Generalized slowing is not that general in older adults: evidence from a tracing task.

One of the fundamental concomitants of aging is generalized slowing of almost all motor and mental functions. The present study aimed to elucidate the generality of slowing across different sensorimotor tasks. Results show that although slowing can be found in many tasks, older adults perform faster in a tracing task compared to their younger counterparts. Potential explanations of these findings are discussed with respect to biological changes in the course of aging and with respect to cultural and technological developments during the last decades.