Promoting Healthy Cognitive Aging: Psychological Approaches and Interventions
A special issue of Behavioral Sciences (ISSN 2076-328X). This special issue belongs to the section "Cognition".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 January 2025 | Viewed by 305
Special Issue Editor
Interests: neurocognitive disorders; cognitive and mental health; dementia risk; healthy ageing; smart technology in mental healthcare
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Healthy cognitive ageing is a lifelong process of optimizing functions along the cognitive continuum. This theory reflects a paradigm shift from a biomedical model to a biopsychosocial model, which has led to a high level of research focusing on early prevention and interventions regarding cognitive decline, using an interdisciplinary approach.
Currently, a large amount of evidence shows that lifestyle modifications and cardiovascular risk management represent promising strategies to improve cognitive trajectories in later life. However, it has been noted that results regarding the effects of psychological interventions in enhancing cognitive health in old age are less consistent and under-studied. Many clinical trials have only explored the effectiveness of psychological therapies in individuals with dementia.
When reviewing the effectiveness of early interventions, it is very important to also examine data prior to dementia onset. At the same time, it is pertinent to clarify how later-life changes in mental health and interpersonal networks might interact with brain health and how psychological means associate with cognitive functioning in old age. Social participation and family solidarity are potential areas that could be integrated with psychological interventions to enhance cognitive health through building cognitive reserves.
This Special Issue will explore the implementation of evidence-based interventions as part of a psychological approach across different settings. Furthermore, it will help to compare results to inform practice, research, and policy making, to support healthy cognitive ageing.
Dr. Ada Wai Tung Fung
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- mental wellness
- brain health
- cognitive preservation
- psychosocial interventions
- healthy and active ageing
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Planned Papers
The below list represents only planned manuscripts. Some of these manuscripts have not been received by the Editorial Office yet. Papers submitted to MDPI journals are subject to peer-review.
Title: Diminished Social and Leisure Engagement in Community Dwelling Older Adults with Apathy
Authors: Katherine Valles; Emmeline I Ayers; Joe Verghese; Mirnova E Ceide
Affiliation: Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center
Abstract: Background: Apathy predicts functional and cognitive decline in community dwelling older adults, but the behavioral pathway between apathy and cognitive decline is lacking. Our objective was to investigate the associations between apathy and leisure activities. Methods: N= 538 older adults enrolled in the Central Control of Mobility in Aging study. Apathy was defined by 3-items of the 15 item Geriatric Depression Scale. Linear regression models were used to assess the relationship between apathy and cognitive, physical and social leisure activity days. Covariates included age, gender, education level, multimorbidity, and dysphoria. Results: Apathy was present in 29.7% of participants and was associated with less frequent participation in physical (estimate -1.688. p=0.003) but not cognitive (-1.094, p=0.252) or social (-0.654, p=0.103) leisure activities. Apathy was also associated with decreased social behavior (-0.055, p<0.001), SNI (-0.478, p=0.003), and lower MOS scores (-0.26, p=0.001) after adjustments for confounders. Conclusions: Apathy presents with reduced physical leisure activity participation and reduced social engagement, introducing an accessible way for clinicians and caregivers to identify apathy. Our findings highlight physical leisure and social activity as potential interventional targets to reduce apathy, and to promote the cognitive and overall wellbeing of older adults.
