fMRI of Healthy Older Adults During Stroop Interference

Authors

Scott Aaron Langenecker, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Kristy A. Nielson, Marquette UniversityFollow
Stephen M. Rao, Schey Center for Cognitive NeuroimagingFollow

Document Type

Article

Language

eng

Format of Original

9 p.

Publication Date

1-2004

Publisher

Elsevier

Source Publication

NeuroImage

Source ISSN

1053-8119

Original Item ID

doi: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2003.08.027

Abstract

The Stroop interference effect, caused by difficulty inhibiting overlearned word reading, is often more pronounced in older adults. This has been proposed to be due to declines in inhibitory control and frontal lobe functions with aging. Initial neuroimaging studies of inhibitory control show that older adults have enhanced activation in multiple frontal areas, particularly in inferior frontal gyrus, indicative of recruitment to aid with performance of the task. The current study compared 13 younger and 13 older adults, all healthy and well educated, who completed a Stroop test during functional magnetic resonance imaging. Younger adults were more accurate across conditions, and both groups were slower and less accurate during the interference condition. The groups exhibited comparable activation regions, but older adults exhibited greater activation in numerous frontal areas, including the left inferior frontal gyrus. The results support the recruitment construct and suggest, along with previous research, that the inferior frontal gyrus is important for successful inhibition.

Comments

Accepted version. NeuroImage, Vol. 21, No. 1 (January 2004): 192-200. DOI. © 2003 Elsevier Inc. Used with permission.

Recommended Citation

Langenecker, Scott Aaron; Nielson, Kristy A.; and Rao, Stephen M., "fMRI of Healthy Older Adults During Stroop Interference" (2004). Psychology Faculty Research and Publications. 105.
https://epublications.marquette.edu/psych_fac/105