Everyday activity patterns and sensory functioning in old age.

In the present study the authors investigated the relationship between visual and auditory acuity and everyday activity functioning. Participants were 516 older adults (70–103 years; equal numbers of men and women) who were members of the age-stratified Berlin Aging Study. Two categories of everyday activity functioning, perceived competence with basic activities of daily living (BaCo; basic competence) and amount of participation in discretionary social and leisure tasks (ExCo; expanded competence), were examined. The results revealed that sensory acuity, particularly vision, was a significant predictor of both BaCo and ExCo (rs ranging from .32 to .47). Indeed, hearing and vision could explain most of the age-related variance in everyday activities. At the same time, in the context of a broader model, evidence for the differential prediction of BaCo and ExCo was found, although there was also evidence for strong general age-related predictive variance that was common to both measures. Discussion focuses on the role of sensory acuity constructs as mediators of age-related variance in psychological and behavioral outcomes and the potential causal implications of this mediation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intellectual functioning in old and very old age: Cross-sectional results from the Berlin Aging Study.

This study documents age trends, interrelations, and correlates of intellectual abilities in old and very old age (70–103 years) from the Berlin Aging Study (N?=?516). Fourteen tests were used to assess 5 abilities: reasoning, memory, and perceptual speed from the mechanic (broad fluid) domain and knowledge and fluency from the pragmatic (broad crystallized) domain. Intellectual abilities had negative linear age relations, with more pronounced age reductions in mechanic than in pragmatic abilities. Interrelations among intellectual abilities were highly positive and did not follow the mechanic-pragmatic distinction. Sociobiographical indicators were less closely linked to intellectual functioning than sensory-sensorimotor variables, which predicted 59% of the total reliable variance in general intelligence. Results suggest that aging-induced biological factors are a prominent source of individual differences in intelligence in old and very old age. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Influences of thyroid stimulating hormone on cognitive functioning in very old age

This study investigated the relationship of thyroxine (T4) and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) within normal ranges to cognitive performance in very old age. The participants (N = 200) were selected from a population-based study of nondemented persons aged 75 to 96 years (M = 83.9 years). Tasks assessing episodic memory, verbal fluency, visuospatial ability, short-term memory, and perceptual-motor speed were examined. Results indicated that T4 was unrelated to performance. However, TSH was positively related to episodic memory performance, and the effects were independent of the influence of age, level of education, and depressive mood symptoms. There was no reliable effect of TSH on verbal fluency, short-term memory, perceptual-motor speed, or visuospatial functioning. The influence of TSH on episodic memory was interpreted in terms of its potential effects on encoding and consolidation processes.     

Neurocognitive functions and everyday functions change together in old age.

Objective: Although neurocognitive functions are known to decline normatively with adult age, there is a common belief that everyday functions (e.g., paying bills, following medication instructions, making change, looking up telephone numbers in a phone book) are unaffected by these changes. Method: This hypothesis was examined by applying longitudinal growth models to data from a community-based sample of 698 adults (ages 65 to 94 years and living independently at baseline) who were repeatedly measured over five years on neurocognitive tests of executive reasoning, episodic memory, and perceptual speed, and on a number of tasks that adults should be reasonably expected to be able to perform in their day-to-day lives. Results: Individual differences in changes in neurocognitive performance were strongly correlated with individual differences in changes in performance on the everyday tasks. Alternatively, changes in self-reports of everyday functions were only weakly correlated with changes in performance on the neurocognitive tests and the everyday tasks. Conclusions: These results together suggest that normative neurocognitive aging has substantial consequences for the daily lives of older adults and that both researchers and clinicians should be cautious when interpreting self-reports of everyday functioning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sensory functioning and intelligence in old age: A strong connection.

Relations among age, sensory functioning (i.e., visual and auditory acuity), and intelligence were examined in a heterogeneous, age-stratified sample of old and very old individuals (N?=?156, M age?=?84.9 yrs, age range?=?70–203). Intelligence was assessed with 14 tests measuring 5 cognitive abilities (speed, reasoning, memory, knowledge, and fluency). Together, visual and auditory acuity accounted for 49.2% of the total and 93.1% of the age-related reliable variance in intelligence. The data were consistent with structural models in which age differences in intelligence, including speed, are completely mediated by differences in vision and hearing. Results suggest that sensory functioning is a strong late-life predictor of individual differences in intellectual functioning. Explanations are discussed, including the possibility that visual and sensory acuity are indicators of the physiological integrity of the aging brain (common cause hypothesis). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Adaptation in very old age: Exploring the role of resources, beliefs, and attitudes for centenarians' happiness.

