Older Adults’ Perceptions of Memory Aid Use and Meta-Memory Accuracy

Abstract

The aging literature suggests that there is little to no relationship between older adults’ subjective memory beliefs and their objective memory performance. This suggests that overall, older adults do not necessarily hold accurate perceptions of their own memory abilities or that there is a lot of variability among older adults’ perceptions. In an applied context, the consequences of such mis-calibration may include an overreliance on objective memory measures when designing memory performance aids, and a reduced emphasis on the users’ subjective memory beliefs, which could influence usage and acceptance. Although the effectiveness of memory strategies has been widely studied, little research has been done on the relationship between older adults’ subjective and objective memory and their utilization of memory strategies, specifically, technological aids. We addressed the question of the connection between memory beliefs and memory aid usage and preferences using focus groups with 24 older adults.