Cognition In Older Adulthood Research Articles

NEW DIRECTIONS IN RESEARCH ON THE DYNAMICS OF PURPOSE IN LIFE AND COGNITIVE AGING

Abstract Purpose in life is the feeling that one’s life is goal oriented and has direction. There is converging, replicated evidence that having a greater sense of purpose in life is associated with better cognitive aging outcomes, including less cognitive decline across middle and older adulthood and lower risk of incident dementia. Emerging evidence also suggests that cognitive function may likewise support purpose in life. This symposium highlights recent advances on the dynamics between purpose in life and cognition across varying time scales and populations. Kim will describe the association between purpose in life and the maintenance of better cognitive function across six years in older adulthood and moderators of this association. Nelson and Bergeman will describe how cognitive function supported purpose in life through the uncertainty of the Covid-19 pandemic and moderators of this association. Pfund and colleagues will report on the bidirectional associations between purpose and cognition in older adulthood across four longitudinal samples using a coordinated data analytic approach. Finally, Sutin and colleagues will report on an ecological momentary assessment study that found that in moments when participants felt more purposeful, they had faster processing speed. Collectively, these talks emphasize the dynamic and often bidirectional relation between purpose in life and cognitive function. This work will help stimulate research to better understand purpose and cognitive health and how to leverage purpose in life for healthier cognitive aging outcomes.

14 The Impact of Visual Attention and Impulsivity on Disinhibited Eating Behaviors in Older Adults

Objective:Although the relationship between visual attention, impulsivity, and cognitively restrained eating patterns has been established in previous research, less is known about the relationship of cognitive processes and disinhibited eating patterns in older adults. Research postulates that disinhibited eating behaviors may be associated with stress, limited emotional capacity, anxiety, and impulsivity. The current study investigated impulsivity as a potential mediator of the relationship between visual attention and disinhibited eating in older veterans.Participants and Methods:This study included 101 Veterans who were screened as part of a larger study assessing the impact of multi-modal activity-based interventions on brain health in older adulthood. The sample included largely White (76%), male (94%) Veterans aged 54 to 88 (M = 70.1, SD 8.9). The Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire was used to assess daily disinhibited eating patterns, and attentional impulsivity was assessed with the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale. Visual attention was evaluated using the Stroop Color Word Test (Color Trial). Mediation analyses were conducted using the SPSS PROCESS Macro. The outcome variable for analysis was disinhibited eating. The predictor variable was visual attention. The mediator variable was impulsivity. Body mass index (BMI) was included as a covariate as it was significantly associated with the predictor and outcome variables.Results:The indirect effect of visual attention on disinhibited eating was found to be statistically significant (effect = 0.06, 95%: 0.02, 0.12)Conclusions:Attentional impulsivity appears to mediate the relationship between visual attention and disinhibited eating behaviors. This finding extends the current literature about the relationship between visual attention, impulsivity, and other eating patterns (e.g., cognitively restrained eating) in older adults. Exploring this relationship helps us better understand the impact of eating habits through the aging process. Caregivers and older adults should be informed about the impact of increased impulsivity on disinhibited eating behaviors, especially in those with limited visual attention processes. Further understanding of the neurobiological impact of eating behaviors on cognition in older adulthood may assist in developing awareness about the importance of healthy eating patterns when considering brain health in the aging process.

Age-varying association between depression symptoms and executive function among older adults: Moderation by physical activity

ObjectivesThis study assessed trends in depression symptoms, executive function, and their association across age among older adults. Subgroup comparisons were made between older adults meeting and not meeting physical activity guidelines on variables and associations of interest. MethodsParticipants (n = 2473) were older adults ages 60 to 79 from the 2011–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Depression symptoms, executive function, and physical activity were assessed, and weighted time-varying effect modeling was used for analyses. ResultsDepression symptoms were most severe at age 62 followed by a modest decline before a second peak around age 67. Executive function was highest at age 60 and declined steadily through age 77. Depression symptoms and executive function were negatively associated, but the strength and significance of this association varied with age. Older adults meeting physical activity guidelines had increased executive function and less severe depression symptoms, and meeting physical activity guidelines buffered the association between depression symptoms and executive function at key ages during older adulthood. ConclusionsDifferences by age should be considered when designing and implementing health programs and treatments focusing on mental health and cognition in older adulthood. Encouraging moderate-intensity physical activity may help protect older adults from depression-related cognitive decline.

