The Relationship Between Metamemory and Memory in Old Age

The purpose of this research is to explore the relationship of metamemory and memory of elders and to evaluate the effectiveness of a metamemory cognitive intervention on elders with mild cognitive impairment and low memory self-efficacy.

There are 3 studies in the present research. Study 1 is a reliability and validity study of the Chinese Metamemory Scales. Study 2 is a cross-sectional study to explore the relationship between metamemory and memory of elders encountered in Hong Kong primary health care setting.Study 3 is an Effectiveness Study of Metamemory Cognitive Intervention on elders with mild cognitive impairment and low memory self-efficacy.

This research has the following aims and hypotheses:

Research Aims:

1. To evaluate the reliability and validity of the Chinese Metamemory Scales
2. To explore the relationship between metamemory and memory of elders
3. To evaluate the effectiveness of a metamemory cognitive intervention on Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) elders who have low memory self-efficacy

Research Hypotheses:

Study 1: The Chinese Metamemory Scales will show acceptable psychometric properties.

Study 2: There is a positive correlation between metamemory (subjective memory) and memory (objective memory) and this relationship is mediated by stereotyped beliefs about memory ageing.

Study 3: Comparing to Control Group, the Intervention Group will yield the following expected results:

1. There is an improvement in objective memory measures post-training.
2. There is an improvement in subjective memory measures post-training.
3. There is an improvement in mood measures post-training.

Eligibility Criteria:
Inclusion Criteria:

* Study 1:

Participants are Chinese elderly of age 65 or above and they speak Cantonese as their primary language. They are to be recruited from a convenience sample of clients who are without cognitive problems and are attending service in the Elderly Health Centres (EHC) of the Elderly Health Service of the Department of Health, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (HKSARG).

* Study 2:

In addition to the inclusion criteria of Study 1, EHC members with confirmed dementia, suspected dementia, and suspected MCI will also be invited to participate in Study 2. However, confirmed demented clients and suspected demented clients must show their capacity to appraise by passing Quality of Life Appraisal Inventory (CapQOL) (Wong, J.G.W.S. et al., 2005) before they are accepted to the Study. All clients are recruited upon consent.

* Study 3:

Suspected MCI participants of Study 2 with below average memory self-efficacy assessed to have MCI (according to operational definition) will be invited and recruited to Study 3 upon consent. In the present research, MCI is defined operationally according to prior local studies and determined with reference to the educational level-adjusted cutoff scores of Chinese Mini Mental Status Examination (CMMSE) and Abbreviated version of Memory Inventory for the Chinese combined (Lam, L. C.W. \& et al., 2005; Lam, L.C.W. \& et al., 2008).

Exclusion Criteria:

* The presence of currently active medical conditions potentially affecting cognition e.g. vitamin B12 deficiency, hypothyroidism, chronic alcoholism, delirium, and active psychiatric disorders e.g. schizophrenia
* Other conditions that might affect cognitive competency e.g. aphasia, severe visual or hearing impairment.