Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

An Examination of Dedifferentiation in Cognition Among African–American Older Adults

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The structure and organization of cognitive abilities has been examined across the life span. The current analysis had three specific aims: (1) test the factor structure of a broad cognitive ability battery across three age groups; (2) examine differences in the pattern of factor covariation across age groups; and (3) examine the pattern of factor mean differences across age groups. A sample of 512 older African Americans (mean age = 66.6 years, 25.4% male) from the Baltimore Study of Black Aging was administered a battery of cognitive tests assessing the domains of perceptual speed, verbal memory, inductive reasoning, vocabulary, and working memory. Factor models were estimated separately in middle-age adults (50–59 years, n = 107), young-old adults (60–69 years, n = 198), and old-old adults (70–79 years, n = 207). There was loading invariance across the three age groups that suggests that the selected tests measured cognition similarly across age. There was no evidence of dedifferentiation across increasingly older age groups. Factor mean differences were observed with the middle-age group having significantly higher factor means than the young-old and old-old groups; however, there was only one factor mean difference between the young-old and the old-old groups. The results suggest that a pattern of dedifferentiation of cognitive abilities does not exist within this sample of older African Americans and that the 60–69 year age range may be a critical period for cognitive decline in this population.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Anstey, K. J., Hofer, S. M., & Luszcz, M. A. (2003). Cross-sectional and longitudinal patterns of dedifferentiation in late-life cognitive and sensory function: The effects of age, ability, attrition, and occasion of measurement. Journal of Experimental Psychology. General, 132, 470–487. doi:10.1037/0096-3445.132.3.470.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arbuckle, T. Y., Gold, D., & Andres, D. (1986). Cognitive functioning of older people in relation to social and personality variables. Psychology and Aging, 1, 55–62. doi:10.1037/0882-7974.1.1.55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baltes, P. B., Cornelius, S. W., Spiro, A., Nesselroade, J. R., & Willis, S. L. (1980). Integration versus differentiation of fluid/crystallized intelligence in old age. Developmental Psychology, 16, 625–635. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.16.6.625.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baltes, P. B., & Lindenberger, U. (1997). Emergence of a powerful connection between memory and cognitive functions across the adult life span. A new window to the study of cognitive aging? Psychology and Aging, 12, 12–21. doi:10.1037/0882-7974.12.1.12.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baltes, P. B., & Mayer, K. U. (1999). The Berlin aging study: Aging from 70 to 100. New York: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baltes, P. B., & Willis, S. L. (1982). Plasticity and enhancement of intellectual functioning in old age: Penn State’s Adult Development and Enrichment Project (ADEPT). In F. I. M. Blanchard-Fields, F., & Chen, Y. (1996). Adaptive cognition and aging. The American Behavioral Scientist, 39, 231–248.

  • Barrett, T. R., & Watkins, S. K. (1986). Word familiarity and cardiovascular health as determinants of age-related recall differences. Journal of Gerontology, 41, 222–224.

    Google Scholar 

  • Birren, J. E., & Morrison, D. F. (1961). Analysis of the WAIS subtests in relation to age and education. Journal of Gerontology, 16, 363–369.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blum, J. E., & Jarvik, L. F. (1974). Intellectual performance of octogenarians as a function of education and initial ability. Human Development, 17, 364–375.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brandt, J. (1991). The Hopkins Verbal learning test: development of a new memory test with six equivalent forms. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 5, 125–142. doi:10.1080/13854049108403297.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burt, C. (1954). The differentiation of intellectual abilities. The British Journal of Educational Psychology, 24, 76–90.

