Abstract
Examined the nature of change and antecedents of differential change in selected personality and intelligence factors in later life. On 2 occasions at an interval of 2 yrs, a battery of personality and intelligence tests was administered to 76 community-residing elderly Ss (mean age 69 yrs). Intelligence factors were Fluid and Crystallized Intelligence, Perceptual Speed, and Memory Span. Personality factors were Internal, Chance, and Powerful Others Locus of Control; Intellectual Self-Efficacy; and Concern About Intellectual Aging. Structural invariance over time was found for the personality and intelligence factors. Average level of Perceptual Speed and Memory Span increased, and Internal Control declined over the 2 yrs. Two dimensions, Memory and Efficacy, exhibited marked change in interindividual rankings. Causal modeling techniques suggested that personality did not account for changes in Memory Span. Changes in perceived Intellectual Self-Efficacy, however, were predicted by antecedent individual differences in Fluid Intelligence and Internal Locus of Control. (42 ref)