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Exploring the bidirectional associations between loneliness and cognitive functioning over 10 years: the English longitudinal study of ageing
- Source :
- International Journal of Epidemiology
- Publication Year :
- 2019
- Publisher :
- Oxford University Press (OUP), 2019.
-
Abstract
- Background As the population ages, cognitive decline and dementia have become major health concerns in the UK. Loneliness has been linked to cognitive decline, but the reverse causality of this association remains unclear. This study aims to examine whether there is a bidirectional relationship between loneliness and cognitive function in older English adults (age 50 years and over) over a 10-year follow-up. Methods Data came from a nationally representative sample of 5885 participants in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA), free of stroke or dementia and followed every 2 years up to wave 7 (2014–15). At each wave, cognitive function was measured with word recall and verbal fluency tests, and loneliness was measured with the abridged version of the revised UCLA Loneliness Scale. Bivariate dual change score models were used to assess the multivariate associations between loneliness and cognitive function, used interchangeably as exposures and outcomes. Results Greater loneliness at baseline was associated with poorer memory [β intercept = −0.03, standard error (SE) = 0.01, P = 0.016] and verbal fluency (β intercept = −0.01, SE = 001, P = 0.027) at baseline, and with a stronger linear rate of decline in both memory (β linear slope = −0.07, SE = 001, P ≤ 0.001) and verbal fluency (β linear slope = −0.09, SE = 0.03, P = 0.003) over a 10-year follow-up period, although the performance on verbal fluency did not change substantially on average over this period. We also found that higher baseline memory, but not verbal fluency, predicted a slower change in loneliness (β linear slope = −0.01, SE = 001, P = 0.004) and that a linear decline in memory was associated with an acceleration in loneliness (β quadratic slope = −0.02, SE = 001, P ≤ 0.001) during follow-up. Conclusions Higher loneliness is associated with poorer cognitive function at baseline and contributes to a worsening in memory and verbal fluency over a decade. These factors seem, however, to be partially intertwined, since baseline memory and its rate of decline also contribute to an increase in loneliness over time.
- Subjects :
- Male
Longitudinal study
Epidemiology
Population
Neuropsychological Tests
memory
older people
bivariate dual change score models
03 medical and health sciences
0302 clinical medicine
Risk Factors
medicine
Humans
Verbal fluency test
Cognitive Dysfunction
Longitudinal Studies
Cognitive skill
Cognitive decline
education
Aged
Language
Aged, 80 and over
education.field_of_study
030214 geriatrics
Verbal Behavior
Loneliness
verbal fluency
Cognition
General Medicine
Middle Aged
cognitive decline
United Kingdom
UCLA Loneliness Scale
Cross-Sectional Studies
Ageing and Dementia
Female
medicine.symptom
Psychology
030217 neurology & neurosurgery
Clinical psychology
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 14643685 and 03005771
- Volume :
- 48
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- International Journal of Epidemiology
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....b482b3f0546bf67b0648a5502e32c6fc