Acute Effect of Resistance Training on Cognitive Function of Costa Rican Older Adults

Different types of exercise interventions have shown to improve cognitive performance; however, there is scarce evidence on the acute effect of resistance training (RT) on cognitions in older adults. The purpose of this study is to determine the acute effect of RT on cognitive performance in healthy older adults. 45 adults (Mean age = 65.3 ± 3.7 yr.) were randomly allocated to one of three groups: high-intensity RT (G1), low-intensity RT (G2), or inactive control (G3). Participants completed cognitive tests assessing processing speed, visuospatial processing, executive function, and cognitive control, working memory and immediate memory. The RT protocol for G1 and G2 consisted of six exercises. A 3x2 ANCOVA was performed with education as a covariate. Significant improvements were found on visuospatial processing in G1 (Pre = 61.6 ± 2.1 vs. Post = 69.7 ± 2.4; 95%CI = 4.8, 11.4; p ≤ 0.001) and G2 (Pre = 62.4 ± 2.2 vs. Post = 67.0 ± 2.5; 95%CI = 1.2, 8.1; p = 0.009). Other tested cognitive abilities were unchanged by acute exercise or rest. Acute RT enhanced or maintained cognitive performance in older adults. It was possible to successfully perform 1RM tests with older adults. Additional evidence is needed to determine effective protocols to improve cognition in older adulthood.

Depressive Symptoms, Leisure Activity Engagement, and Global Cognition in Non-Hispanic White and Black Older Adults

The apolipoprotein ε4 (APOE4) is the most prevalent genetic risk factor for late-onset Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). Here we assessed the metabolomic profile differences between APOE4 carriers who develop AD vs. who do not in a sample of 142 participants, aged 65-99 years in the Long Life Family Study (LLFS). Of 7,321 metabolites, we applied a generalized estimating equation model and identified 137 metabolites significantly associated with AD. Subsequent multivariate analyses were performed for prediction and clustering recognition. Among annotated metabolites, 8 metabolites in the eicosanoids and docosanoids group, 3 metabolites in the fatty acids group, and arabitol were associated with elevated risks of AD (OR: 1.6-2.3). On the other hand, a different set of metabolites were associated with reduced risks of AD (OR: 0.34-0.64). These metabolomic profile differences can be used to help with early diagnosis in the population of older APOE4 carriers in the pre-clinical stage.

Neighborhood environment and cognition in older adults: Exploring the mediating effect of physical activity

AbstractBackgroundEmerging evidence suggests neighborhood environment may shape both health behaviors and outcomes. Neighborhood environment could be particularly influential for community‐dwelling older adults who prefer to age in place. Recent studies report that neighborhood social and built environment characteristics significantly influence older adults’ cognition. However, the underlying mechanisms by which neighborhood environment affects cognition are not well understood. Regular physical activity in late life is associated with a lower risk for cognitive decline and may be affected by neighborhood amenities and resources. This study examined how the neighborhood social and built environment affects cognition in older adulthood and explored whether physical activity levels mediated these relationships.MethodThe cross‐sectional analyses included older adults from Wave 2 of the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (N = 3,196; mean age = 73.17, SD = 7.34; 52.6% female; median education = high school diploma; 77.3% Caucasian). We tested a structural equation model to examine associations among neighborhood social and built environment and cognition as measured by the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. Built environment was operationalized as a latent variable of living density, litter, noise, traffic, pollution, and conditions of respondents’ building and other buildings nearby. The social environment latent variable was constructed with social cohesion, social ties, and perceived neighborhood danger. We tested whether self‐reported frequency of rigorous physical activity mediated these environment‐cognition relationships.ResultThe results indicated (1) greater disadvantages in the neighborhood built environment were associated with worse cognition (est = ‐0.05, p < .001) and with lower levels of physical activity (est = ‐0.03, p = .001); (2) greater advantages in the neighborhood social environment were associated with better cognition (est = 0.03, p < .001) and higher levels of physical activity (est = 0.02, p < .001); however, (3) physical activity levels were not significantly associated with cognition (est = ‐0.02, p = .17).ConclusionThese results highlight the influence of neighborhood environment on both physical activity and cognition in older adulthood. While physical activity was not an underlying mechanism by which environment influences cognition, future studies should test for mediation using objectively‐measured physical activity.

