Edward Helmes

The construct of cognitive reserve has primarily been defined in terms of a single proxy measure, education. There may, however, be alternative, potentially additive, proxy measures of cognitive reserve, such as rural or urban residence. Using a large sample of 10,263 older Canadians, ranging in age between 64 and 99 years (mean age = 75.7 years, SD = 7.1), residents of rural and urban areas were compared using the Modified Mini-Mental State (3MS) examination as a dependent variable. Within this sample, subsamples of demented and non-demented individuals were investigated. The 3MS data were analyzed using a linear mixed model with years of education and residence as proxies of cognitive reserve and time of testing (linear and quadratic) as a within-groups variable. All predictor variables in the model (i.e., gender, age, education, residence, and time of testing) had a significant impact on cognitive functioning. The results showed that, although urban residents and higher educated individuals performed better than rural residents and lower educated individuals at baseline, these performance benefits were nullified at 10-year follow-up. The disappearance of these initial performance benefits suggests that urban dwellers and higher educated individuals are not protected against age-related cognitive decline. Thus, no support was found for the cognitive reserve hypothesis.

While research links neuropsychological performance to everyday functioning in cognitively impaired older adults, comparatively little research has investigated this relationship in unimpaired older people. This study investigated that relationship. A total of 134 independently living adults aged 60–93 years completed Cognistat, the Direct Assessment of Functional Status (DAFS), the Personality in Intellectual-Aging Contexts and a four-item subjective health measure. Hierarchical regression was used to examine the relative ability of these measures to predict the functional domains of the DAFS, hypothesizing that the health and self-efficacy measures would be more strongly associated with DAFS scores than with the cognitive domains. Self-reported health accounted for little variance in all measures, whereas self-efficacy contributed significantly to four functional domains. The cognitive variables contributed to only two domains, with memory the most consistent predictor. The study showed that a brief cognitive measure can partially predict the functional ability of older independently living adults.

Analysis of cognitive deficits in people with psychiatric disorders can increase our understanding of those disorders. Here we contrast the performance of 5 diagnostic groups (n = 120; schizophrenia, mild-to-moderate and moderate-to-severe depression, panic disorder, and healthy controls) on word and letter fluency tasks using 3 scoring systems (Abwender, Swan, Bowerman, & Connolly, 2001 Abwender, D. A. , Swan, J. G. , Bowerman, J. T. , & Connolly, S. W. (2001). Qualitative analysis of verbal fluency output: Review and comparison of several scoring methods. Assessment, 8, 326–338. doi:10.1177/107319110100800308 [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] [Google Scholar] ; Raskin, Silwinski, & Brood, 1992 Raskin, S. A. , Silwinski, M. , & Brood, J. C. (1992). Clustering strategies on tasks of verbal fluency in Parkinson’s disease. Neuropsychologia, 30, 95–99. doi:10.1016/0028-3932(92)90018-h [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] [Google Scholar] ; Troyer, Moscovitch, & Winocur, 1997 Troyer, A. K. , Moscovitch, M. , & Winocur, G. (1997). Clustering and switching as two components of verbal fluency: Evidence from younger and older healthy adults. Neuropsychology, 11, 138–146. doi:10.1037//0894-4105.11.1.138 [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] [Google Scholar] ) that differ in complexity to determine what system best differentiates diagnostic groups. The 3 scoring methods differ in the range of cognitive strategies assessed and how strategies are defined. Groups with schizophrenia and major depression were hypothesized to show greater deficits in fluency than groups with panic disorder and healthy controls. Results showed that the group with schizophrenia had the lowest level of fluency regardless of scoring method, with the group with severe major depression also showing deficits. The healthy control and panic disorder groups, and unexpectedly, the mild-to-moderate depression group showed few, if any, deficits. The scoring method proposed by Abwender et al. ( 2001 Abwender, D. A. , Swan, J. G. , Bowerman, J. T. , & Connolly, S. W. (2001). Qualitative analysis of verbal fluency output: Review and comparison of several scoring methods. Assessment, 8, 326–338. doi:10.1177/107319110100800308 [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] [Google Scholar] ) proved to be most comprehensive and sensitive to group differences.

