A new study challenges the widely held belief that older people think slower than younger ones. While previous studies have shown that reaction times decrease with age, researchers from the University of Heidelberg in Germany have found that this is not necessarily an indication of mental speed. Instead, older people tend to be more cautious in their decision-making, which can make them appear slower. The study, published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour, used artificial intelligence to analyze data from nearly 1.2 million people between the ages of 10 and 80. The results suggest that cognitive processes slow down much later in life than previously thought, with a decline in mental speed only observed after the age of 60.
The study’s authors explain that previous research on reaction times did not take into account the various cognitive processes involved in decision-making. These include reaction caution and the time needed to encode motor processes, both of which can affect reaction times without necessarily reflecting mental speed. By analyzing data from millions of participants, the researchers were able to isolate these factors and determine that the decline in mental speed is much later in life than previously believed.
The study also found that mental speed actually increases until around the age of 30 and then remains stable throughout adulthood, regardless of gender or education level. However, caution in decision-making begins to increase significantly around the age of 20. The researchers suggest that these findings challenge the common assumption of age-related cognitive decline and have implications for typical career trajectories. They also highlight the importance of using advanced technology, such as artificial intelligence, to analyze large datasets and gain a more accurate understanding of complex phenomena.
