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Published on: August 26, 2011
Subjective memory in older African Americans
Regina C Sims1, Keith E Whitfield, Brian J Ayotte
1Department of Psychology, Howard University, Washington, DC 20059, USA. regina.sims@howard.edu
Experimental Aging Research
|March 23, 2011
Summary
Psychological well-being, specifically perceived stress and locus of control, impacts how older adults feel about their memory. However, this subjective memory did not align with objective memory performance in the study.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Psychology
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Subjective memory complaints are common in older adults.
- Understanding the factors influencing subjective memory is crucial for aging research.
- The relationship between psychological well-being and memory perception requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the predictive relationship between psychological well-being measures and subjective memory in older African Americans.
- To determine if subjective memory aligns with objective measures of verbal and working memory in this population.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional analysis of 579 older African Americans from the Baltimore Study of Black Aging.
- Assessment of subjective memory, depressive symptomatology, perceived stress, locus of control, verbal memory, and working memory.
Main Results:
- Higher perceived stress and externalized locus of control were associated with poorer subjective memory.
- Subjective memory did not predict objective verbal or working memory performance.
- Psychological well-being factors significantly influenced how older adults perceived their memory.
Conclusions:
- Subjective memory in older African Americans is influenced by psychological well-being, particularly stress and locus of control.
- Subjective memory appears to be distinct from objective cognitive abilities in this demographic.
- Interventions targeting psychological well-being may indirectly benefit subjective memory in older adults.
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