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The association between actor/partner optimism and cognitive functioning among older couples
Author(s) -
Oh Jeewon,
Chopik William J.,
Kim Eric S.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of personality
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.082
H-Index - 144
eISSN - 1467-6494
pISSN - 0022-3506
DOI - 10.1111/jopy.12529
Subject(s) - optimism , spouse , psychology , cognition , cognitive skill , mental health , clinical psychology , association (psychology) , developmental psychology , psychiatry , social psychology , psychotherapist , sociology , anthropology
Objective Higher optimism has been linked with health, well‐being, and cognitive functioning. Spouses also play an important role on people's health, especially in older adulthood. Yet, whether a spouse's optimism is associated with an individual's cognitive functioning is understudied. Thus, we examined this question. Method Participants were 4,457 heterosexual couples ( N = 8,914; M age = 66.73, SD = 9.67) from the Health and Retirement Study—a large, diverse, prospective, and nationally representative sample of U.S. adults aged >50. Optimism was assessed at baseline ( t 1 ) and cognition was measured every two years with up to five repeated assessments of cognition data over the 8‐year follow‐up period ( t 1 ; t 2 ; t 3 ; t 4 ; t 5 ). Results Results from multi‐level dyadic data analyses showed small but positive associations between actor optimism and actor cognitive functioning (memory: r = .16, mental status = .10), as well as partner optimism and actor cognitive functioning (memory: r = .04, mental status = .03). These associations mostly persisted over time. Conclusions Participants' own optimism and their partner's optimism were both positively associated with cognitive functioning.Thus, with further research, optimism (at both the individual and couple level) might emerge as an innovative intervention target that helps adults maintain cognitive functioning as they age.