Memory Loss with Age: An Unsolved Problem

Abstract

The problem of whether memory impairment with age is due primarily ro storage defects or to retrieval difficulties was considered further. It was argued that, if one accepts a "partial in€ormation" interpretation of the recognition process, then the observation, that under certain conditions recognition scores deteriorate less rapidly with age than recall scores, cannot be taken as evidence for a loss in retrieval ability with increasing age. Such results are completely consistent with the notion o€ an age-related storage defect. Nevertheless, no unequivocal evidence has yet been presented for either position.