    Google Scholar 

  • Byrne, B. M. (2001). Structural equation modeling with AMOS: Basic concepts, applications, and programming. Mahwah: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cattell, R. B. (1971). Abilities: Their structure, growth, and action. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, S., & Syme, S. L. (1985). Social support and health. San Francisco: Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cornelius, S. W., Willis, S. L., Nesselroade, J. R., & Baltes, P. B. (1983). Convergence between attention variables and factors of psychometric intelligence in older adults. Intelligence, 7, 253–269. doi:10.1016/0160-2896(83)90017-X.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Craik, F. I. M. (1990). Changes in memory with normal aging: A functional view. In R. J. Wurtman, S. Corkin, J. H. Growdon, & E. Ritter-Walker (Eds.), Advances in neurology: Alzheimer’s disease (Vol. 51). New York: Raven.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cunningham, W. R., & Birren, J. E. (1980). Age changes in the factor structure of intellectual abilities in adulthood and old age. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 4, 13–149.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cunningham, W. R., Clayton, V., & Overton, W. (1975). Fluid and crystallized intelligence in young and old adulthood. Journal of Gerontology, 30, 53–55.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dannefer, D. (1988). Differential gerontology and the stratified life course. In G. L. Maddox & M. P. Lawton (Eds.), Annual review of gerontology and geriatrics 8: Varieties of aging (pp. 3–36). New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dannefer, D. (2003). Cumulative advantage/disadvantage and the life course: cross-fertilizing age and social science theory. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, S8B(6), S327–S337.

    Google Scholar 

  • Deary, I. J., Egan, V., Gibson, G. J., Austin, E. J., Brand, C. R., & Kellaghan, T. (1996). Intelligence and the differentiation hypothesis. Intelligence, 23, 105–132. doi:10.1016/S0160-2896(96)90008-2.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • de Frias, C. M., Lovden, M., Lindenberger, U., & Nilsson, L. (2007). Revisiting the dedifferentiation hypothesis with longitudinal multi-cohort data. Intelligence, 35, 381–392. doi:10.1016/j.intell.2006.07.011.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Denny, N. W., & Palmer, A. M. (1981). Adult age differences on traditional and practical problem-solving measures. Journal of Gerontology, 36, 323–328.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ekstrom, R. B., French, J. W., Harman, H., & Derman, D. (1976). Kit of factor-referenced cognitive tests. Princeton: Educational Testing Service.

    Google Scholar 

  • Elias, M. F., & Elias, P. K. (1993). Hypertension affects neurobehavioral functioning: So what’s new? Psychonomic Medicine, 55, 51–54.

    Google Scholar 

  • Elias, M. F., Elias, J. W., & Elias, P. K. (1990). Biological and health influences on behavior. In J. E. Birren & K. W. Schaie (Eds.), Handbook of the psychology of aging (pp. 70–102). New York: Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Foulds, G. A., & Raven, J. C. (1948). Normal changes in mental abilities of adults as age advances. The Journal of Mental Science, 94, 133–142.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garrett, H. E. (1946). A developmental theory of intelligence. The American Psychologist, 1, 372–378. doi:10.1037/h0056380.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ghisletta, P., & Lindenberger, U. (2003). Age-based structural dynamics between perceptual speed and knowledge in the Berlin Aging Study: direct evidence for ability dedifferentiation in old age. Psychology and Aging, 18, 696–713. doi:10.1037/0882-7974.18.4.696.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Green, R. F. (1969). Age-intelligence relationship between ages sixteen and sixty-four: a rising trend. Developmental Psychology, 34, 404–414.

    Google Scholar 

  • Green, R. F., & Berkowitz, B. (1964). Changes in intellect with age: II. Factorial analysis of Wechsler-Bellevue scores. The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 104, 3–18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gribbon, K., Schaie, K. W., & Parham, I. (1980). Complexity of life style and maintenance of intellectual abilities. The Journal of Social Issues, 36, 47–67.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harper, M. S., & Alexander, C. D. (1990). Profile of the Black elderly. In M. S. Harper (Ed.), Minority aging: Essential curricula content for selected health and allied health professions (pp. 193–222). Washington, DC: US Department of Health and Human Services DHHS Publication No. HRS-P-DV 90-4.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hertzog, C. (1989). Influences of cognitive slowing on age differences in intelligence. Developmental Psychology, 25, 636–651. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.25.4.636.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Horn, J. L. (1970). Organization of data on life-span development of human abilities. In L. R. Goulet & P. B. Baltes (Eds.), Life-span developmental psychology: Research and theory. New York: Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Horn, J. L. (1982). The theory of fluid and crystallized intelligence in relation to concepts of cognitive psychology and aging in adulthood. In F. I. M. Craik, & S. Trehub (Eds.), Aging and cognitive processes (pp. 77–117). New York: Plenum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Horn, J. L., & Hofer, S. M. (1992). Major abilities and development in the adult period. In R. Sternberg & C. Berg (Eds.), Intellectual development (pp. 44–99). New York: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Horn, J. L., & McArdle, J. J. (1992). A practical and theoretical guide to measurement invariance in aging research. Experimental Aging Research, 18, 117–144.

