Daniel G. Morrow, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Psychology

University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana
Institute of Aviation
Aviation Human Factors Division (MC 394)
#1 Airport Rd
Savoy IL 61874
Phone: (217)-244-8757
Email: dgm@uiuc.edu

Area of Interest

My research investigates the impact of aging on communication and complex task performance, with a focus on factors that mitigate age declines. This work is anchored in two general domains. 1) Pilot performance. We examine the extent to which expertise reduces the effects of cognitive aging on communication, decision-making, and other piloting tasks. Current studies focus on strategies such as note-taking as potential sources of compensation for older pilots. 2) Health care. Our general goal is to design health-related communication that supports performance of self-care tasks. We have developed medication instructions that are organized according to elders' schemas for taking medication. A current study is examining the impact of such patient-centered instructions on elders' medication adherence and health outcomes. The research in both domains is informed by more basic research in our lab concerning the impact of aging on text processing and representation.

Publications

Morrow, D.G. (2003). Technology as environmental support for older adults' daily activities. In N. Charness & W. Schaie (Eds.), The impact of technology on successful aging (pp 290-305). Springer.

Morrow, D.G., Ridolfo, H.E., Menard, W.E., Sanborn, A., Stine-Morrow, E.A.L., Magnor, C., Herman, L., Teller, T. & Bryant, D. (2003). Environmental support promotes expertise-based mitigation of age differences in pilot communication tasks. Psychology and Aging. 18, 268-284.

Morrow, D.G., Menard, W.E., Ridolfo, H.E., Stine-Morrow, E.A.L., Teller, T. & Bryant, D. (2003). Expertise, cognitive ability, and age effects on pilot communication. International Journal of Aviation Psychology. 13, 345-371.

Morrow, D.G., Ridolfo, H.E., Menard, W.E., & Leirer, V.O. (2003). Arriving prepared:
Automated reminders improve adherence to pre-appointment procedures. Gerontechnology. 2, 247-254.

Stine-Morrow, E.A.L., Morrow, D.G., & Leno, R. (2002). Aging and resource allocation to the situation model in narrative understanding. Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences. 57B, P291-P297.

Morrow, D.G., Leirer, V.O., Carver, L.M., & Tanke, E.D. (2002). Medication schemas and memory for automated telephone messages. Human Factors. 42, 523-540.

Morrow, D.G., Menard, W.E., Stine-Morrow, E.A.L., Teller, T., & Bryant, D. (2001). The influence of task factors and expertise on age differences in pilot communication. Psychology and Aging. 16, 31-46.

Morrow, D.G., & Leirer, V.O. (2001). A patient-centered approach to designing automated telephone messages for older adults. In W. Rogers and D. Fisk (Eds.), Human Factors interventions for the health care of older adults (pp 179-203). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

Keywords

cognitive aging, comprehension, pilot performance, health communication, adherence, human factors