The deficit may result from a well documented general decline in sensory and motor processes. Employment of inefficient strategies, and failure to use cognitive abilities Generally age alone is not a good predictor of performance on cognitive tasks as there are large interindividual differences. The type of skill being tested seems particularly important when assessing cognitive abilities in older people. If the rate of task presentation is reduced, performance often improves. Expertise - many older people are not familiar with, e.g. , computers that are used in the laboratory testing situation.
Some studies show less decline with tasks that require switching of attention between tasks.
As at all ages a number of personal factors affect cognitive performance.