Haena Lee1, Markus Schafer2. 1. Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, 506125University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA. 2. Department of Sociology, 7938University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Abstract
Objectives: We examine whether childhood family well-being is associated with cognitive functioning and to what extent the association between the family context and cognitive functioning is explained by adulthood resources. Methods: Data are drawn from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project Wave 3 (2015/2016; N = 3361). We measured cognitive functioning using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. Childhood family factors included family-life happiness, family structure, and family socioeconomic status. Education, social connectedness, self-mastery, and self-rated health were assessed as adulthood resources. Results: Respondents who grew up in a happy family had significantly higher levels of cognitive functioning. The formal mediation test suggests that a happy family life during childhood has a positive association with later cognition, in part, by enhancing self-mastery in adulthood. Discussion: Our findings provide evidence that positive childhood experiences are linked to later life cognition. The sense of control people have over their life circumstances is one potential pathway explaining this association.
Objectives: We examine whether childhood family well-being is associated with cognitive functioning and to what extent the association between the family context and cognitive functioning is explained by adulthood resources. Methods: Data are drawn from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project Wave 3 (2015/2016; N = 3361). We measured cognitive functioning using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. Childhood family factors included family-life happiness, family structure, and family socioeconomic status. Education, social connectedness, self-mastery, and self-rated health were assessed as adulthood resources. Results: Respondents who grew up in a happy family had significantly higher levels of cognitive functioning. The formal mediation test suggests that a happy family life during childhood has a positive association with later cognition, in part, by enhancing self-mastery in adulthood. Discussion: Our findings provide evidence that positive childhood experiences are linked to later life cognition. The sense of control people have over their life circumstances is one potential pathway explaining this association.
Entities:
Keywords:
National Social Life, Health and Aging Project; childhood happiness; cognitive function; cumulative advantage; self-mastery
Authors: Dan Orsholits; Stéphane Cullati; Boris Cheval; Paolo Ghisletta; Michel Oris; Jürgen Maurer; Matthias Studer; Adilson Marques; Priscila Marconcin; Élvio R Gouveia; Matthias Kliegel; Andreas Ihle Journal: Sci Rep Date: 2022-10-11 Impact factor: 4.996