When individuals reach very old age, accumulating negative conditions represent a serious challenge to their capacity to adapt and are likely to reduce the quality of life. By examining happiness and its determinants in centenarians, this study investigated the proposal that psychological resilience may come to an end in extremely old age. Data from the population-based Heidelberg Centenarian Study indicated high levels of happiness. Basic resources (i.e., job training, cognition, health, social network, extraversion) explained a substantial proportion of variance in happiness, but some resource effects were mediated through self-referent beliefs (e.g., self-efficacy) and attitudes toward life (e.g., optimistic outlook). Results challenge the view that psychological resilience reaches a critical limit or that the self-regulatory adaptation system loses its efficiency in very advanced age. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The heritability of cognitive functioning in very old adults: Evidence from Danish twins aged 75 years and older.

Heritable influences on cognitive functioning were investigated in a sample of 403 pairs of like-sex Danish twins aged 75 years and older. Twins completed the Mini-Mental State Examination and 3 other cognitive tests. Genetic factors accounted for 26–54% of the variance on these measures, with the balance being due to environmental factors that create differences rather than similarities among reared-together relatives. Deleting twins with severe cognitive impairment had little effect on the results, indicating that the heritability of cognitive functioning was not due entirely to genes affecting dementia. Neither age nor gender moderated twin similarity, and differential social contact could not account for correlation differences between monozygotic and dizygotic twins. These results replicate G. E. McClearn et al.'s (1997) study in indicating substantial genetic influences on late-life cognitive functioning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The experience and expression of anger: Relationships with gender, gender role socialization, depression, and mental health functioning.

Using a sample of 445 female and 260 male college students, we investigated relationships between the experience and expression of anger and gender, gender role characteristics, and several mental health variables. Factor analyses of 17 measures of anger, aggressiveness, and hostility revealed a 3-factor pattern of aggressive acting-out, high anger proneness and poorly controlled verbally expressed anger, and anger suppression. Correlational and hierarchical regression analyses indicated that the anger composites were strong predictors of the mental health variables. Masculinity, but not femininity or androgyny, also made fairly consistent unique contributions to the prediction of the mental health variables. Gender did not uniquely contribute to the prediction of any of the mental health variables, nor did it moderate the relationships of these variables with other predictors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A systemic–wholistic view of psychological functioning in very old age: Introduction to a collection of articles from the Berlin Aging Study.

Introduced are articles from the Berlin Aging Study (BASE) that collectively illustrate systemic–wholistic approaches to psychological functioning in old age. A systemic–wholistic perspective aims to elucidate structural and functional interdependencies between domains and to provide an integrative account of individual functioning. The special features of BASE (age range, 70–105 years; heterogeneous sample stratified by age and gender, and multidisciplinary data collection) are suited to this purpose. This article outlines the design of BASE. describes the cross-sectional sample (N?=?516: 258 men and 258 women), and reports sample selectivity analyses on 25 criterion variables in which the Pearson-Lawley selection formulas were used. Although the BASE sample is positively biased. it is not restricted in heterogeneity and does not exhibit major differences in patterns of covariation among variables. This finding supports the use of BASE data for the intended systemic–wholistic analyses. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Terminal decline and cognitive performance in very old age: Does cause of death matter?

Cross-sectional differences and longitudinal changes in cognitive functioning in relation to mortality across a 7-year follow-up period, with 3 times of measurement, were examined in a population-based sample of very old adults. The authors also sought to determine whether cause of death (cerebro/cardiovascular disease [CVD]; non-CVD) modified the magnitude of mortality-related cognitive deficits. Cognitive performance was indexed by tests of general cognitive ability, episodic memory, primary memory, verbal fluency, and visuospatial ability. Results indicated cross-sectional differences on all domains of functioning, with persons who would die within 3 years after baseline testing performing more poorly. Longitudinally, greater decrements were observed on all domains for persons who would die after the first follow-up period, as compared with survivors. Cause of death failed to modify the magnitude of the cross-sectional and longitudinal deficits. The pattern of results point to the general nature of this phenomenon. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predictors of longitudinal changes in memory, visuospatial, and verbal functioning in very old demented adults

Longitudinal changes in memory, visuospatial and verbal functioning in a sample of demented persons were examined. The role of several demographic, psychometric, and biological indices in predicting the rate of cognitive deterioration was also investigated. The sample consisted of 31 very old (mean age at entry = 83.5 years, range = 75-95) persons with Alzheimer's disease (n = 22) and vascular dementia (n = 9) from a community-based study. Subjects were tested on two occasions separated by approximately 2.5 years. Results indicated significant longitudinal decline in verbal fluency and visuospatial ability, but only on 1 of 3 measures of episodic memory. Results from regression analyses indicated that a variety of putatively important variables, including age, gender, education, digit span, as well as a number of biological (vitamin B12, TSH), dementia etiology, and psychometric (digit span) indicators, exhibited no relationship to rate of memory, visuospatial, or verbal decline. The results suggest that the rate of cognitive deterioration in dementia is highly variable, and this variability in change appears to include a variety of characteristics. A possible reason thereof may be that the role of individual-difference variables for cognitive functioning in dementia is overshadowed by the pathogenetic process itself.     

