Adult age differences in temporal and item memory

Three experiments tested whether the relationship between age differences in temporal and item memory depends on the degree to which the item memory measure relies on memory for context. The authors predicted a stronger relationship of temporal memory to free recall than to recognition memory. Results showed that age differences in temporal memory could be eliminated after controlling for free recall but not recognition memory performance. Under some conditions recognition memory accounted for a significant portion of age-related variance in temporal memory. These results challenge past research that has interpreted age differences in temporal and item memory as independent and suggest that a generalized decline in context memory may underlie reduced performance in older adults on all types of memory tests. Memory for temporal information has long been considered important to the study of how people learn and retain information. It became a major topic of investigation starting in the 1960s, as researchers looked at the role of order information in free recall and in proactive interference (e.g., Estes, 1972; Underwood, 1969; Wickelgren, 1966). Over time, work by cognitive psychologist