Aging affects episodic memory, which is memory pertaining to the specific events and experiences occurring with time. Even though most older adults hold he belief that such memories regarding remote occurrences are good as compared to their memories (recent events), it is possible that the older memories become semantic. This results to retaining the integral information even though it lacks finer details, precisely temporal and spatial contexts. The older memories in this case join the scope of things, which people ‘know’. The problematic issues of older adults include the remembrance of contexts and subsequent source information. In cases of where or when such things are heard or read ‘reality monitoring’ proves to be of great prudence (Sirven&Malamut, 2008). Encoding practices and the retrieval of such kinds of peripheral or specific details for the prior events are particularly demanding with reference to attentional resources. This comes with cues for the information retrieval that often lacks.
Irrespective of the semantic memory’s preservation in old age, its retrieval from the semantic memory remains general knowledge contributing to the lack of the age differences. On the other hand, the exception to the pattern is the retrieval of a specific word or the person’s name for specific contexts, which indicate deficits within aspects of normal aging. The information specificity under retrieval therefore remains critical in determining impacts of age differences (Poon, Chodzko-Zajko&Tomporowski, 2006). There are suggestions that such age-related deficits within human memory decrease with the emotionally arousing materials or events. It is for this reason hat personal or emotional investment within such experiences is an important variable for the episodic memory for the older adults. However, high levels of stress or emotion have diverse impacts on memory.
The Alzheimer's disease is one of the most apparent forms of cognitive impairment. This also involves dementia among the elderly coupled with the second place of vascular dementia resulting from micro-angiopathy and is in close relation to poorly controlled hypertension. Other than this, the indication of blood pressure elevation as well as the advancing age as the major risk factors for dementia. Intellectual function deterioration and insufficiency of cognitive skills leads to elderly patient turning into more dependent in activities of day-to-day living (such as locomotion, bathing, feeding self, dressing, and personal hygiene) (Schneider, 2009). Evidence demonstrates that for a long time, blood pressure lowering from previous hypertensive points results in stroke prevention even though low blood pressure is not an express prevention of the microangiopathy leading to the white matter de-myelinization. These in combination with clinical cognitive deterioration are compatible with the vascular dementia diagnosis.
Aging also has considerable effects on decision-making. Most works highlight the overall potential impacts regarding limitations for working and attentional memory on the ability and making decisions. However, this incorporates ideas that involve relevance, motivation, prior knowledge, and emotional investment to be extensive moderators for the effects, mostly in real-life contexts (Poon, Chodzko-Zajko&Tomporowski, 2006). The decision-making process also tends to be a considerable domain in clearing the demands for the respective processing resources. In day-to-day life, such demands narrow down to life-relevant knowledge and expertise with respect to problem-solving domains. For instance, research shows that while making decisions regarding healthcare alternatives, older adults come to the similar forms of decisions like the younger adults even though the conclusions are through different ways. They seek to rely on prior knowledge for the problem domain and minimally on issues of new information even as young people with less knowledge for these issues evaluate and sample information, which is rather current while considering a range of alternatives prior making strategic decisions (Chodzko-Zajko, Kramer &Poon. 2009). The older adults, further due to working memory limitations, rely on the expert opinions to a considerable extent as compared to the young adults. Even though such a strategy works reasonably well while the experts are well qualified, it leaves the older people prune to poor decision-making occasionally.
References
Chodzko-Zajko, W. J., Kramer, A. F., Poon.L.W., (2009)Enhancing Cognitive Functioning and Brain Plasticity. New York: Human Kinetics
Poon, L. W., Chodzko-Zajko, W. J., Tomporowski, P. D., (2006) Active Living, Cognitive Functioning, and Aging. New York: Human Kinetics
Schneider, E. B., (2009)Statins, Cognition, Function and Health Outcomes in Older Individuals with and Without Acute Head Trauma. New York: ProQuest
Sirven, J. I., Malamut, B. L.(2008) Clinical Neurology of the Older Adult. New York: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