Depressive Symptoms, Leisure Activity Engagement, and Global Cognition in Non-Hispanic Black and White Older Adults.

Prior research indicates that depressive symptoms disproportionately affect cognition in non-Hispanic Blacks relative to non-Hispanic Whites. Depressive symptoms have been linked to worse global cognition in older adulthood through lower leisure activity engagement, but less is known regarding the distinct types of activities that drive these associations and whether associations involving depressive symptoms, leisure activities, and cognition differ across racial groups. This cross-sectional study used data from the Michigan Cognitive Aging Project (n = 453, 52.80% Black, Mage = 63.60 years). Principal components analysis identified 6 subtypes of leisure activities (cognitive, creative, community, physical, children, and games). Mediation models examined whether distinct leisure activity subtypes mediated the association between depressive symptoms and performance on a comprehensive neuropsychological battery and whether race moderated these associations. There were no racial differences in the level of depressive symptoms after adjusting for sociodemographic, socioeconomic, and health covariates. Only lower cognitive activity engagement mediated the negative association between depressive symptoms and global cognition. Multigroup models revealed that this indirect effect was only evident in Blacks, who showed a stronger negative association between depressive symptoms and cognitive activity engagement than Whites. After accounting for indirect effects, a direct effect of higher depressive symptoms on worse cognition remained and did not differ across racial groups. Depressive symptoms may disproportionately affect cognition among Blacks through a greater negative impact on engagement in cognitively stimulating activities that have been shown to promote cognitive reserve. Additional research is necessary to identify other mechanisms linking depressive symptoms and cognition.

A Lifecourse Perspective on Female Sex-Specific Risk Factors for Later Life Cognition.

The prevalence of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias is greater in women compared to men. We provide a review of female sex-specific risk factors across the lifecourse for cognition in older adulthood, highlighting areas that need further study. Pregnancy may affect late-life cognition, with adverse pregnancy outcomes associated with an increased risk of cognitive decline but parity providing a protective effect. Cumulative estrogen exposure, influenced by age of menarche, menopause, and exogenous estrogen use, may modify a woman's risk for dementia. Menopause transition-associated symptoms may impact cognitive health at the time of the symptoms, but long-term effects remain unknown. As compared to natural menopause, surgical menopause seems to increase the risk for cognitive impairment. Studies that have assessed the association between women's reproductive health and cognition have produced conflicting results. Future studies that address these inconsistencies among diverse populations are needed to better care for women throughout their lives.

Predicting Age From Large-Scale Brain Networks: Evidence From the Cam-CAN Dataset Across the Lifespan

Changes in cognition observed in aging (e.g. a shift from prioritization of fluid cognition in young adulthood toward an emphasis on crystalized knowledge and semantic cognition in older adulthood) are believed to reflect alterations in neural connectivity in aging. Recent work specifically highlights how increased connectivity between executive control (EC) regions and default mode network (DMN) may underlie characteristic shifts in cognitive abilities between younger and older adults. However, the contribution of the salience network, which plays a crucial role in mediating the dynamic interplay between EC and DMN, is relatively overlooked. To extend previous work, we used a large cohort (N = 547) of participants from the Cam-CAN database (18-88 years old) to examine whether resting-state functional connectivity between EC and DMN can reliably predict participant age. We further examined how addition of the salience network impacts the hypothesized increased connectivity between EC and DMN as a result of aging. A series of multiple regression analyses using functional connectivity and age as variables revealed that connectivity between EC and DMN regions (specifically between dorsolateral and ventromedial prefrontal cortex and parietal regions, including the precuneus) accounted for a significant portion of age variability and that the inclusion of the salience network improved the models’ explanatory power. Follow-up analyses by age cohort further highlighted that these relationships dynamically change across the lifespan. We will discuss these findings in the context of default-executive coupling hypothesis for aging and propose avenues for future research in refinement of this model.

