ABSTRACT
We use our memories across our entire lives, and as we age, our memory systems change. In general, our memory is best during early adulthood, and worst during our youngest and oldest years. However, the nature of memory changes across the lifespan is much more complex than this. This chapter covers how various memory abilities change as we age, from infancy and childhood, through early and later adulthood. It covers what children remember during their childhood, what people remember as adults from their childhood including infantile amnesia, a discussion of cognitive peak, how healthy aging affects memory processes as people age, and, finally, a discussion of memory diseases that are associated with aging, including dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
