Age-specific binding effects

3x2x2 design factor 1: condition (feature-alone color, feature-alone shape, binding) factor 2: block (two experimental runs/condition/participants) factor 3: group (old vs young participants) In this study, we compared the electrophysiological activity associated with the binding process in young (N=22, mean age=28.5) and old (N=22; mean age=67.4) participants in a change detection task. Analysis of event-related brain potentials (ERP) focused on the differences between feature-alone (color or shape) and feature-conjunction (color-shape) conditions in stimulus encoding. Independently of aging, discrimination ability was significantly attenuated in the binding condition. The effect, however, was more pronounced in old participants. ERP components related to the visual feature detection and processing (posterior N1 and frontal P2) were not modulated in the binding condition. Only in old participants, a late positive ERP component (LPC) was increased signaling the allocation of additional resources.