Cross-Sectional Association Between Social Activity Participation, Age, and Cognition: Evidence from the Health and...

To examine whether social activity participation moderates the association between age and cognitive function in U.S. adults aged 50 and older.

We analyzed data from the 2016 and 2018 waves of the HRS (N = 10,985). Multivariable linear regression models estimated the main and interaction effects of age and social activity participation on cognitive function, adjusting for covariates, and clustering into households.

The sample was predominantly female (55.6%) and White/Caucasian (80.3%), with an average age of 66 years. Age was negatively associated with cognitive performance (β = -.089), while social activity participation was positively associated (β = .127). A significant interaction (β = .004, p < .05) suggests that the strength of the age-cognition association varies by level of social engagement. Activity-specific analyses showed that charity work, educational activities, and non-religious meetings were the strongest individual predictors of better cognitive scores.

This large, population-based study suggests that greater social activity is associated with higher cognitive performance and may help explain variation the inverse relationship between age and cognition. While causality cannot be inferred, results highlight the relevance of social engagement in understanding cognitive patterns in adults. Future research should examine these findings persist longitudinal designs.