    Google Scholar 

  • Horn, J. L., & Noll, J. (1997). Human cognitive capabilities: Gf–Gc theory. In D. P. Flanagan, J. Genshaft, & P. L. Harrison (Eds.), Contemporary intellectual assessment: Theories, tests, and issues (pp. 53–91). New York: Guilford.

    Google Scholar 

  • House, J., Landis, K., & Umberson, D. (1988). Social relationships and health. Science, 241, 540–565. doi:10.1126/science.3399889.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hultsch, D. F., Hertzog, C., Small, B. J., & Dixon, R. A. (1999). Use it or lose it? Engaged life style as a buffer of cognitive decline in aging. Psychology and Aging, 14, 245–263. doi:10.1037/0882-7974.14.2.245.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kesler, M. S., Denny, N. W., & Whitney, S. E. (1976). Factors influencing problem solving in middle-aged and elderly adults. Human Development, 19, 310–320.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kitayama, S. (2000). Cultural variations in cognition: Implications for aging reasarch. In P. Stern & L. Carstensen (Eds.), The aging mind: Opportunities for aging research (pp. 217–239). Washington D.C: National Academy of Sciences Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lindenberger, U., & Baltes, P. (1997). Intellectual functioning in old and very old age: cross-sectional results from the Berlin Aging Study. Psychology and Aging, 12(3), 410–432. doi:10.1037/0882-7974.12.3.410.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Livingston, I. L., Levine, D. M., & Moore, R. D. (1991). Social integration and Black intraracial variation in blood pressure. Ethnicity & Disease, 1, 135–149.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lövdén, M., Ghisletta, P., & Lindenberger, U. (2004). Cognition in the Berlin Aging Study (BASE): the first 10 years. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition, 11, 104–133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McGaw, B., & Joreskog, K. G. (1971). Factorial invariance of ability measures in groups differing in intelligence and socioeconomic status. The British Journal of Mathematical and Statistical Psychology, 24, 154–168.

    Google Scholar 

  • McHugh, R. B., & Owens, W. A. (1954). Age changes in mental organization—a longitudinal study. Journal of Gerontology, 9, 296–302.

    Google Scholar 

  • National Vital Statistics Reports (2007). United States Life tables, 2004, vol 56(9). Hyattsville: National Vital Statistics.

    Google Scholar 

  • Owens, W. A. (1966). Age and mental abilities: a second adult follow-up. Journal of Educational Psychology, 57, 311–325. doi:10.1037/h0023962.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Park, D. C. (2000). The basic mechanisms accounting for age-related decline in cognitive function. In D. Park & N. Schwarz (Eds.), Cognitive aging: A primer (pp. 3–21). Philadelphia: Taylor & Francis.

    Google Scholar 

  • Park, D. C., Lautenschlager, G., Hedden, T., Davidson, N. S., Smith, A. D., & Smith, P. K. (2002). Models of visuospatial and verbal memory across the adult life span. Psychology and Aging, 17, 299–320.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Park, D. C., Nisbett, R. E., & Hedden, T. (2000). Aging, culture, and cognition. Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, 54B, 75–84.

