Aging & Social Change: Tenth Interdisciplinary Conference

Abstract

Cognitive impairment is one of the most expensive health issues in the United States (U.S.) and has profound negative effects on well-being at late life. In the context of public policies to increase retirement age, it is important to explore the potential cognitive effects of delaying retirement, given that potential health consequences of delaying retirement can affect long-term care expenditures for the elderly. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of extended working life beyond age 65 on cognitive functioning in older adults. A longitudinal analysis of data from 9 waves (1998-2014) of the U.S. Health and Retirement Study was performed. We drew 1,412 participants without cognitive impairment at baseline. Cognitive functioning was measured by working memory, episodic memory, attention and processing speed, language, temporal orientation, and total cognition (sum of the 7 test scores described above). We used fixed effects regression model to examine the association between extended working life and cognitive functioning. We also controlled for age, marital status, wealth, and depressive symptomatology. Extended working life was significantly and positively associated with working memory (p < .000), episodic memory (p < .000), attention and processing speed (p < .05), and total cognition (p < .000). Extended working life may have a beneficial effect on cognitive functioning in older adults. The current findings provide support for public policies aimed at increasing retirement age and have implications for how best to protect cognitive functioning in older age.