
  • Middle Aged
  • Neuropsychological Tests / statistics & numerical data*
  • Reaction Time
  • Recognition, Psychology
  • Reference Values
  • Task Performance and Analysis
  • Verbal Behavior