Aging and comparative search for feature differences

Abstract

In a comparative visual search experiment, two halves of a display contained visual primitives of various shapes and colors. These halves were identical (50% of trials) or contained a non-matching pair (50% of trials). Response time (RT), accuracy, and eye movements were measured in both young and older adults. There were Age Group x Display Size interactions found for RT, with older adult RT affected more than younger adult RT by increases in display size. This interaction was consistent with predictions generated by sequential-sampling models for RT. There were age group main effects on fixation number and fixation duration, but no age group main effects on accuracy, saccade amplitude, or measures of scan-path efficiency; this indicated that search strategies were similar across age groups. Overall, the results showed no special age group deficits for comparative visual search.