Children's interactions in triads: Behavioral profiles and effects of gender and patterns of friendships among members.

In all, 56 triads of same-sex 3rd, 4th-, and 5th-grade children were observed during an intimate discussion, a cooperative puzzle task, a competitive game, and free play. Observers coded triadic interaction using a Q sort and individual process ratings. Of particular interest was how gender and the pattern of friendship ties among group members related to children's behavior. Triads of girls were more intimate, exchanged more information, and were less aggressive than were triads of boys. Analyses of within-gender variability revealed 2 prototypical types of triads among boys but only 1 among girls. Girls and boys expressed similar attitudes toward triadic interaction in post-session interviews. However, girls', but not boys', attitudes were closely linked to the quality of interactions during the session. For both sexes, interaction was not strongly influenced by the initial configuration of friendship ties among triad members. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of cognitive stimulation on the relations between age and cognitive functioning.

To make a convincing argument that cognitive stimulation moderates age trends in cognition there must be (a) a negative relation between age and level of cognitive stimulation, (b) a positive relation between level of cognitive stimulation and level of cognitive functioning, and (c) evidence of an interaction between age and cognitive stimulation in the prediction of cognitive functioning. These conditions were investigated in a study in which 204 adults between 20 and 91 years of age completed an activity inventory and performed a variety of cognitive tasks. Only the 1st condition received empirical support, and, thus, the results of this study provide little evidence for the hypothesis that cognitive stimulation preserves or enhances cognitive functioning that would otherwise decline. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development and structural dynamics of personal life investment in old age.

The development of personal life investment (PLI) during old age was investigated with longitudinal and cross-sectional data from the Berlin Aging Study (N = 516, ages = 70-103 years). PLI measures motivational energy expended in life domains that require (obligatory PLI) or do not require (optional PLI) investment in old age. The authors used structural modeling to determine developmental trajectories and dynamics of the PLI types. On average, obligatory PLI remained unchanged between 70 and 101 years. Optional PLI declined during the transition to the 4th age (between 80 and 90 years). When change on the intraindividual level was considered, reductions in optional PLI were not related to changes in obligatory PLI, but declining obligatory PLI was associated with declining optional PLI. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The fate of cognition in very old age: Six-year longitudinal findings in the Berlin Aging Study (BASE).

The authors report full-information longitudinal age gradients in 4 intellectual abilities on the basis of 6-year longitudinal changes in 132 individuals (mean age at T? = 79.27, age range = 70-100) from the Berlin Aging Study. Relative to the cross-sectional parent sample (N = 516, mean age at T? = 84.92 years), this sample was positively selected because of differential mortality and experimental attrition. Perceptual speed, memory, and fluency declined with age. In contrast, knowledge remained stable up to age 90, with evidence for decline thereafter. Age gradients were more negative in old old (n = 66, mean age at T? = 83.04) than in old (n = 66, mean age at T? = 73.77) participants. Rates of decline did not differ reliably between men and women or between participants with high versus low life-history status. They conclude that intellectual development after age 70 varies by distance to death, age, and intellectual ability domain. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of problem definitions in understanding age and context effects on strategies for solving everyday problems.

The participants (107 preadolescents, 124 college students, 118 middle-aged adults, and 131 older adults) described 2 everyday problems (1 unconstrained, the other constrained to 1 of 6 domains) that they experienced and their goals and strategies. Problem definitions reflected interpersonal or competence components or both; strategies reflected altering cognitions, actions, or regulating and including others. Age differences in problem definitions were found. For unconstrained-domain problems, age and problem definition were related to strategies; for unconstrained-domain problems age differences in strategies were not found. For constrained-domain problems, strategies related to problem domain and problem definition, with problem definition the better predictor of strategies. The results illustrate the value of individuals' problem definitions for addressing age and context effects on strategies used. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Affective experience in adulthood and old age: The role of affective arousal and perceived affect regulation.

The aim of the present study was to investigate age-related differences in self-reported affect in adulthood. Measurement of affect encompassed high- and low-arousal positive and negative affect. The sample consisted of 277 participants who were between 20 and 80 years old. Older participants showed a higher level of low-arousal positive affect and did not significantly differ from the two younger age groups in high-arousal positive affect. Both high- and low-arousal negative affect decreased from middle to older adulthood. Only partially are these age effects explained by sociodemographic characteristics, education, or self-reported health and personality. The perceived regulation of affect in the face of difficulties or threatening situations emerged as a central mediator in the association between age and the three age-graded facets of affect. In contrast, future time perspective had no mediating effect on the age–affect relationship. Results suggest that age-related advantages in perceived affect regulation seem to be one central component of resilience in old age. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)