Why smartphones may be better than mind games for the aging mind

ARLINGTON, Texas — Forget brain games and memory supplements—the key to maintaining cognitive function as you age may be as simple as setting reminders. That’s the provocative conclusion of a new study that challenges conventional wisdom about aging and memory, suggesting that external memory aids can completely reverse certain age-related memory differences.

A team of researchers from the University of Texas at Arlington and Arizona State University found that digital reminders can effectively eliminate age-related decline in “prospective memory” – our ability to remember actions in the future. This type of memory is important for everyday tasks, such as remembering to take medication, attend appointments, or pay bills on time.

“Prospective memory necessary for daily living and maintaining independence, especially as we age,” says lead study author Hunter Ball, associate professor of psychology at UTA. “Failure to remember these prospective tasks can have serious consequences, and previous research has shown that prospective memory tends to decline with age.”

A study published in Psychology and agingshows that while older adults typically struggle more with certain types of memory tasks than younger adults, access to reminders can level the playing field. This finding could have significant implications for how we support healthy aging and independence among older adults.

Memory recall

Imagine you’re at the grocery store and you need to remember to pick up your prescription at the pharmacy afterward. This type of remember-to-remember task uses prospective memory, an important cognitive skill that helps us navigate everyday life. For seniors, these types of tasks can become increasingly difficult, potentially leading to missed medication, missed appointments, or other daily disruptions that can affect their ability live independently.

A research team led by B. Hunter Ball wanted to understand how different types of reminders might help older adults cope with these memory needs. They conducted two separate experiments that tested both younger and older adults’ ability to remember specific and general future tasks with and without reminders.

Experiments

In the first experiment, 96 participants (57 young and 39 elderly with an average age of 65) were asked to recall specific words while performing another task. For example, they may need to remember to press a special key every time they see the word “table” during a word recognition task. Sometimes they had to remember only one word, and sometimes four different words.

The second experiment involved 81 participants (44 young and 37 elderly with an average age of 67) and used a slightly different approach. Instead of memorizing specific words, participants had to memorize categories such as “fruit” or “animals” and respond whenever they saw any word that fit those categories (e.g., “apple ” or “dog”).

What made these experiments unique was how they came together reminder. Sometimes participants could see the words or categories they needed to remember at the top of their computer screen, while other times they had to rely solely on their memory. The researchers also tracked the participants’ eye movements to see how often they looked at the reminders.

Amazing results

The findings cast doubt on some common assumptions about aging and memory. In the first experiment, when participants had to remember specific words, older adults performed as well as younger adults, even without reminders. This was true regardless of whether one word or four words had to be memorized.

However, the second experiment revealed some interesting differences. When participants had to remember categories instead of specific words, older adults had more difficulty than young adults, especially when they had to remember multiple categories at once. But here’s the main finding: when reminders were available, these age differences completely disappeared.

What is particularly fascinating is how older people used reminders. When the task was more difficult (memorizing multiple categories), older adults checked reminders more often than younger adults. This suggests that older adults can effectively compensate for memory problems through the strategic use of external cues.

Implications for everyday life

Many seniors already use a variety of memory aids, from simple to-do lists to sophisticated digital assistants such as Amazon Alexa. This research suggests that such strategies are not only useful, but may actually eliminate age-related differences in memory in certain situations.

For example, instead of trying to remember all of their medications for the day, an adult may find it helpful to set special reminders on their phone or use a pill organizer with alarms. Similarly, digital calendar reminders for appointments or automatic bill payments can help manage complex scheduling requirements.

The study also highlights an important point about aging and adaptation: Although some cognitive abilities may decline with age, older adults can effectively compensate for this with external tools and strategies. This suggests that supporting healthy aging is not just about preventing decline – it is also about providing effective tools and strategies to circumvent potential limitations.

“This new study demonstrates that cognitive offloading, particularly the use of reminders such as mobile phone calendars, can effectively moderate this decline,” concludes Ball. “Although our study was conducted under controlled conditions, these findings can easily be applied in a real-world setting as a way to provide a simple and effective way to alleviate the burden of perceived memory problems in the elderly.”

Looking ahead, this study shows that the future of cognitive health may be less about preventing memory deterioration and more about developing innovative ways to solve the problem. By understanding how older adults can effectively use external memory aids, we are opening new opportunities to preserve the independence and quality of life of our aging population.