A-143 Sorry, I Wasn’t Paying Attention. The Moderating Role of Auditory Attention on the Relationship between Age and Verbal Learning

Abstract

Abstract Objective Attentional difficulties are known to negatively impact learning (Hervey et al., 2004; Alderson et al., 2013). This study builds upon previous work examining the effect of sustained visual attention as a moderator of age and learning (Thomas et al., 2019) by examining performance on an auditory attention measure as a moderator of the relationship between age and performance on a verbal list-learning task. Method Archival data from 424 adults (Mage = 36.01, SD = 15.13) were collected at an outpatient clinic. Auditory attention was assessed via the Brief Test of Attention (BTA) raw score. Learning was assessed via the California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT-II) total T-Score (Trials 1–5). Results Results of a hierarchical linear regression indicated a significant effect between BTA and learning, (β = 0.287, F(1, 422) = 17.993, p < 0.001, ΔR2 = 0.078). There was no significant effect between age and learning, (β = 0.022, F(1, 422) = 0.204, p = 0.652, ΔR2 = 0.000). Additional results from a simple moderated regression analysis indicated a significant overall model between age, learning and BTA (F(3, 420) = 15.749, p < 0.001, ΔR2 = 0.1011) with BTA having a significant positive interaction effect on the relation between age and learning (β = 0.816, F(1, 420) = 10.436, p = < 0.001, ΔR2 = 0.022). Conclusion Sustained attention has been shown to be an important consideration when assessing verbal learning and memory performance. Present results demonstrate that when accounting for age, auditory attention is a significant positive predictor of performance on measures of verbal learning. Additionally, confirming prior research, performances on auditory attention and verbal learning measures are positively correlated.