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Updated: Jun 5, 2025
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Assessment of Age-related Changes in Cognitive Functions Using EmoCogMeter, a Novel Tablet-computer Based Approach
Published on: February 14, 2014
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Does the positive association between social relationships and cognition continue until very old age?
Selina Vogel1, Andrés Oliva Y Hausmann2,3, Susanne Zank2,3
1Department of Rehabilitation and Special Education, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany. svogel18@uni-koeln.de.
European Journal of Ageing
|December 11, 2024
Summary
Social engagement is linked to better cognitive function in adults aged 80 and over. However, these protective effects on cognition did not persist over a two-year period in very old adults.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Sociology
Background:
- Social relationships are increasingly recognized for their positive impact on cognitive health in older adults.
- Very old adults (80+ years) are a vulnerable group for cognitive decline but are underrepresented in research.
- Understanding the role of social connections in cognitive health for the oldest old is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if social relationships act as a protective factor against cognitive decline in very old adults (80+ years).
- To examine the cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between social characteristics and cognitive functions in this age group.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a representative sample from the Study of Quality of Life and Well-Being in North-Rhine Westphalia (NRW80+ Study).
- Included 1,207 very old adults (80-103 years, no dementia) for cross-sectional analyses and 639 for two-year longitudinal analyses.
- Employed hierarchical linear regression to assess associations between social aspects and cognitive functions, controlling for sociodemographic and health factors.
Main Results:
- Cross-sectionally, leisure engagement was positively associated with episodic memory and global cognition.
- Overall network size showed a positive association with global cognition.
- No significant associations were found between baseline social relationships and cognitive functions two years later.
Conclusions:
- Social relationships, particularly leisure engagement and network size, are cross-sectionally associated with cognitive functions in very old adults.
- The protective effects of social relationships on cognitive decline may be less robust over a two-year period in very old age compared to other adult age groups.
- Further research is needed to understand the long-term impact of social factors on cognition in the oldest old.
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