Imagery Pretraining and Memory Training in the Elderly

Two groups of elderly subjects were taught a standard mnemonic to improve a common memory complaint among elders, face-name recall. One group (imagery group) was first taught techniques to improve visual imagery ability before learning the mnemonic while the other group (control group) was taught a nonspecific method to improve attitudes before learning the mnemonic. Overall performance on face/name recall was significantly better in the imagery group than in the control group. These results may have implications for the use of imagery based mnemonics for memory training in elderly populations.