New Perspectives on Predicting and Modifying Cognition in Older Adulthood

The underlying theme of my research is to advance our understanding of cognitive aging through early detection of cognitive decline and the promotion of positive lifestyle factors. I will present my past and recent work that uses new perspectives to predict and modify cognition with older age, specifically focusing on intraindividual variability in cognitive speed, and lifestyle activity engagement. This includes examining the utility of variability in cognitive speed, usually a predictor of decline, instead as a predictor of cognitive plasticity following activity interventions. Further, the association between activity engagement and later cognitive ability and dementia risk is more complex than first appears. I will present research that looks at critical issues about the activity-cognition relation from a different perspective, including unique frameworks investigating the ideal way to measure activity, and the duration of how long past activity can potentially impact cognition. Finally, I will discuss my future research directions.

Aerobic Fitness Protects Against Age-Related Cognitive Decline In A Population At Risk For Alzheimer’S Disease

PURPOSE: To determine whether mid-late life aerobic fitness prospectively predicts longitudinal cognitive trajectories in a sample of cognitively unimpaired older adults at risk for Alzheimer’s disease. METHODS: One hundred and four adults (mean age at baseline 64.47 ± 6.1) from the Wisconsin Registry for Alzheimer’s Prevention underwent a graded treadmill exercise test and neurocognitive examinations at baseline assessment. Two additional biennial neurocognitive examinations were conducted 2.54 ± 0.96, and 4.00 ± 0.41 years after baseline testing (follow-up range: 1.54 - 4.80 years). Aerobic fitness was defined as the highest oxygen consumption (VO2peak, mL/kg/min) value recorded during the final stage of the maximal exercise test when standardized criteria were met. The cognitive measure of interest was the preclinical Alzheimer’s cognitive composite (PACC) score which includes neurocognitive measures that have demonstrated to be sensitive to early age-related decline in preclinical Alzheimer’s disease, i.e., measures from the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test and the Wechsler Intelligence and Memory Scales. A linear mixed effects model was used to investigate whether longitudinal trajectories of cognition varied as a function of fitness while controlling for the variance explained by age, sex, and education. RESULTS: On average, participants displayed a VO2peak of 26.57 ± 6.40 mL/kg/min. At baseline, age was negatively associated with fitness (r = -.43; p < .001) and cognitive function (r = -.27; p = .007). Longitudinal analysis revealed a significant time × VO2peak interaction (p = .032), indicating that greater aerobic fitness mitigated cognitive decline over a 2 - 4 year period. CONCLUSIONS: Cognitive function declines with age and the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. These data indicate that aerobic fitness may preserve cognition in older adulthood, and suggest that engagement in activities aimed at improving fitness (e.g. exercise training) may mitigate age-related cognitive decline. Future studies that assess changes in fitness will be needed to better elucidate the causality of the observed relationship. Ryan J. Dougherty was supported by a NIH NRSA grant: F31AG062009

Psychological distress links perceived neighborhood characteristics to longitudinal trajectories of cognitive health in older adulthood.

