The mission of the Mind Division is to harness the human capital represented in a growing number of mature and talented older citizens. Absent significant disease, aging is associated with an increase in knowledge and expertise, emotional stability and heightened motivation to engage in meaningful work. At the same time, the speed and efficiency of new learning typically declines with age, as does sensory functioning affecting hearing and vision. Such changes can hamper the effectiveness with which people engage with work, families and communities.
CURRENT PROJECTS
ENGAGEMENT
STUDY OF COGNITIVE BENEFITS OF VOLUNTEERING – Santa Clara County, CA
Mounting evidence suggests that volunteering confers substantial psychological and physical benefits to older volunteers, along with obvious gains for communities. The Center has established a partnership with the County of Santa Clara, California to enable research with a large and diverse workforce in order to better understand volunteering preferences. The survey queries a population of approximately 7,000 current County employees and 9,000 retirees about their volunteering preferences and behaviors. Once survey data collection is complete, we will conduct data analysis, and communicate findings with the County of Santa Clara. Work will continue with the County to develop plans for implementing a volunteer recruitment effort to test the incentives identified.
DECISION MAKING
SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH NETWORK ON DECISION NEUROSCIENCE AND AGING
One consequence of age-related cognitive decline is impaired decision making. The Center is working with a National Institutes of Health (NIH) funded Network Grant on Decision Neuroscience and Aging. The scientific leadership team includes David Laibson (Harvard, Economics), Laura Carstensen, and Camelia Kuhnen (Northwestern, Finance.) In early May 2013, the network co-sponsored a scientific meeting in Washington, D.C. focused on mechanisms of motivation and cognition across adulthood and into old age. The talks and discussion during the conference will be used to generate a book and other publications that will be disseminated widely to the scientific community to inspire the next generation of research on this topic. On May 22, 2013 network members participated in a one-day White House workshop on Psychological Science and Behavioral Economics in the Service of Public Policy. The network provided travel support for a select group of emerging leaders in policy-relevant science in areas related to psychology and/or economics. In August 2013, two $20,000 seed grants were awarded to research teams new to the area of decision neuroscience and aging. Read more about seed grants >>
DECISION MAKING FOR OVER THE COUNTER MEDICATION PROJECT
From December 2012 – April 2013, the Center served as a member of a Gerontological Society of America (GSA) work group on Over the Counter (OTC) Medication Behaviors of Older Adults. The work group planned and carried out an April 2013 National Summit on the topic in Washington, DC. Discussion and presentations focused on safe and effective use of OTC medications.
Objectives of the 2013 National Summit on OTC Medication Behaviors of Older Adults included:
- Evaluate existing research on OTC medication behaviors among older adults.
- Identify gaps in available research and prioritize research questions to improve OTC medication behaviors of older adults.
- Determine how packaging and health literacy influence older adults’ choice of OTC medications.
- Determine other influences on OTC medication use, including concerns about drug and disease interactions and clinician and family factors.
- Identify emerging technologies that support optimal OTC medication practices.
- Establish a framework and process to conduct critical research.
- Develop the science of OTC behaviors among older adults to promote safe and effective use of OTC medications.
The work group issued a working paper derived from the summit, and the GSA will plan a variety of sessions on this issue at its coming national conferences. Both efforts will seek to further research in this important area.
PERCEPTION AND COGNITION
BRAIN HEALTH CONFERENCE
In April 2013 the Center, together with the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin, convened a summit on brain health. The focus of the meeting was on reviewing the current state of research behind software products and approaches that aim to defend against age-related cognitive decline. This meeting was a reprisal of a similar meeting held five years previously, a meeting that led to the development of the Center’s 2008 Expert Consensus on Brain Health. The meeting brought together twenty-four of the world-experts on learning, memory and cognitive function. They spent the day grappling with the issue of brain health, cognitive function, and the utility of brain-training software. A formal consensus statement is in the process of being generated.
MUSIC AND MEMORY PROJECT
In collaboration with the Stanford Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA), Andy Reed, a postdoctoral fellow, is heading up a study designed to investigate age differences in preferences, attention and memory for emotion-inducing music and sounds. The study is intended to fill gaps in our understanding of age differences related to positive versus negative sounds and music. Findings from this research will inform the acoustic design of older adult environments (e.g., senior living facilities and nursing homes) to optimize emotional benefits. The project was completed in June 2013 and will culminate in a research report/paper. A follow-up study is currently being planned for Fall 2013.
FUTURE TECHNOLOGIES FOR MEMORY CARE WORKSHOP
In April 2013 the Center convened a workshop to bring together researchers and innovators exploring technologies to improve the lives of people with declining memory or other cognitive impairments. Twenty local experts met to discuss technologies and approaches that can help improve the lives of people experiencing forms of memory loss and cognitive decline, such as Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia, and to explore ideas about next generation solutions to the problem. The center will be hosting periodic meetings with the working group of core attendees, with a goal of building a road map for future technologies for memory care.