Relation of everyday activities of adults to their prose recall performance

This study is concerned with the connection between the everyday activities of adults of different ages and their performance on a prose recall task. Participants were 54 adults, 18 in each of three age groups (18-32, 40-54, over 62). Written recall of two 388-word expository prose passages was used for the prose recall measure. For the activities measures, a structured diary form was used to collect information. Regression analyses showed that the demographic variables of age, education, and verbal ability were the best predictors of prose recall. Total time spent reading and other reading variables were also significantly correlated with recall. In multiple regression analyses a set of prose-related activities made a significant contribution to explaining the variance in prose recall. The results provide limited support for a ‘‘practice” model which argues that performance on prose recall tasks is related to the amount of practice that adults get in similar activities in everyday life.