Book contents
- The Cambridge Handbook of Cognitive Aging
- The Cambridge Handbook of Cognitive Aging
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors
- Introduction
- Part I Models of Cognitive Aging
- Part II Mechanisms of Cognitive Aging
- Part III Aging in a Socioemotional Context
- 15 Memory and Aging in Social Contexts
- 16 Emotion Regulation in Adulthood and Old Age: A Cognitive Aging Perspective on Strategy Use and Effectiveness
- 17 Changes in Social and Emotional Well-Being over the Lifespan
- 18 Aging and Cognitive Functioning: The Impact of Goals and Motivation
- 19 Social Relationships and Cognitive Development in Adulthood
- 20 Emotion Recognition and Aging of the Social Brain
- 21 Narrative and Identity
- 22 Stereotype Threat and the Cognitive Performance of Older Adults
- Part III Summary: Aging in a Social Context
- Part IV Cognitive, Social, and Biological Factors across the Lifespan
- Part V Later Life and Interventions
- Index
- Plate Section (PDF Only)
- References
22 - Stereotype Threat and the Cognitive Performance of Older Adults
from Part III - Aging in a Socioemotional Context
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 28 May 2020
- The Cambridge Handbook of Cognitive Aging
- The Cambridge Handbook of Cognitive Aging
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors
- Introduction
- Part I Models of Cognitive Aging
- Part II Mechanisms of Cognitive Aging
- Part III Aging in a Socioemotional Context
- 15 Memory and Aging in Social Contexts
- 16 Emotion Regulation in Adulthood and Old Age: A Cognitive Aging Perspective on Strategy Use and Effectiveness
- 17 Changes in Social and Emotional Well-Being over the Lifespan
- 18 Aging and Cognitive Functioning: The Impact of Goals and Motivation
- 19 Social Relationships and Cognitive Development in Adulthood
- 20 Emotion Recognition and Aging of the Social Brain
- 21 Narrative and Identity
- 22 Stereotype Threat and the Cognitive Performance of Older Adults
- Part III Summary: Aging in a Social Context
- Part IV Cognitive, Social, and Biological Factors across the Lifespan
- Part V Later Life and Interventions
- Index
- Plate Section (PDF Only)
- References
Summary
Because of age-related cognitive declines, people sometimes expect older adults to be incompetent, senile, or extremely forgetful. Research on stereotype threat suggests that these negative expectations can interfere with older adults’ performance on cognitive tests and can cause them to underperform compared to their potential. However, research also shows that not all cognitive domains, and not all older adults, are equally affected by stereotype threat. Stereotype threat effects seem to occur most reliably on cognitive tasks where there are larger deficit expectations and for people who have concerns or negative expectations about aging and cognition. In addition to outlining these task and individual differences, in this chapter we also review potential mechanisms underlying these effects and discuss the applied implications of stereotype threat for how older adults’ memory is assessed in clinical and eyewitness settings.
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- Information
- The Cambridge Handbook of Cognitive AgingA Life Course Perspective, pp. 400 - 416Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2020
References
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