    Google Scholar 

  • Perlmutter, M., Adams, C., Berry, J., Kaplan, M., Persons, D., & Verdonic, F. (1988). Memory and aging. In K. W. Schaie (Ed.), Annual review of gerontology and geriatrics (pp. 57–92). New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Perlmutter, M., & Nyquist, L. (1990). Relationships between self-reported physical and mental health and intelligence performance across adulthood. Journal of Gerontology, 45, 145–155.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rey, A. (1941). L’examen psychologique dans les cas d’encephalopathie tramatique. Archives de Psychologie, 28, 21.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ripple, R. E., & Jaquish, G. A. (1981). Fluency, flexibility, and originality in later adulthood. Educational Gerontology, 7, 1–10. doi:10.1080/0360127810070101.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rosano, C., Simonsick, E. M., Harris, T. B., Kritchevsky, S. B., Brach, J., Visser, M., et al. (2005). Association between physical and cognitive function in health elderly: The Health, Aging, and Body Composition Study. Neuroepidemiology, 24, 8–14. doi:10.1159/000081043.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Salthouse, T. A. (1991). Mediation of adult age differences in cognition by reductions in working memory and perceptual speed. Psychological Science, 2, 179–183. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.1991.tb00127.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Salthouse, T. A. (1994). The nature of the influence of speed on adult age differences in cognition. Developmental Psychology, 30, 240–259. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.30.2.240.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Salthouse, T. A., & Babcock, R. L. (1991). Decomposing adult age differences in working memory. Developmental Psychology, 27, 763–776. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.27.5.763.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Salthouse, T. A., Hambrick, D. Z., Lukas, K. E., & Dell, T. C. (1996). Determinants of adult age differences on synthetic work performance. Journal of Experimental Psychology. Applied, 2, 305–329. doi:10.1037/1076-898X.2.4.305.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Salthouse, T. A., & Meinz, E. J. (1995). Aging, inhibition, working memory and speed. Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 50(6), P297–P306.

    Google Scholar 

  • Saxby, B. K., Harrington, F., McKeith, I. G., Wesnes, K., & Ford, G. A. (2003). Effects of hypertension on attention, memory, and executive function in older adults. Health Psychology, 22, 587–591. doi:10.1037/0278-6133.22.6.587.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schaie, K. W. (1983). The Seattle Longitudinal Study: a twenty-one year exploration of psychometric intelligence in adulthood. In V. L. Bengston & K. W. Schaie (Eds.), The course of latter life: Research and reflections (pp. 68–83). New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schaie, K. W. (1989). Individual differences in rate of cognitive change in adulthood. In V. L. Bengston & K. W. Schaie (Eds.), The course of latter life: Research and reflections (pp. 68–83). New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schaie, K. W. (1994). The course of adult intellectual development. The American Psychologist, 49, 304–313. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.49.4.304.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schaie, K. W. (2004). Developmental influences on cognitive development: The Seattle Longitudinal Study. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Selzer, S. C., & Denny, N. W. (1980). Conservation abilities among middle-aged and elderly adults. International Journal of Aging & Human Development, 11, 135–146.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shipley, W. C. (1986). Shipley Institute of Living Scale. Los Angeles: Western Psychological Services.

  • Singer, T., Verhaeghen, P., Ghisletta, P., Lindenberger, U., & Baltes, P. B. (2003). The fate of cognition in very old age: Six-year longitudinal findings in the Berlin Aging Study (BASE). Psychology and Aging, 10, 318–331.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sliwinski, M., & Buschke, H. (1999). Cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships among age, cognition, and processing speed. Psychology and Aging, 14, 18–33. doi:10.1037/0882-7974.14.1.18.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taub, G. E., McGrew, K. S., & Witta, E. L. (2004). A confirmatory analysis of the factor structure and cross-age invariance of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Third Edition. Psychological Assessment, 16, 85–89. doi:10.1037/1040-3590.16.1.85.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Verhaegen, P., Borchelt, M., & Smith, J. (2003). Relation between cardiovascular and metabolic disease and cognition in very old age: cross-sectional and longitudinal findings from the Berlin Aging Study. Health Psychology, 22(6), 559–569. doi:10.1037/0278-6133.22.6.559.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vernon, P. E. (1969). Intelligence and cultural environment. London: Methuen.