Perceived neighborhood characteristics have been linked to cognitive health in older adulthood. The pathways through which neighborhood characteristics could influence cognition in older adulthood, however, have not been fully explored. Poorer quality neighborhoods may negatively influence cognition through feelings of psychological distress. To examine whether perceived neighborhood physical disorder and social cohesion were associated with change in episodic memory and semantic verbal fluency through anxiety and depressive symptoms. Using the Health and Retirement Study (HRS; n=13,919), mediation models were conducted. Change in cognition (episodic memory and semantic verbal fluency) were modeled using latent growth curve models. Higher physical disorder was associated with worse initial episodic memory and verbal fluency through greater anxiety symptoms. Higher social cohesion was associated with better initial episodic memory and verbal fluency through both lower anxiety and fewer depressive symptoms. Further, individuals with higher social. cohesion reported lower anxiety and in turn, showed a slower rate of verbal fluency decline. A direct effect of physical disorder on initial episodic memory remained, after accounting for indirect effects and covariates. Overall, individuals who live in neighborhoods with high physical disorder and low social cohesion may experience greater psychological distress. Symptoms of anxiety and depression may, in turn, interfere with cognitive functioning. Neighborhood characteristics may be an important, targetable area for intervention to improve not only mental health outcomes, but cognitive health outcomes in older adulthood.

Self-reported cognition and marijuana use in older adults: Results from the national epidemiologic survey on alcohol and related conditions-III

Marijuana use among older adults is on an unprecedented rise, yet little is known about its effects on cognition in this population where, due to advanced age, risk for cognitive decline is high. Thus, we investigated whether marijuana use and use characteristics were associated with self-reported cognition among older adults ages ≥ 50 years using the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions-III. Respondents either had never used marijuana (“never”: n = 10,976), used but not in the past 12 months (“former”: n = 2990), or used in the past 12 months (“current”: n = 712). Self-reported cognition was measured using the Executive Function Index. Marijuana and substance use characteristics were obtained using the Alcohol Use Disorder and Associated Disabilities Interview Schedule-5. Covariates included demographics, mental health and disability, and comorbid mental and substance use disorder. Using general linear models of cross-sectional data, we found that current users, particularly those with cannabis use disorder, reported worse cognition than never or former users, but these effects were small in magnitude. Among both former and current users, greater duration of past use was associated with worse cognition. Frequent use within the past 12 months was associated with worse cognition among current users, but daily users reported better cognition compared to monthly or weekly users. Thus, marijuana use may impact self-reported cognition in older adulthood, although these effects may be subtle, specific to particular use characteristics, and possibly affected by self-awareness of deficits. Future work using objective measures such as neuropsychological testing or neuroimaging may better elucidate these effects.

Daily linkages among high and low arousal affect and subjective cognitive complaints

Objectives: Subjective cognitive complaints may be an early indicator of Alzheimer’s disease pathology and related dementias that can be detectable prior to objective, performance-based decline. Negative and positive affective states (NA and PA, respectively) are established psychosocial correlates of cognition in older adulthood and have demonstrated capacity for meaningful within-person fluctuations based on person-environment interactions, age, and measurement approach.Method: We utilized data from a 100-day, microlongitudinal study of 105 community-dwelling older adults (Mage = 63.19, SD = 7.80, Range = 52–88) to explore within- and between-person associations between high and low arousal NA and PA, and memory- and attention-related complaints.Results: For memory-related complaints, those who reported experiencing greater NA-high arousal had increased forgetfulness (OR = 2.23, 95%CI: 1.11–4.49, p < .05). Within persons, reporting more NA-high arousal than usual was associated with increased forgetfulness (OR = 1.01, 95%CI: 1.004–1.018, p < .01). For attention-related complaints, those who reported experiencing greater NA-low arousal had increased trouble staying focused (OR = 2.34, 95%CI: 1.17–4.66, p < .05). Within persons, reporting more NA-low arousal (OR = 1.02, 95%CI: 1.01–1.03, p < .001) and less PA-high arousal (OR = 0.96, 95%CI: 0.95–0.97, p < .001) than usual was associated with increased trouble staying focused. Additionally, reporting more PA-low arousal than usual was associated with decreased trouble staying focused among those with higher levels of conscientiousness (OR = 0.72, 95%CI: 0.57–0.92, p < .01).Conclusion: Results from this study offer a means to maximize resource allocation and personalized cognitive health efforts by pinpointing for whom and on which days boosting PA and/or reducing NA may both serve as pathways to benefit daily subjective cognition.

