Cognitively Stimulating Activities: Effects on Cognition across Four Studies with up to 21 Years of Longitudinal Data
Engagement in cognitively stimulating activities has been considered to maintain or strengthen cognitive skills, thereby minimizing age-related cognitive decline. While the idea that there may be a modifiable behavior that could lower risk for cognitive decline is appealing and potentially empowerin...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2012-01-01
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| Series: | Journal of Aging Research |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/461592 |
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| author | Meghan B. Mitchell Cynthia R. Cimino Andreana Benitez Cassandra L. Brown Laura E. Gibbons Robert F. Kennison Steven D. Shirk Alireza Atri Annie Robitaille Stuart W. S. MacDonald Magnus Lindwall Elizabeth M. Zelinski Sherry L. Willis K. Warner Schaie Boo Johansson Roger A. Dixon Dan M. Mungas Scott M. Hofer Andrea M. Piccinin |
| author_facet | Meghan B. Mitchell Cynthia R. Cimino Andreana Benitez Cassandra L. Brown Laura E. Gibbons Robert F. Kennison Steven D. Shirk Alireza Atri Annie Robitaille Stuart W. S. MacDonald Magnus Lindwall Elizabeth M. Zelinski Sherry L. Willis K. Warner Schaie Boo Johansson Roger A. Dixon Dan M. Mungas Scott M. Hofer Andrea M. Piccinin |
| author_sort | Meghan B. Mitchell |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Engagement in cognitively stimulating activities has been considered to maintain or strengthen cognitive skills, thereby minimizing age-related cognitive decline. While the idea that there may be a modifiable behavior that could lower risk for cognitive decline is appealing and potentially empowering for older adults, research findings have not consistently supported the beneficial effects of engaging in cognitively stimulating tasks. Using observational studies of naturalistic cognitive activities, we report a series of mixed effects models that include baseline and change in cognitive activity predicting cognitive outcomes over up to 21 years in four longitudinal studies of aging. Consistent evidence was found for cross-sectional relationships between level of cognitive activity and cognitive test performance. Baseline activity at an earlier age did not, however, predict rate of decline later in life, thus not supporting the concept that engaging in cognitive activity at an earlier point in time increases one's ability to mitigate future age-related cognitive decline. In contrast, change in activity was associated with relative change in cognitive performance. Results therefore suggest that change in cognitive activity from one's previous level has at least a transitory association with cognitive performance measured at the same point in time. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-3240cea427ba4158ad21970d5ab2e292 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2090-2204 2090-2212 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2012-01-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Aging Research |
| spelling | doaj-art-3240cea427ba4158ad21970d5ab2e2922025-02-03T01:21:33ZengWileyJournal of Aging Research2090-22042090-22122012-01-01201210.1155/2012/461592461592Cognitively Stimulating Activities: Effects on Cognition across Four Studies with up to 21 Years of Longitudinal DataMeghan B. Mitchell0Cynthia R. Cimino1Andreana Benitez2Cassandra L. Brown3Laura E. Gibbons4Robert F. Kennison5Steven D. Shirk6Alireza Atri7Annie Robitaille8Stuart W. S. MacDonald9Magnus Lindwall10Elizabeth M. Zelinski11Sherry L. Willis12K. Warner Schaie13Boo Johansson14Roger A. Dixon15Dan M. Mungas16Scott M. Hofer17Andrea M. Piccinin18Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Hospital, Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 200 Springs Road, Bedford, MA 01730, USADepartments of Psychology and Department of Neurology, University of South Florida, 4202 E. Fowler Avenue, Tampa, FL 33620, USACenter for Biomedical Imaging, Medical University of South Carolina, 68 President Street, MSC 120, Charleston, SC 29425, USADepartment of Psychology, University of Victoria, P.O. Box 3050 STN CSC, Victoria, BC, V8W 3P5, CanadaDivision of General Internal Medicine, University of Washington, P.O. Box 359780, Harborview Medical Center, 325 Ninth Avenue Seattle, WA 98104, USADepartment of Psychology, California State University-Los Angeles 5151 State University Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90032, USAEdith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Hospital, Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 200 Springs Road, Bedford, MA 01730, USAEdith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Hospital, Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 200 Springs Road, Bedford, MA 01730, USADepartment of Psychology, University of Victoria, P.O. Box 3050 STN CSC, Victoria, BC, V8W 3P5, CanadaDepartment of Psychology, University of Victoria, P.O. Box 3050 STN CSC, Victoria, BC, V8W 3P5, CanadaDepartment of Food and Nutrition, and Sport Science, Department of Psychology, University of Gothenburg, P.O. Box 100, SE-405 30 Gothenburg, SwedenEthel Percy Andrus Gerontology Center, Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0191, USAUniversity of Washington, 180 Nickerson, Suite 206, Seattle, WA 98109, USADivision of General Internal Medicine, University of Washington, P.O. Box 359780, Harborview Medical Center, 325 Ninth Avenue Seattle, WA 98104, USADepartment of Psychology, University of Gothenburg, Box 500, SE 405 30, Gothenburg, SwedenDepartment of Psychology, University of Alberta, P217 Biological Sciences Building, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2E9, CanadaLawrence J. Ellison Ambulatory Care Center, University of California, Davis, 4860 Y Street, Ste 0100, Sacramento, CA 95817, USADepartment of Psychology, University of Victoria, P.O. Box 3050 STN CSC, Victoria, BC, V8W 3P5, CanadaDepartment of Psychology, University of Victoria, P.O. Box 3050 STN CSC, Victoria, BC, V8W 3P5, CanadaEngagement in cognitively stimulating activities has been considered to maintain or strengthen cognitive skills, thereby minimizing age-related cognitive decline. While the idea that there may be a modifiable behavior that could lower risk for cognitive decline is appealing and potentially empowering for older adults, research findings have not consistently supported the beneficial effects of engaging in cognitively stimulating tasks. Using observational studies of naturalistic cognitive activities, we report a series of mixed effects models that include baseline and change in cognitive activity predicting cognitive outcomes over up to 21 years in four longitudinal studies of aging. Consistent evidence was found for cross-sectional relationships between level of cognitive activity and cognitive test performance. Baseline activity at an earlier age did not, however, predict rate of decline later in life, thus not supporting the concept that engaging in cognitive activity at an earlier point in time increases one's ability to mitigate future age-related cognitive decline. In contrast, change in activity was associated with relative change in cognitive performance. Results therefore suggest that change in cognitive activity from one's previous level has at least a transitory association with cognitive performance measured at the same point in time.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/461592 |
| spellingShingle | Meghan B. Mitchell Cynthia R. Cimino Andreana Benitez Cassandra L. Brown Laura E. Gibbons Robert F. Kennison Steven D. Shirk Alireza Atri Annie Robitaille Stuart W. S. MacDonald Magnus Lindwall Elizabeth M. Zelinski Sherry L. Willis K. Warner Schaie Boo Johansson Roger A. Dixon Dan M. Mungas Scott M. Hofer Andrea M. Piccinin Cognitively Stimulating Activities: Effects on Cognition across Four Studies with up to 21 Years of Longitudinal Data Journal of Aging Research |
| title | Cognitively Stimulating Activities: Effects on Cognition across Four Studies with up to 21 Years of Longitudinal Data |
| title_full | Cognitively Stimulating Activities: Effects on Cognition across Four Studies with up to 21 Years of Longitudinal Data |
| title_fullStr | Cognitively Stimulating Activities: Effects on Cognition across Four Studies with up to 21 Years of Longitudinal Data |
| title_full_unstemmed | Cognitively Stimulating Activities: Effects on Cognition across Four Studies with up to 21 Years of Longitudinal Data |
| title_short | Cognitively Stimulating Activities: Effects on Cognition across Four Studies with up to 21 Years of Longitudinal Data |
| title_sort | cognitively stimulating activities effects on cognition across four studies with up to 21 years of longitudinal data |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/461592 |
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