Correlations among Tip of the Tongue Phenomenon, Common Noun Naming and Memory in Healthy Elderly Adults

Abstract

Objectives: The frequency of the ‘tip of the tongue (TOT) phenomenon’, a condition in which a person feels they know a target word but cannot recall its name, increases with aging. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among the TOT phenomenon, common noun naming, and memory.Methods: Eighty-eight healthy elderly adults participated in the study. The study used a TOT phenomenon task (celebrity naming test), common noun naming tasks (confrontational naming and generative naming), and subjective and objective memory tasks.Results: First, there were significant correlations among the total score of the confrontation naming test, the performances of generative naming test, and the TOT rate. Second, the voluntary TOT solution rate was not significantly related to performance on the common noun naming test. However, the TOT solution rate after syllable cues was significantly correlated with the performance of the confrontation naming test, the correct response rate after syllabic cues, and the phonemic category of the generative naming test. Third, the performances of subjective and objective memory were significantly correlated with the TOT rate. Fourth, the voluntary TOT solution rate was correlated with the delayed recall of objective memory, while the TOT solution rate after syllable cues was only correlated with subjective memory. Finally, regression analyses showed that confrontation naming, delayed recall, and recognition influenced the TOT rate.Conclusion: The clinical significance of this study is that it examined the relationships among the TOT phenomenon, common noun naming, and memory in healthy elderly adults.