Dispositional mindfulness and anxiety: how do they relate to aging and word retrieval?

Word retrieval performance declines with age, but dispositional mindfulness may buffer the negative effects of anxiety on word retrieval in older adults. In a sample of 207 adults aged 20–78, increased age was associated with more correct responses, higher dispositional mindfulness, and lower anxiety. Mindfulness and anxiety were correlated in expected directions across the sample. However, anxiety and mindfulness scores predicted word retrieval only in older adults, not in younger or middle-aged groups. The authors conclude that dispositional mindfulness can attenuate the negative effects of state anxiety on word retrieval, but only for older adults.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Separate domains of research have previously shown that word retrieval performance is reduced with increased anxiety, and that increased mindfulness is associated with reduced anxiety. Adult aging has been shown to affect word retrieval, mindfulness, and anxiety, but the inter-relationships among these variables have not been previously tested. The present research examined whether individual differences in dispositional mindfulness and anxiety relate to word retrieval performance across adulthood. Participants (N = 207) ages 20–78 completed an online definition-naming task along with several self-report measures related to mindfulness and anxiety. Increased age was positively related to increased production of correct responses and to increased dispositional mindfulness, and negatively related to state anxiety, trait anxiety, and anxiety specifically related to communication. For the entire sample, measures related to mindfulness and anxiety were intercorrelated in the expected ways. We divided participants into groups of young, middle-aged, and older adults, and found that anxiety and mindfulness scores were only associated with correct word retrieval in older adults; there were no relationships in young or middle-aged participants. The primary conclusion is that dispositional mindfulness can attenuate the negative effects of state anxiety on word retrieval performance, but only for older adults. Study results contribute important empirical, theoretical, and practical information regarding mindfulness, anxiety, word retrieval, and aging.