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Occupational cognitive stimulation, socioeconomic status, and cognitive functioning in young adulthood.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Stebbins, RC; Yang, YC; Reason, M; Aiello, AE; Belsky, DW; Harris, KM; Plassman, BL
Published in: SSM Popul Health
March 2022

BACKGROUND: Occupational characteristics are associated with late-life cognition. However, little is known about the association between occupational factors and cognition in early adulthood, especially when controlling for early life socioeconomic status (SES) and cognition in childhood. Importantly, sex may shape the impact of occupational characteristics that provide cognitive stimulation given that education, occupational status, and workplace experiences differ by sex. METHODS: Using data on 12,129 participants ages 24-32 from the U.S.-based National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, we investigated the association between four factors of occupational cognitive stimulation (repetition, freedom, analytic skills, and social interaction) and young-adult episodic and working memory independent of childhood and young-adult SES, using linear regression. We adjusted for confounding due to sex, race/ethnicity, age, childhood cognition, and education. We further investigated effect measure modification of this association by sex in stratified regression models. RESULTS: Overall, 1-unit increases in both occupational analytic skills and social interaction were significantly associated with 0.101 (95%CI: 0.28, 0.173) and 0.096 (95%CI: 0.032, 0.160) SD higher memory, respectively. However, when sex-stratified, among men, a 1-unit increase on the social interaction scale was associated with 0.16 (95%CI: 0.05, 0.27) SD higher memory, while there was no association among women. CONCLUSION: Our results indicate that even in adulthood, activities that stimulate the mind can contribute to improved cognitive function, and the most beneficial forms of occupational stimulation are those that use analytic skills and involve social interaction (particularly among young men).

Duke Scholars

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Published In

SSM Popul Health

DOI

ISSN

2352-8273

Publication Date

March 2022

Volume

17

Start / End Page

101024

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • 4410 Sociology
  • 4206 Public health
  • 4202 Epidemiology
  • 1117 Public Health and Health Services
 

Citation

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Stebbins, R. C., Yang, Y. C., Reason, M., Aiello, A. E., Belsky, D. W., Harris, K. M., & Plassman, B. L. (2022). Occupational cognitive stimulation, socioeconomic status, and cognitive functioning in young adulthood. SSM Popul Health, 17, 101024. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssmph.2022.101024
Stebbins, Rebecca C., Yang Claire Yang, Max Reason, Allison E. Aiello, Daniel W. Belsky, Kathleen Mullan Harris, and Brenda L. Plassman. “Occupational cognitive stimulation, socioeconomic status, and cognitive functioning in young adulthood.SSM Popul Health 17 (March 2022): 101024. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssmph.2022.101024.
Stebbins RC, Yang YC, Reason M, Aiello AE, Belsky DW, Harris KM, et al. Occupational cognitive stimulation, socioeconomic status, and cognitive functioning in young adulthood. SSM Popul Health. 2022 Mar;17:101024.
Stebbins, Rebecca C., et al. “Occupational cognitive stimulation, socioeconomic status, and cognitive functioning in young adulthood.SSM Popul Health, vol. 17, Mar. 2022, p. 101024. Pubmed, doi:10.1016/j.ssmph.2022.101024.
Stebbins RC, Yang YC, Reason M, Aiello AE, Belsky DW, Harris KM, Plassman BL. Occupational cognitive stimulation, socioeconomic status, and cognitive functioning in young adulthood. SSM Popul Health. 2022 Mar;17:101024.
Journal cover image

Published In

SSM Popul Health

DOI

ISSN

2352-8273

Publication Date

March 2022

Volume

17

Start / End Page

101024

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • 4410 Sociology
  • 4206 Public health
  • 4202 Epidemiology
  • 1117 Public Health and Health Services