British Journal of Psychology (2015) © 2015 The British Psychological Society www.wileyonlinelibrary.com Age and active navigation effects on episodic memory: A virtual reality study H el ene Sauz eon 1,2 *, Bernard N’Kaoua 1,2 , Prashant Arvind Pala 1 , Mathieu Taillade 1 and Pascal Guitton 2,3 1 Handicap and Nervous System, University of Bordeaux, France 2 Inria, Talence, France 3 University of Bordeaux, France We investigated the navigation-related age effects on learning, proactive interference semantic clustering, recognition hits, and false recognitions in a naturalistic situation using a virtual apartment-based task. We also examined the neuropsychological correlates (executive functioning [EF] and episodic memory) of navigation-related age effects on memory. Younger and older adults either actively navigated or passively followed the computer-guided tour of an apartment. The results indicated that active navigation increased recognition hits compared with passive navigation, but it did not influence other memory measures (learning, proactive interference, and semantic clustering) to a similar extent in either age group. Furthermore, active navigation helped to reduce false recognitions in younger adults but increased those made by older adults. This differential effect of active navigation for younger and older adults was accounted for by EF score. Like for the subject-performed task effects, the effects from the navigation manipulation were well accounted for by item-specific/relational processing distinction, and they were also consistent with a source monitoring deficit in older adults. Episodic memory (EM) is known to decline with ageing, and this type of memory decline is one of the most disabling consequences with respect to the main role of memory needed to effectively perform numerous everyday life activities (e.g., remembering personal experiences such as the location of personal keys at home; McDaniel, Einstein, & Jacoby, 2008). In everyday life, memory and other cognitive functions are intermingled with actions (Foley & Ratner, 2001). Thus, the study of sensorimotor involvement in older adults during learning and memory performances is critical for a better understanding of the way memory functions in everyday life. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate first the effects of ageing on EM in a naturalistic situation using virtual reality (VR) and second how sensorimotor information can modulate age-related effects through active navigation. In neuropsychology, it is crucial to understand how sensorimotor information processing interacts with cognitive processing, particularly within the field of cognitive ageing. Recently, the use of VR technology has enabled the understanding of this interaction in a very ecological way (e.g., Jansen-Osmann & Fuchs, 2006). For instance, subjects actively navigating (e.g., using joysticks and a mouse to freely interact with the *Correspondence should be addressed to H el  ene Sauz eon, Centre Inria Bordeaux Sud Ouest, 200 avenue de la Vieille Tour, 33400 Talence, France (email: helene.sauzeon@u-bordeaux.fr). DOI:10.1111/bjop.12123 1