DYNAMIC, BIDIRECTIONAL LONGITUDINAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEISURE ACTIVITY ENGAGEMENT AND COGNITIVE PERFORMANCE

Engagement in leisure activities, i.e., intellectual, social, and physical activities, may reduce the risk of incident dementia, yet little is known about the longitudinal, dynamic relationship between overall leisure activity engagement and cognition in older adulthood. Using data from a survey measure of 13 leisure activities, e.g., doing unpaid volunteer work and playing cards, games, or bingo, and a neuropsychological battery collected concurrently over 14 years from 2,259 multi-ethnic participants (mean age of 76.0 years) in the Washington Heights-Inwood Columbia Aging Project, we used a parallel process latent growth curve model of trajectories of both leisure activity engagement and cognitive z-scores (global cognitive performance, language, memory, and visuospatial ability). Estimates were adjusted for baseline age, years of education, sex, race/ethnicity, recruitment year, occupation (unskilled, skilled, and housewife), and baseline income. More baseline activity engagement (range, 0-13, higher indicating more engagement) was associated with higher baseline cognitive performance, i.e., global cognitive performance (estimate=0.129, standard error, SE=0.017, p<0.001), language (estimate=0.146, SE=0.020, p<0.001), memory (estimate=0.141, SE=0.025, p<0.001), and visuospatial ability (estimate=0.111, SE=0.020, p<0.001). Decline in leisure activity engagement were associated with decline in global cognitive performance (estimate=0.002, SE=0.000, p<0.001), language (estimate=0.002, SE=0.000, p<0.001), memory (estimate=0.002, SE=0.001, p<0.001), and visuospatial ability (estimate=0.001, SE=0.000, p=0.001). While both level and change in overall leisure activity engagement and cognitive performance were correlated, level of one did not predict change in the other. Similar relationships were found when examining leisure activity categories. This suggests a dynamic, bidirectional relationship between leisure activity engagement and cognitive performance among older adults.

Immediate and long-term efficacy of executive functions cognitive training in older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

There has been growing interest in enhancing cognition in older adulthood via computerized cognitive training (CCT), though, there is controversy surrounding the efficacy of CCT in promoting improvements to functional everyday activities. As core executive-functions (EFs)-cognitive-flexibility, inhibition, working memory-are applicable to most aspects of daily living, CCT targeting these processes would likely promote gains on trained tasks, and potentially on similar untrained tasks (near-transfer), and general cognitive performance (far-transfer). We report two meta-analyses investigating the immediate (pretest to posttest) and long-term efficacy (pretest to follow-up) of core-EF CCT in improving cognition among older adults. Sixty-four studies (encompassing 3,594 participants) included an eligible CCT intervention targeting at least 1 core-EF (e.g., working memory training). Both immediate and long-term efficacy analyses revealed significant, large training effects for trained outcomes, and significant, small training effects for near-transfer and far-transfer outcomes. When comparing the same studies, effect sizes from immediate and long-term efficacy analyses were comparable, suggesting that CCT gains were maintained over time. Further analyses of immediate efficacy revealed significant, small training effects for performance on executive functioning, fluid intelligence, memory, and visuospatial domains, but not for attention or processing speed. After adjusting for publication bias, the training effect for fluid intelligence was nonsignificant, whereas processing speed was significant. It is recommended that future studies employ adaptive multidomain training as these studies were shown to produce significant training effects at each transfer level. Overall, core-EF CCT interventions show promise in promoting immediate and long-term improvements in cognitive performance among older adults. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Two sides of the same coin? Association of variety and frequency of activity with cognition.

The majority of research focused on activity engagement and cognition in older adulthood uses frequency of engagement as the primary metric. Another option is the variety of activities. Carlson et al. (2012) found evidence that a greater variety of activity was protective against cognitive impairment over and above weighted frequency of engagement, suggesting that there may be something unique about activity diversity. The present study compared variety and frequency of activity estimated across 2 different time frames regarding their association with cognitive performance. Community-dwelling participants 60-91 years of age (M = 70.36; n = 199) reported their participation in 57 activities over the past 2 years and logged their daily activities for 1 week. Frequency and variety of activity over 2 years, and across the week were calculated. Structural equation models showed that the frequency indices had a greater number of significant activity factors, and minimally stronger links with the 3 cognitive factors compared to variety of activity. Frequency had stronger associations with cognition for both the 2-year and daily activity estimates, but greater explained variance was only evident when activity was estimated over the past two years. The overall pattern of results was similar for both variety and frequency of activity, highlighting the strong overlap between the 2 indices. Our results support the conclusion that frequency and variety of engagement have similar associations with cognition, and that the most active individuals also have the most diverse engagement. Therefore, a variety index may be sufficient when collecting activity data. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

