Final answer:
Verbal information processed in working memory is typically unaffected with age due to the advantages of semantic encoding and the self-reference effect, contributing to the stability or improvement in crystallized intelligence.
Step-by-step explanation:
The type of information processed in working memory that is typically unaffected with age is verbal information. As we age, our cognitive abilities, specifically our crystallized intelligence, which includes our accumulated knowledge and verbal skills, tend to remain stable or even improve. This can be credited to the semantic encoding of verbal information, which is a deeper level of processing and is less susceptible to age-related decline compared to visual-spatial, auditory, or abstract information.
Cognitive studies, such as those by psychologists Fergus Craik and Endel Tulving, have shown that verbal information encoded semantically is better remembered than when encoded visually or acoustically. Semantic encoding involves connecting words to meaning and integrates the self-reference effect, which suggests that people remember information better when it's related to themselves. Given this understanding, verbal information persists as a strength in memory retention with age.