Document Type

Book Chapter

Publication Date

4-25-2025

Keywords

active process, age declines, attention, attentional capacity, basic cognitive processes, cognitive resources, environment, information processing, limited capacity, memory, memory function, older adults, visual stimuli, sensory stimuli

Disciplines

Developmental Psychology

Abstract

Attention is the first step our brains take to actively process information from the environment. Our attentional capacity is limited, such that we cannot process all the sights, sounds, smells and feelings surrounding us all at once. Attention (along with memory) is one of the basic cognitive processes most impacted by growing older. In addition, attention is not a unitary process and different types of attention require more cognitive resources than others. Thus, not all attentional systems are subject to declines with age to the same degree.

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