The Shifting Architecture of Cognition and Brain Function in Older Adulthood

Cognitive aging is often described in the context of loss or decline. Emerging research suggests that the story is more complex, with older adults showing both losses and gains in cognitive ability. With increasing age, declines in controlled, or fluid, cognition occur in the context of gains in crystallized knowledge of oneself and the world. This inversion in cognitive capacities, from greater reliance on fluid abilities in young adulthood to increasingly crystallized or semanticized cognition in older adulthood, has profound implications for cognitive and real-world functioning in later life. The shift in cognitive architecture parallels changes in the functional network architecture of the brain. Observations of greater functional connectivity between lateral prefrontal brain regions, implicated in cognitive control, and the default network, implicated in memory and semantic processing, led us to propose the default-executive coupling hypothesis of aging. In this review we provide evidence that these changes in the functional architecture of the brain serve as a neural mechanism underlying the shifting cognitive architecture from younger to older adulthood. We incorporate findings spanning cognitive aging and cognitive neuroscience to present an integrative model of cognitive and brain aging, describing its antecedents, determinants, and implications for real-world functioning.

Intrinsic default-executive coupling of the creative aging brain.

Creativity refers to the ability to generate novel associations and has been linked to better problem-solving and real-world functional abilities. In younger adults, creative cognition has been associated with functional connectivity among brain networks implicated in executive control [fronto-parietal network (FPN) and salience network (SN)] and associative or elaborative processing default network (DN). Here, we investigate whether creativity is associated with the intrinsic network architecture of the brain and how these associations may differ for younger and older adults. Young (mean age: 24.76, n = 22) and older (mean age: 70.03, n = 44) adults underwent multi-echo functional magnetic resonance image scanning at rest and completed a divergent-thinking task to assess creative cognition outside the scanner. Divergent thinking in older adults, compared to young adults, was associated with functional connectivity between the default and both executive control networks (FPN and SN) as well as more widespread default–executive coupling.Finally, the ventromedial prefrontal cortex appears to be a critical node involved in within- and between-network connectivity associated with creative cognition in older adulthood. Patterns of intrinsic network coupling revealed here suggest a putative neural mechanism underlying a greater role for mnemonic processes in creative cognition in older adulthood.

Using Actigraphy to Predict the Ecological Momentary Assessment of Mood, Fatigue, and Cognition in Older Adulthood: Mixed-Methods Study.

BackgroundSleep quality has been associated with cognitive and mood outcomes in otherwise healthy older adults. However, most studies have evaluated sleep quality as aggregate and mean measures, rather than addressing the impact of previous night’s sleep on next-day functioning.ObjectiveThis study aims to evaluate the ability of previous night’s sleep parameters on self-reported mood, cognition, and fatigue to understand short-term impacts of sleep quality on next-day functioning.MethodsIn total, 73 cognitively healthy older adults (19 males, 54 females) completed 7 days of phone-based self-report questions, along with 24-hour actigraph data collection. We evaluated a model of previous night’s sleep parameters as predictors of mood, fatigue, and perceived thinking abilities the following day.ResultsPrevious night’s sleep predicted fatigue in the morning and midday, as well as sleepiness or drowsiness in the morning; however, sleep measures did not predict subjective report of mood or perceived thinking abilities the following day.ConclusionsThis study suggests that objectively measured sleep quality from the previous night may not have a direct or substantial relationship with subjective reporting of cognition or mood the following day, despite frequent patient reports. Continued efforts to examine the relationship among cognition, sleep, and everyday functioning are encouraged.