Subjective age, depressive symptoms, and cognitive functioning across five domains

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Gerontology
• Psychology

Background:

• Subjective age, or how old one feels, is a predictor of cognitive performance.
• Previous research indicates subjective age is associated with episodic memory and executive functions.
• The role of depressive symptoms and chronological age in these associations requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the association between subjective age and performance across five cognitive domains.
• To quantify the mediating role of depressive symptoms in these associations.
• To test for moderation by chronological age.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional study of 993 adults aged 65+ from the Health and Retirement Study.
• Utilized the Harmonized Cognitive Assessment Protocol (HCAP).
• Employed moderated mediation models to analyze direct and indirect effects of subjective age on cognitive factor scores (episodic memory, executive functioning, language, visuoconstruction, speed) through depressive symptoms.

Main Results:

• Depressive symptoms mediated 21-32% of the association between subjective age and language, speed, episodic memory, and executive functioning.
• Chronological age moderated the indirect effect on language, with depressive symptoms more strongly linked to poorer language performance at older ages.
• Direct effects of younger subjective age remained for language and speed, even after accounting for depressive symptoms.

Conclusions:

• Depressive symptoms partially mediate the relationship between subjective age and cognitive performance in older adults.
• The association between subjective age and language may be particularly strong in older individuals due to heightened vulnerability to the effects of depressive symptoms.
• Longitudinal research is recommended to establish causality.