ABSTRACT

Strategies selected and revised during problem solving are some of the key components of successful problem solving. The implementation of these cognitive skills resorts to the brain capability, called executive function, which deteriorates with aging. But many of the earlier studies showed that cognitive training and practice could change the trajectory of the decline of the function. Using the simple two digit addition problems, the current study examined the effects of practice on 50 older adults. Strategy consistency (consistent vs. inconsistent task) and task difficulty (homogeneous vs. heterogeneous type) were manipulated for two groups of the adults (practice vs no-practice). As a result, the practice group had a lower rate of strategy switching when the cue strategies were consistent, but a higher rate when the cue strategies were inconsistent. Additionally, the practice group had less effect of task difficulty on the strategy-switching ratio. Secondly, not only did the practice group have faster overall response times, but also had smaller differences in response times when the cue strategies was inconsistent and heterogeneous. Finally, the error rate of the practice group was lower than that of the non-practice group. Especially, the discrepancy in error rates among the strategy consistency and task difficulty conditions was smaller for the practice group compared to the non-practice. In summary, older adults in the practice group demonstrated more efficient and flexible cognitive abilities to adapt to the diverse demands of the arithmetic problems. The findings of the current study are consistent with speculation that the practice can improve performance in older adults with reduced executive function even when demands on cognitive resources are high.