Implementation intentions and prospective memory function in late adulthood.

Prospective memory (PM) is a critically important component of memory that often declines in late adulthood. Implementation intentions, an encoding strategy, consisting of an explicit if-then "I will . . ." statement, has been effectively used to enhance older adults' prospective memory function. However, it remains to be established whether forming a mental representation of carrying out the task when forming the intention enhances these age effects, as well as whether the type of cue (event or time based) moderates age-related benefits. To test these questions, we randomly allocated 125 younger and 125 older adults to 1 of 5 conditions, in which they were directed to use different strategies when forming their PM intentions (Statement Only, Imagine in Game, Statement and Imagine Combined, Imagine in Daily Life, Control). The results indicated that use of the implementation intentions statement alone and in combination with forming a mental representation of carrying out the task substantially enhanced older adults' event- but not time-based PM. In addition, while the Statement Only condition reduced age-related difficulties for event-based tasks, the condition that combined this statement with visualization led to the greatest reduction in age effects. These data suggest that both rehearsing the implementations intention in the specific statement format combined with visualizing may be optimally effective for enhancing PM function in late adulthood but that the type of PM cue is an important moderator of these age effects. In addition to theoretical implications, these results may inform the refinement of interventions focused on enhancing PM function in late adulthood. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Acting with the future in mind is impaired in long-term opiate users.

RATIONALE: Episodic foresight is a fundamental human capacity. It refers to the ability to simulate future situations and organise current actions accordingly. While there is some evidence that opiate users have a reduced capacity to imagine themselves in future situations, no study to date has assessed whether opiate users show deficits in the ability to take steps in the present in anticipation of future needs. OBJECTIVE: In this study, we assessed whether this functional aspect of episodic foresight is impaired in chronic opiate users and the extent to which any deficits are associated with executive dysfunction. METHODS AND RESULTS: Participants were 33 long-term opiate users enrolled in an opiate substitution program and 34 controls. Relative to controls, the opiate users displayed significant impairment (medium effect size η 2p = 0.08) in the two behavioural measures of episodic foresight used (items acquired and items used in the VW Foresight task). Furthermore, executive functioning was associated with foresight ability, although this was restricted to items acquired, and the associations were generally stronger for the control group. CONCLUSIONS: These data provide important evidence suggesting that the functional aspect of episodic foresight is disrupted in long-term opiate users. While these deficits appear to have some links to impaired executive control, additional work is needed to gain a more complete understanding of the underlying cognitive and neural mechanisms involved. This, in turn, will have important implications for tailoring interventions with opiate users to maximise the likelihood of successful independent functioning.