Methodological Issues in Research on Adult Development and Aging

Rast, Philippe; Piccinin, Andrea M.

doi:10.1002/9781118392966.ch4

Cited by 8 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 97 publications

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“…Additional Level 2 covariates included sex and education. We also controlled for mean-centered age at baseline to disaggregate within-person development over the study interval from cross-sectional age differences (i.e., birth cohort effects; e.g., Hofer et al, 2012). The models included tests of interactions of purpose and the covariates with linear and quadratic slopes.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, we are not aware of research to date that has examined associations of purpose with both between-persons differences and long-term within-person changes across multiple indices of health and well-being. In particular, modeling purpose as a correlate of older adults’ rates of within-individual change in performance over an extended measurement interval represents an important next step in shedding light on the relevance of purposeful living in protecting against developmental losses that become normative with advancing age (Baltes & Smith, 2003; Hofer, Rast, & Piccinin, 2012).…”

Section: Empirical Research On Sense Of Purpose and Well-being In Old...mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sense of purpose as a psychological resource for aging well.

Windsor¹,

Curtis²,

Luszcz³

2015

Developmental Psychology

143

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Having a sense of purpose is recognized as an important resource for maintaining health and well-being over the life span. We examined associations of individual differences in sense of purpose with levels and rates of change in indices of aging well (health, cognition, and depressive symptoms) in a sample of 1,475 older adults (Mage = 77.06 years, SD = 6.27; 50% female) assessed on up to 6 occasions over 18 years. We also conducted survival analysis to examine associations of purpose with longevity. We hypothesized that a higher sense of purpose would be associated with better performance on the aging well measures, and that those with a higher sense of purpose would show shallower declines in aging well over time. Results indicated that participants who scored higher on sense of purpose reported lower levels of functional disability, performed better on cognitive tests (episodic memory and speed of processing), and reported better self-rated health and fewer depressive symptoms. Sense of purpose was not associated with individual differences in rates of change in the aging well indices with the exception of speed of processing, for which a higher sense of purpose was associated with marginally shallower rates of decline. Higher sense of purpose was also associated with increased probability of survival, although this association became weaker over time. The findings support the notion that purposeful living contributes to health and well-being. At the same time, higher sense of purpose may not buffer against more pervasive losses in health that become more common in oldest-old adulthood.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Empirical Research On Sense Of Purpose and Well-being In Old...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Sense of purpose as a psychological resource for aging well.

Windsor¹,

Curtis²,

Luszcz³

2015

Developmental Psychology

143

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…There is considerable evidence in the literature that the process of aging is associated with cognitive decline [1,2,3,4]. The main bulk of evidence comes from cross-sectional studies, despite the limitations inherent to this design [5,6,7]. In contrast, results from longitudinal studies suggest that cognitive decline is not as pronounced as reported by cross-sectional studies, and that most of cognitive abilities are preserved until the 60s’ or even later [8,9,10].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Individual Differences in Developmental Change: Quantifying the Amplitude and Heterogeneity in Cognitive Change across Old Age

et al. 2018

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Abstract:It is well known that cognitive decline in older adults is of smaller amplitude in longitudinal than in cross-sectional studies. Yet, the measure of interest rests generally with aggregated group data. A focus on individual developmental trajectories is rare, mainly because it is difficult to assess intraindividual change reliably. Individual differences in developmental trajectories may differ quantitatively (e.g., larger or smaller decline) or qualitatively (e.g., decline vs improvement), as well as in the degree of heterogeneity of change across different cognitive domains or different tasks. The present paper aims at exploring, within the Geneva Variability Study, individual change across several cognitive domains in 92 older adults (aged 59-89 years at baseline) over a maximum of seven years and a half. Two novel, complementary methods were used to explore change in cognitive performance while remaining entirely at the intra-individual level. A bootstrap based confidence interval was estimated, for each participant and for each experimental condition, making it possible to define three patterns: stability, increase or decrease in performance. Within-person ANOVAs were also conducted for each individual on all the tasks. Those two methods allowed quantifying the direction, the amplitude and the heterogeneity of change for each individual. Results show that trajectories differed widely among individuals and that decline is far from being the rule.

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“…As an age-heterogeneous sample, age at baseline was included to separate within-person age changes (i.e. aging) and between-person age differences Mean (M) and standard deviations (SD) and correlations (Rho) among study variables 554 [34] . To explore whether sedentary and heavy work or retirement age or leisure activities explain the associations between occupational complexity and cognition, these covariates were added in sets in models 3, 4, and 5, respectively.…”

Section: Data Preparation and Statistical Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Is Occupational Complexity Associated with Cognitive Performance or Decline? Results from the Australian Longitudinal Study of Ageing

et al. 2017

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Background: Long-term protective associations proposed between previous complex occupational tasks and cognitive functioning in later life point to work roles contributing to cognitive reserve. Objective: To examine occupational complexity involving data, people, and things in relation to the level of, and rate of change in, cognitive functioning. Methods: Participants were 1,290 members of the Australian Longitudinal Study of Ageing and initially aged 65-102 years (mean = 79). Information about main lifetime occupation was collected retrospectively. Cognition was assessed 4 times over a 13-year interval. Results: In multilevel models adjusted for demographics, medical conditions, and depressive symptoms, higher complexity involving data was associated with faster speed (β = 0.73, p < 0.001), better memory (β = 0.32, p < 0.05), and mental status (β = 0.40, p < 0.001) at baseline. These associations remained statistically reliable after adjusting for complexity with people and things, sedentary and heavy physical work, retirement age, and leisure activity. Complexity with things was associated with slower speed (β = -0.50, p < 0.001) and poorer mental status (β = -0.26, p < 0.01) and was not explained by other variables. There were no associations of occupational complexity with rates of cognitive decline over time. Conclusion: Older individuals retired from occupations characterized by higher complexity with data maintain their cognitive advantage over those with lower complexity into older adulthood, although without additional moderation of this advantage in terms of less postretirement cognitive decline. Complexity of work with things confers a negative relation to cognition whilst also not affecting postretirement cognitive change. Although the relative contributions of occupation or other early life influences for cognition remain to be established, it nevertheless may be beneficial to promote workplace design strategies and interventions that incorporate complex activities, particularly tasks involving data.

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Methodological Issues in Research on Adult Development and Aging

Cited by 8 publications

References 97 publications

Sense of purpose as a psychological resource for aging well.

Sense of purpose as a psychological resource for aging well.

Individual Differences in Developmental Change: Quantifying the Amplitude and Heterogeneity in Cognitive Change across Old Age

Is Occupational Complexity Associated with Cognitive Performance or Decline? Results from the Australian Longitudinal Study of Ageing

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