Do You See What I See? The Impact of Age Differences in Time Perspective on Visual Attention

In young adults, having a relatively long time perspective has been associated with a more abstract, holistic approach to cognitive tasks, as opposed to the more concrete, detailed approach associated with having a more limited or near-future focus (Trope & Liberman, 2003). Here we studied the impact of age differences in temporal perspective on performance on a classic visual attention task (Navon, 1977) that allowed for an orientation toward either detailed or holistic processing. Consistent with views on temporal perspective and cognition (Liberman, Sagristano, & Trope, 2002), we found that younger adults were more likely than older adults to orient toward holistic processing. ALTHOUGH aging affects fundamental cognitive processes,it may also impact how people approach cognitive tasks. For example, there is evidence that younger and older adults differ in goals, in social contexts, in circadian arousal patterns, and in cultural stereotypes. These differences are associated with age-related changes in performance on cognitive tasks (see Hasher, Goldstein, & May, 2005; Hess, 2005). Younger and older adults may also approach cognitive tasks differently because they differ in their temporal perspective, or the exten