The nature of the mental processes involved in metaphorcomprehension has been the focus of debate. Research related tothis debate has mainly examined the comprehension of simplenominal metaphors. Here we take an individual-differencesapproach to examine the comprehension of slightly morecomplex metaphors, some taken from literary sources, using twotypes of comprehension tests (selecting an overall interpretationor else selecting a completion). In a series of metaphor-comprehension experiments with college students, we measuredboth fluid intelligence (using the non-verbal Raven’s ProgressiveMatrices test) and crystalized verbal intelligence (using a newSemantic Similarities Test). Each measure had a dissociablepredictive relationship to metaphor comprehension, at least forthose of the more complex literary variety. The pattern ofindividual differences suggests that metaphor comprehensionbroadly depends on both crystalized and fluid intelligence, withthe latter less important for relatively simple metaphors.

Older adults may experience certain forms of cognitive decline, but some forms of semantic memory remain intact in older age. To address how metaphor comprehension changes with age and whether metaphor comprehension relies more heavily on analogical reasoning (supported by fluid intelligence) or on conceptual combination (supported by crystalized intelligence), we compared performance of younger and older adults. In two experiments, healthy older adults (54-88 years) scored lower on a measure of fluid intelligence (Ravens Progressive Matrices) but higher on a measure of crystalized intelligence (Mill Hill Vocabulary Test) relative to younger adults (18-34 years). Groups were equally successful in comprehending relatively easy metaphors (Study 1), but older adults showed a striking advantage over younger adults for novel literary metaphors (Study 2). Mixed-effects modeling showed that measures of fluid and crystalized intelligence each made separable contributions to metaphor comprehension for both groups, but older adults relied more on crystalized intelligence than did younger adults. These age-related dissociations clarify cognitive effects of aging and highlight the importance of crystalized intelligence for metaphor comprehension in both younger and older adults. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).