Literacy and memory decline among ethnically diverse elders

被引:238
作者
Manly, JJ
Touradji, P
Tang, MX
Stern, Y
机构
[1] Columbia Univ, Coll Phys & Surg, Gertrude H Sergievsky Ctr, New York, NY 10032 USA
[2] Columbia Univ, Coll Phys & Surg, Cognit Neurosci, Taub Inst Res Alzheimers Dis & Aging Brain, New York, NY 10032 USA
[3] Columbia Univ, Coll Phys & Surg, Dept Neurol, New York, NY 10032 USA
[4] Columbia Univ, Coll Phys & Surg, Dept Psychiat, New York, NY 10032 USA
[5] Columbia Univ, Coll Phys & Surg, Sch Publ Hlth, Div Biostat, New York, NY 10032 USA
关键词
D O I
10.1076/jcen.25.5.680.14579
中图分类号
B849 [应用心理学];
学科分类号
040203 ;
摘要
Literacy may be a more powerful indicator of brain reserve than years of education. Literacy level may be a proxy for native intellectual capacity or life experience that can compensate for brain damage or provide brain reserve. Alternately, the experience of acquiring literacy skills may in itself change the organization of the brain and increase protection against cognitive decline. However, because people with low levels of literacy obtain poor scores on most cognitive measures, only longitudinal studies can elucidate the role of reading ability in reserve. We determined whether literacy skills could predict cognitive change in a sample of 136 English-speaking African American, Caucasian, and Hispanic elders selected from a longitudinal aging study in New York City. According to a physician's independent examination, all participants were nondemented throughout the four longitudinal assessments. Literacy level was assessed using the WRAT-3 reading subtest. After accounting for age at baseline and years of education, GEE analyses showed that elders with low levels of literacy had a steeper decline in both immediate and delayed recall of a word list over time as compared to high literacy elders. Our findings suggest that literacy skills are protective against memory decline among nondemented elders.
引用
收藏
页码:680 / 690
页数:11
相关论文
共 81 条
[1]   Predictors of cognitive change in older persons: MacArthur studies of successful aging [J].
Albert, MS ;
Savage, CR ;
Blazer, D ;
Jones, K ;
Berkman, L ;
Seeman, T ;
Rowe, JW .
PSYCHOLOGY AND AGING, 1995, 10 (04) :578-589
[2]   Reading ability, education, and cognitive status assessment among older adults in Harlem, New York City [J].
Albert, SM ;
Teresi, JA .
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH, 1999, 89 (01) :95-97
[3]  
Anderson J.D., 1988, The education of Blacks in the South, 1860-1935, DOI [DOI 10.5149/9780807898888_ANDERSON, 10.5149/9780807898888_anderson]
[4]  
[Anonymous], 1987, DIAGNOSTIC STAT MANU, V4th
[5]  
[Anonymous], PSYCHOL LIT
[6]  
[Anonymous], ALZHEIMERS DIS
[8]   NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT IN ILLITERATES - VISUOSPATIAL AND MEMORY ABILITIES [J].
ARDILA, A ;
ROSSELLI, M ;
ROSAS, P .
BRAIN AND COGNITION, 1989, 11 (02) :147-166
[9]   Age-related cognitive decline during normal aging:: The complex effect of education [J].
Ardila, A ;
Ostrosky-Solis, F ;
Rosselli, M ;
Gómez, C .
ARCHIVES OF CLINICAL NEUROPSYCHOLOGY, 2000, 15 (06) :495-513
[10]  
Baker FM, 1996, PSYCHIATR SERV, V47, P194