Studying visual memory in older adults

Visual memory is one of the cognitive functions known to decline with healthy aging. This presentation is organized in two distinct parts, aiming to explore these changes. In the first part of this presentation, we will introduce the results of a study, currently being prepared for a publication. In this study, our main goal was to investigate the existence of the Looking-at-nothing (LAN) effect in older adults. When asked to recall and visualize pictures from memory, younger adults tend to fixate empty locations where the pictures were previously presented. In our study, 37 older participants and 38 younger participants performed a visual memory task while their eye movements were recorded. The LAN effect was demonstrated in older adults. However, the effect was stronger in younger adults when compared to older adults. These findings suggest that while the LAN effect persists across age groups, there might be nuanced differences in how visual memory functions and how it is accessed between younger and older adults, highlighting the complexity of age-related cognitive changes in memory processes.
In the second part of this presentation, we will introduce the plan of an upcoming study scheduled to start next spring. This study is designed to explore the effect of an immersive virtual reality (VR) training on the visual memory abilities of older adults. We will present a task specifically designed to assess visual memory using a VR headset.

This talk is part of the series Invited Speakers - Faculty of Psychology. It will take place in Brig, on the groundfloor of UniDistance Suisse's headquarters. You may also join online. The link for participation in the event is the following: http://bit.ly/unidistance.

Speaker

Pauline Berthouzoz is PhD Student in the Methodology and Statistics research group at UniDistance Suisse.

Find out more about the Methodology and Statistics research group.