Aim: Much research on attitudes towards older adults has used younger adults as participants and identified a range of negative attitudes towards older persons. Comparatively little literature has explored the attitudes of older adults themselves towards their own age cohort.Methods: The present study explicitly compared attitudes towards other older adults from samples of 195 older adults inAustralia and 172 olderCanadians. Attitudinal measures included theAgingAttitudesQuestionnaire (assesses older adults' attitudes toward other older adults),FraboniScale ofAgeism (assesses younger adults' attitudes toward older adults) and theReactions toAgingQuestionnaire (assesses attitudes toward one's own aging), as well as a scale measuring knowledge of aging, theFacts onAgingQuiz, adapted forAustralia andCanada. Responses on the three attitudinal measures were subjected to principal components analysis.Results: Two components emerged in both samples, one defined by theReactions toAgingQuestionnaire andAgingAttitudesQuestionnaire scales and the second by theFraboniScale ofAgeism scales. Regression analyses to ascertain prediction of scores on theFacts onAgingQuiz, adapted forAustralia andFacts onAgingQuiz, adapted forCanada showed that only theAgingAttitudesQuestionnaire scale forPhysicalChanges predicted scores on theFacts onAgingQuiz, adapted forAustralia and no attitudes predictedFacts onAgingQuiz, adapted forCanada scores.Conclusions: It appears that older adults distinguish between their own aging and aging in others. Knowledge of aging appears to be predicted only by attitudes toward physical changes. Given increasing proportions of older adults in the population, as well as increasing access to aging information available to older cohorts, continued research on how older adults view themselves and the aging process is important, and will almost certainly continue to evolve over time.Geriatr Gerontol Int 2016; 16: 1226–1230.

Many employers in Australia are experiencing ageing workforces. Yet ageist attitudes and discrimination can impede effective management of older workers. Here we explore the attitudes of a mixed sample of university undergraduates and community members towards older workers. A total of 64 males and 89 females completed questionnaires assessing attitudes towards older workers and general knowledge of older adults. The association between these factors and respondents’ age, gender, education, employment status and hours worked per week was examined. As predicted, the sample's attitudes towards older workers were generally positive among those who were working, but hypotheses relating to associations between knowledge of ageing, age, education and hours worked per week were largely not supported. The failure of variables hypothesised to be related to attitudes is discussed.

RÉSUMÉ: Les benzodiazépines sont largement prescrits pour l'anxiété, bien que l'utilisation de cette classe de médicaments fût associée à la dépendance et les changements cognitifs. Cet article décrit une étude dans laquelle j'ai examiné la relation entre une* classe des benzodiazépines disponibles pour l'utilisation et le rendement lié aux tests neuro-psychologiques dans un échantillon de communauté de 1 754 Canadiens âgés de l'Etude canadienne sur la santé et le vieillissement. Les benzodiazépines ont été classés comme ayant une action de courte durée, intermédiare ou longue. À l'aide d'une analyse de régression multiple, et tenant compte de variables démographiques, les associations ont été calculées entre chaque catégorie de benzodiazépine et huit mesures neuro-psychologiques. Les résultats ont révélé des effets différents au sein des classes des trois médicaments; les benzodiazépines avec une courte demi-vie n'etaient associées à aucune mesure neuro-psychologique. Chacune des benzodiazépines à demi-vie intermédiare et à longue demi-vie ont été associée à deux mesures. Afin d'améliorer notre compréhension de la façon dont l'utilisation des benzodiazépines influence la cognition, une concentration accrue sur des domaines spécifiques de la fonction cognitive est requise.

Dissociative fugue refers to loss of personal identity, often with the associated loss of memories of events (general amnesia). Here we report on the psychological assessment of a 54-year-old woman with loss of identity and memories of 33 years of her life attributed to dissociative fugue, along with a follow-up 11 years later. Significant levels of personal injury and stress preceded the onset of the amnesia. A detailed neuropsychological assessment was completed at a university psychology clinic, with a follow-up assessment there about 11 years later with an intent to determine whether changes in her cognitive status were associated with better recall of her life and with her emotional state. Psychomotor slowing and low scores on measures of attention and both verbal and visual memory were present initially, along with significant psychological distress associated with the diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder. Although memories of her life had not returned by follow-up, distress had abated and memory test scores had improved. The passage of time and a better emotional state did not lead to recovery of lost memories. Contrary to expectations, performance on tests of executive functions was good on both occasions. Multiple stressful events are attributed as having a role in maintaining the loss of memories.