Age-Related Changes in Saccade Behavior

Some studies have emphasized the effect of age on saccade properties. This study aimed to examine whether prosaccade and antisaccade performance changes with age. The participant groups were 49 young adults, 25 middle-aged adults, and 31 older adults. Participants were asked to look at the stimulus presented in the prosaccade task and to look in the opposite direction of the stimulus for 1000 milliseconds (ms) in the antisaccade task. Young adults had longer latencies and higher correct saccade rates compared with middle-aged and older adults for both tasks. The rates of anticipatory saccades and uncorrected errors were lower in young adults than in both groups. The decrease in rates of correct saccades and the increase in rates of anticipatory saccades and uncorrected errors in older individuals compared to middle-aged individuals may reflect working memory and inhibition difficulties that may begin in middle age.