    Google Scholar 

  • Waldstein, S. R. (2000). Health effects on cognitive aging. In P. C. Stern & L. L. Carstensen (Eds.), The aging mind: Opportunities in cognitive research (pp. 189–217). Washington, D.C.: National Academy Committee on Future Directions for Cognitive Research on Aging. Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wechsler, D. (1981). The Wechsler adult intelligence scale-revised. New York: Psychological Corporation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Whitfield, K. E. (2004). Accelerated cognitive aging: a hypothesis to account for racial differences. African American Perspectives, 10(1), 120–129.

    Google Scholar 

  • Whitfield, K. E., & Aiken-Morgan, A. (2008). Minority populations and cognitive aging. In S. Hofer & D. Alwin (Eds.), Handbook of cognitive aging (pp. 384–396). Washington, D.C.: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Whitfield, K. E., & Baker, T. A. (1999). Individual differences in aging among African Americans. International Journal of Aging & Human Development, 48(1), 73–79.

    Google Scholar 

  • Whitfield, K. E., Fillenbaum, G., Peiper, C., Seeman, T. E., Albert, M. S., Berkman, L. F., et al. (2000). The effect of race and health related factors on naming and memory: The MacArthur Studies of Successful Aging. Journal of Aging and Health, 12(1), 69–89. doi:10.1177/089826430001200104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whitfield, K. E., Seeman, T. E., Miles, T. P., Albert, M. S., Berkman, L. F., Blazer, D. G., et al. (1997). Health indices as predictors of cognition among older African Americans: MacArthur Studies of Successful Aging. Ethnicity & Disease, 7, 127–136.

    Google Scholar 

  • Whitfield, K. E., & Wiggins, S. (2003). The impact of desegregation on cognition among older African Americans. The Journal of Black Psychology, 29, 275–291. doi:10.1177/0095798403254209.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whitfield, K. E., & Willis, S. (1998). Conceptual issues and analytic strategies for studying cognition in older African Americans. African–American Research Perspectives, 4(1), 115–125.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ylikoski, R., Ylikoski, A., Raininko, R., Keskivaara, P., Sulkava, R., Tilvis, R., et al. (2000). Cardiovascular diseases, health status, brain imaging findings and neuropsychological functioning in neurologically healthy elderly individuals. Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 30, 115–130. doi:10.1016/S0167-4943(00)00045-5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zachary, R. A. (1986). Shipley institute of living scale, revised manual. Los Angeles: Western Psychological Services.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zelinski, E. M., & Lewis, K. I. (2003). Adult age differences in multiple cognitive functions: differentiation, dedifferentiation, or process-specific change? Psychology and Aging, 18, 727–745. doi:10.1037/0882-7974.18.4.727.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zelinski, E. M., & Stewart, S. (1998). Individual differences in 16-year memory changes. Psychology and Aging, 13, 622–630. doi:10.1037/0882-7974.13.4.622.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The Baltimore Study of Black Aging is supported by grants from the National Institute on Aging (R01 AG24108 and AG024108-02S1) to K.E.W. Additional support is provided to the first author by a grant from the National Institute on Aging (T32 AG00029). We would like to thank Alana Bennett, Otis Best, Haolan Cai, Andrea Darby, and Janet Downing for their assistance in the data collection and entry.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA

    Regina C. Sims

  2. Department of Psychology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA

    Jason C. Allaire & Alyssa A. Gamaldo

  3. Department of Psychiatry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA

    Christopher L. Edwards

  4. Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA

    Christopher L. Edwards

  5. Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, P.O. Box 90085, Durham, NC, 27708, USA

    Keith E. Whitfield

Authors
  1. Regina C. Sims
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Jason C. Allaire
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Alyssa A. Gamaldo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Christopher L. Edwards
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Keith E. Whitfield
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Keith E. Whitfield.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Sims, R.C., Allaire, J.C., Gamaldo, A.A. et al. An Examination of Dedifferentiation in Cognition Among African–American Older Adults. J Cross Cult Gerontol 24, 193–208 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10823-008-9080-8

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10823-008-9080-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation