Age groups differ in ICAP engagement distribution: younger adults engage more in active mode, older adults more in constructive and interactive modes, during collaborative concept-map learning¶
Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study (3 entries) · associationalr1·q3·i3large
Currency · newest study 2025 · checked against its sources 2026-10-20 (automated, 3 of 3 entries) · not reviewed by a person
Subclaims¶
Reading the evidence codes
q is the design tier, i the impact, n the sample, and the kind with its r
the rigour judged within that kind: what each code means.
This claim: no standardized effect is recorded in observations/ for it yet, so no benchmark reading is possible.
q3 i3 Younger adults produced more active utterances than older adults. → Shigen Shimojo 2025
q3 i3 Older adults produced more constructive utterances than younger adults. → Shigen Shimojo 2025 (2)
q3 i3 Older adults were more interactive than younger adults. → Shigen Shimojo 2025 (3)
Evidence¶
Shigen Shimojo 2025¶
Shigen Shimojo, Yugo Hayashi. (2025). Age-related differences in explanatory activities during collaborative learning with concept maps: experimental investigation using epistemic network analysis. Intern. J. Comput.-Support. Collab. Learn. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11412-025-09456-5
q3 · i3 · associational · r1
ICAP-coded utterances (α = 0.68) in the 52-participant experiment: "revealing a significant difference between younger adults (median = 98.50) and older adults (median = 33.00)" for active mode (U = 515, p =.002, r = 0.448).
"For active, a Mann–Whitney U test was performed, revealing a significant difference between younger adults (median = 98.50) and older adults (median = 33.00) (U = 515, p =.002, r = 0.448)."
Shigen Shimojo 2025 (2)¶
Shigen Shimojo, Yugo Hayashi. (2025). Age-related differences in explanatory activities during collaborative learning with concept maps: experimental investigation using epistemic network analysis. Intern. J. Comput.-Support. Collab. Learn. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11412-025-09456-5
q3 · i3 · associational · r?
Constructive-mode counts favored older adults: "a difference was found between younger adults (median = 17.00) and older adults (median = 26.00)" (U = 58, p <.001, r = 0.771), i.e. more older adults than young adults in constructive mode.
"Next, a Mann–Whitney U test was performed for constructive, and a difference was found between younger adults (median = 17.00) and older adults (median = 26.00) (U = 58, p <.001, r = 0.771)."
Shigen Shimojo 2025 (3)¶
Shigen Shimojo, Yugo Hayashi. (2025). Age-related differences in explanatory activities during collaborative learning with concept maps: experimental investigation using epistemic network analysis. Intern. J. Comput.-Support. Collab. Learn. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11412-025-09456-5
q3 · i3 · associational · r?
Interactive-mode counts: "older adults were more interactive than younger adults" (median 29.00 vs 12.00; U = 182, p =.004, r = 0.395).
"Furthermore, for interactive, a Mann–Whitney U test revealed a difference between younger adults (median = 12.00) and older adults (median = 29.00) (U = 182, p =.004, r = 0.395)."
Discussion¶
Related Claims¶
- Engagement modes were unevenly distributed across units, with some units rated Interactive and others entirely Passive — related
- No age difference in the strength of active–constructive connections in collaborative discourse networks — related
- Younger adults outperform older adults in concept-map performance, and older adults show no concept-map improvement — related
- ENA reveals different utterance co-occurrence structures by age: older adults show a stronger active–interactive connection while younger adults' constructive–interactive connection is not statistically confirmed — related
- The ICAP hypothesis predicts that learning increases as engagement moves from passive to active to constructive to interactive (I>C>A>P) — a broader claim this one bears on
- Constructive learning beats active and passive learning — related
- Interactive engagement requires both partners' utterances to be primarily constructive and a sufficient degree of turn taking — related
- Interaction during semiempty concept mapping shows higher transactivity: less elicitation and more externalization and integration than summary writing — related
- Younger adults show higher learning performance than older adults in collaborative concept-map learning of psychological concepts, and older adults show no learning gain — related
- Concept-map generation requires age-appropriate instructional support: younger learners profit from high-coherence, pre-structured maps — related
Page metadata
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
type |
claim |
id |
icap-engagement-distribution-age-differences |
title |
Age groups differ in ICAP engagement distribution: younger adults engage more in active mode, older adults more in constructive and interactive modes, during collaborative concept-map learning |
description |
Age groups differ in ICAP engagement distribution: younger adults engage more in active mode, older adults more in constructive and interactive modes, during collaborative concept-map learning |
status |
review |
evidence_strength |
moderate |
newest_evidence |
2025 |
source_checked |
2026-10-20 |
generated |
by process:wiki-ingest on 2026-10-18 |
trust |
unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content |
sources |
3 — shigen-shimojo-2025, shigen-shimojo-2025-2, shigen-shimojo-2025-3 |
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