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This study explores young adults' emotional affect and attitudes towards ageing, as well as older adults' emotional affect and self-esteem following participation in the intergenerational videoconferencing programme Smile Connect (SC). The sample consisted of 94 participants (46 older Spanish adults living in a care home in Spain and 48 young Italian adults -secondary students- learning Spanish at school in Italy). Each age group was divided into an intervention and control group. SC consists of twelve 30-minute chat sessions conducted via Skype between the target groups over six weeks. Pre and post evaluations were made to assess the affect level in both groups, self-esteem among older people, and the level of negative stereotypes about ageing among young adults. At the end of the SC, the intervention group of older adults recorded significantly improved scores in self-esteem compared to the control group. Young adults recorded a reduction in their negative stereotypes about old age after taking part in the SC programme compared to those who did not. These findings suggest that involvement in the SC programme helps to improve the emotional affect of older adults living in care homes, as well as change the negative stereotypes about ageing among young adults.

Research seems to be an appealing professional path for young graduates with salient academic records. However, young researchers often face a number of substantial obstacles at the beginnings of their careers, including being exposed to job insecurity and other economic risks. Even those with scholarships receive low incomes that sometimes barely cover the minimum needs.

Background: During aging, changes in human speech may arise because of the neurophysiological deterioration associated with age, or as the result of an impairment in the cognitive processes underlying speech production. Some speech parameters show specific alterations under the presence of dementia. The objective of our study is to identify which of these parameters change because of age, cognitive state, or the interaction of both. Methods: The sample includes 400 people over 55 years old, who were divided into four groups, according to their age. The cognitive state of the participants was assessed through the MMSE test and three ranks were stablished. Gender was also considered in the analysis. Results: Certain temporal, fluency, rhythm, amplitude and voice quality parameters were found to be related to the cognitive state, while disturbance parameters changed due to age. Frequency parameters were exclusively influenced by gender. Conclusions: Understanding how speech parameters are specifically affected by age, cognitive state, or the interaction of both, is determinant to advance in the use of speech as a clinical marker for the detection of cognitive impairments.

The quality of life in nursing homes is a growing concern. Its assessment requires instruments that consider the subjective needs of residents, their families, and staff, such as the questionnaire (CVS-R) that has been developed and validated in the present study.The original 100 items version was applied to 99 participants from three nursing homes (36,4% professionals, 30,30% residents and 33,33% family members). From the item analysis, a questionnaire with 27 questions and 9 dimensions was obtained, which, subsequently, 225 people from other nursing homes in Spain filled in online. Content validity was analyzed by expert judgment, and construct validity by factor analysis. Reliability was assessed by analyzing the internal consistency with Cronbach's alpha.The factorial analysis confirmed the existence of a single factor that explains 62.35% of the total variance of the questionnaire. Cronbach's alpha was 0.97. No relationship was found between sex and the final score of the questionnaire.The psychometric properties of the CVS-R support its use for the assessment of the subjective quality of life of nursing homes in Spain. The CVS-R considers, for the first time, the perception of residents, families and staff.La calidad de vida en residencias de personas mayores es una preocupación creciente. Su evaluación requiere instrumentos que consideren las necesidades subjetivas de residentes, familias y profesionales, como el cuestionario (CVS-R) que se desarrolló y validó en el presente estudio.La versión original de 100 ítems fue aplicada a 99 personas procedentes de tres residencias (36,4% profesionales, 30,30% residentes y 33,33% familiares). Del análisis de los ítems se obtuvo un cuestionario de 27 preguntas y 9 dimensiones que, posteriormente, rellenaron de forma online 225 personas de otras residencias de España (62% profesionales, 23% residentes y 14% familiares). Se analizó la validez de contenido mediante valoración por expertos y la validez de constructo mediante análisis factorial. Se evaluó la fiabilidad analizando la consistencia interna con el alfa de Cronbach.El análisis factorial confirmó la existencia de un solo factor que explica el 62,35% de la varianza total del cuestionario. El alfa de Cronbach fue de 0,97. No se encontró relación entre el sexo y la puntuación final del cuestionario.Las propiedades psicométricas del CVS-R apoyan su uso para la evaluación de la CV subjetiva de residencias de personas mayores de España. El CVS-R recoge, por primera vez, la percepción de residentes, familias y profesionales.

Resumen Las primeras alteraciones lingüísticas propias de la Enfermedad de Alzheimer (EA) ocurren en el nivel léxico-semántico, fuertemente dependiente del estado de la memoria del hablante. Los cambios cualitativos en la memoria semántica, derivados de los procesos neurodegenerativos, dan lugar a la aparición de la anomia: la incapacidad de la persona afectada de acceder y recuperar tanto las unidades léxicas como sus bases conceptuales. En este trabajo, nos proponemos estudiar las características cognitivas y semánticas de la afectación anómica en EA e indagar en la posibilidad de su uso en pruebas para la detección temprana de la demencia. Para ello, analizamos los resultados de un modelo experimental de la clásica prueba de fluidez verbal semántica (FVSem), que introduce la división de la misma en cuatro intervalos de 15 segundos con el fin de determinar qué procesos de acceso semántico -los automáticos o los controlados- están alterados en diferentes estados cognitivos de la vejez (hablantes sin patología, hablantes con deterioro cognitivo leve y hablantes con EA). Los resultados de nuestro experimento apuntan a que existe una clara correlación entre el estado cognitivo del hablante y su habilidad léxico-semántica. Asimismo, evidencian, por un lado, que es importante aplicar la prueba de FVSem con duración no inferior a 60 segundos y con distribución en 4 intervalos de 15 segundos, y, por otro lado, que determinadas categorías semánticas -colores y frutas- son más susceptibles a la retrogénesis cognitiva propia de EA.

Language impairments in Alzheimer’s disease may appear at the prodromal stage. The most significant impairment is found at the lexical-semantic process level, which is explained either by a degradation of the areas that store the semantic network or by a failure at retrieving the information from that network. Regardless of the retrieval failure happening, there is evidence of the degradation of the semantic network at some levels. Several studies support the bottom-up breakdown, according to which the loss starts at the specific concept attribute level, along with the link with its coordinates, while superordinates are preserved. Some characteristics can affect this loss such as familiarity, age of acquisition, frequency, or affective features. While classic studies have focused on concrete neutral nouns, recent research is exploring the role of emotion. Since emotional processes strengthen the semantic relationship between concepts, it could be a relevant dimension for the preservation of the semantic network.