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Variety of Enriching Early-Life Activities Linked to Late-Life Cognitive Functioning in Urban Community-Dwelling African Americans

Author

Listed:
  • Thomas Chan
  • Jeanine M Parisi
  • Kyle D Moored
  • Michelle C Carlson
  • Angela Gutchess

Abstract

Objectives The early environment is thought to be a critical period in understanding the cognitive health disparities African Americans face today. Much is known about the positive role enriching environments have in mid- and late-life and the negative function adverse experiences have in childhood; however, little is known about the relationship between enriching childhood experiences and late-life cognition. The current study examines the link between a variety of enriching early-life activities and late-life cognitive functioning in a sample of sociodemographic at-risk older adults. MethodThis study used data from African Americans from the Brain and Health Substudy of the Baltimore Experience Corps Trial (M = 67.2, SD = 5.9; N = 93). Participants completed a battery of neuropsychological assessments and a seven-item retrospective inventory of enriching activities before age 13. Results Findings revealed that a greater enriching early-life activity score was linked to favorable outcomes in educational attainment, processing speed, and executive functioning. Discussion Results provide promising evidence that enriching early environments are associated with late-life educational and cognitive outcomes. Findings support the cognitive reserve and engagement frameworks, and have implications to extend life-span prevention approaches when tackling age-related cognitive declines, diseases, and health disparities.

Suggested Citation

  • Thomas Chan & Jeanine M Parisi & Kyle D Moored & Michelle C Carlson & Angela Gutchess, 2019. "Variety of Enriching Early-Life Activities Linked to Late-Life Cognitive Functioning in Urban Community-Dwelling African Americans," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 74(8), pages 1345-1355.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:geronb:v:74:y:2019:i:8:p:1345-1355.
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1093/geronb/gby056
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    Cited by:

    1. Cai, Shu & Li, Wei, 2024. "On the origin of cognition: How childhood conditions shape cognitive function in old age," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    2. Greenfield, Emily A. & Reynolds, Addam & Moorman, Sara M., 2022. "Life course linkages between enriching early-life activities and later life cognition: Evidence from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 294(C).

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