With age, object-location memory performance has been shown to reduce, and older adults recall fewer object locations than younger adults. However, to date, no research has investigated the role of eye movements during encoding of scenes in relation to memory for object-location information. Furthermore, there has been no investigation of whether differences in encoding behaviour with age relate to subsequent memory recall. Using eye-tracking methodology, we aim to conduct three experiments to explore how eye movements during scene inspection change in relation to age, and in relation to recall performance. Specifically, we will systematically explore the influence of encoding instruction, object-distractor similarity and the influence of attentional cueing at encoding on patterns of eye movements and object-location memory performance in younger and older adults. We will also assess the extent to which object-location memory is poorer than either object memory or location memory, and whether these effects are disproportionately larger in older compared to younger adults. From our findings, we aim to provide a clear theoretical account of the relationship between encoding processes associated with scene perception, the cognitive processes underpinning object-location memory, and the extent to which age-related differences in encoding processes are associated with differential age-related decline.

Eye movements recorded on EyeLink 2000 (SR-Research) Object identity recognition test which objects were selected (and in which order) Object-location memory test where the objects were replaced (and in which order) Confidence ratings for each object selected and each object replaced Snellen charts to measure visual acuity loss at a near (40 inches) and far (3 feet) distance (Schneider, 2002) A computerized orientation identification task (via two-alternative forced-choice) estimated contrast threshold at spatial frequency 2, 6, 12 and 18 cycles per degree. WAIS-III forward and backward digit span (Weschler, 1999) to assess short-term and working memory Visual Patterns Test (Della Sala, Gray, Baddeley, & Wilson, 1997) to assess short term visual span National Adult Reading Test to estimate premorbid intelligence level (Nelson & Willison, 1997) Montreal Cognitive Assessment (Nasreddine et al., 2005) to detect mild cognitive impairment in older adults