Jennifer Lodi-Smith

The Impact of Sustained Engagement on Cognitive Function in Older Adults The Synapse Project

In the research reported here, we tested the hypothesis that sustained engagement in learning new skills that activated working memory, episodic memory, and reasoning over a period of 3 months would enhance cognitive function in older adults. In three conditions with high cognitive demands, participants learned to quilt, learned digital photography, or engaged in both activities for an average of 16.51 hr a week for 3 months. Results at posttest indicated that episodic memory was enhanced in these productive-engagement conditions relative to receptive-engagement conditions, in which participants either engaged in nonintellectual activities with a social group or performed low-demand cognitive tasks with no social contact. The findings suggest that sustained engagement in cognitively demanding, novel activities enhances memory function in older adulthood, but, somewhat surprisingly, we found limited cognitive benefits of sustained engagement in social activities.

The Incremental Validity of Narrative Identity in Predicting Well-Being A Review of the Field and Recommendations for the Future

Grounded in four theoretical positions—structural, cognitive, phenomenological, and ethical—the present review demonstrates the empirical evidence for the incremental validity of narrative identity as a cross-sectional indicator and prospective predictor of well-being, compared with other individual difference and situational variables. In doing so, we develop an organizational framework of four categories of narrative variables: (a) motivational themes, (b) affective themes, (c) themes of integrative meaning, and (d) structural elements. Using this framework, we detail empirical evidence supporting the incremental association between narrative identity and well-being, a case that is strongest for motivational, affective, and integrative meaning themes. These categories of themes serve as vital complimentary correlates and predictors of well-being, alongside commonly assessed variables such as dispositional personality traits. We then use the theoretically grounded review of the empirical literature to develop concrete areas of future research for the field.

Concurrent and Prospective Relationships between Social Engagement and Personality Traits in Older Adulthood

The current research examined the longitudinal relationship between social engagement and personality traits in older adults. Specifically, the present research examined how engagement in family and community roles related to conscientiousness, agreeableness, and emotional stability in a sample of 100 Illinois residents age 60-86 years assessed twice over a period of 2.5 years. Social engagement and personality traits were related in three ways. First, concurrent relationships during Wave 1 suggested that agreeable older adults are more socially engaged. Next, Wave 1 standing on both personality traits and social engagement predicted respective change over time. In addition, changes in engagement and personality traits covaried over time. The specific patterns presented in this study suggest that although some relationships were consistent with research findings in young adulthood and midlife, role investment in old age may have a distinctly different meaning than role investment earlier in the life span. These patterns suggest that personality traits can both inform our understanding of engagement during older adulthood and that personality traits may be meaningful outcomes of the aging experience in their own right.

Research Methods for Studying Narrative Identity: A Primer

This article provides a primer for researchers seeking an introduction to quantitative narrative research methods. It represents a consensus document of most common practices used by the coauthors. Key elements of conducting narrative research (e.g., asking narrative questions, designing narrative prompts, collecting narratives, coding narratives) are discussed along with limitations to this approach and future directions.

Development of identity clarity and content in adulthood.

The current research examines self-concept clarity over 2 assessment points with the aims of establishing patterns of stability and change in self-concept clarity across adulthood, modeling corollary changes in traits and health-related role limitations, and demonstrating the ways in which gender and age moderate these patterns. Within this sample of 461 adults age 19–86 years of age, self-concept clarity had robust rank-order stability and no significant mean-level change during a 3-year assessment window. However, significant interindividual variability was present in the developmental patterns of self-concept clarity over time. These individual differences in development of self-concept clarity corresponded to developmental patterns in Big Five personality traits and health-related role limitations. Results of this 2 wave longitudinal study suggest 3 primary conclusions: (a) self-concept clarity predicts and corresponds to trait maturation over time, (b) decreasing self-concept clarity corresponds to increasing role limitations, and (c) these effects are somewhat contingent on gender and age. Results are discussed in reference to the maturation of identity content and metacognitive identity evaluation over the life span.

Social-class differences in self-concept clarity and their implications for well-being:

A consistent/stable sense of the self is more valued in middle-class contexts than working-class contexts; hence, we predicted that middle-class individuals would have higher self-concept clarity than working-class individuals. It is further expected that self-concept clarity would be more important to one’s well-being among middle-class individuals than among working-class individuals. Supporting these predictions, self-concept clarity was positively associated with higher social class. Moreover, although self-concept clarity was associated with higher life satisfaction and better mental health, the association significantly attenuated among working-class individuals. In addition, self-concept clarity was not associated with physical health and its association with physical health did not interact with social class.

Brief Report: Personality Mediates the Relationship between Autism Quotient and Well-Being: A Conceptual Replication using Self-Report

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) impacts well-being across the lifespan. Individuals with ASD evidence differences in personality traits and self-concept clarity that are predictors of well-being in typically-developing individuals. The current research replicates a growing body of evidence demonstrating differences in well-being and personality between individuals low in ASD characteristics (n = 207) and individuals high in ASD characteristics (n = 46) collected from the general population using an online survey. Results were consistent in a subsample of demographically matched pairs (n = 39 per group) and relative to norms. Further, the current research provides the first evidence that openness, conscientiousness, emotional stability, and self-concept clarity mediate the relationship between ASD characteristics and well-being.

A consensual qualitative research analysis of the experience of inmate hospice caregivers: Posttraumatic growth while incarcerated

ABSTRACT A growing number of correctional facilities train inmates to provide end-of-life care for dying inmates. This study explores the phenomenological perspective of inmate-caregivers participating in an inmate-facilitated hospice program (IFHP) with regard to meaning and purpose in life, attitudes on death and dying, and perceived personal impact of participation. Twenty-two inmate-caregivers were interviewed at a maximum-security state correctional facility in the United States. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using the Consensual Qualitative Research Methodology. Results suggest that participating in an IFHP may facilitate personal growth and transformation that mirrors the tenets of posttraumatic growth.

Synapse: A Clinical Trial Examining the Impact of Actively Engaging the Aging Mind

A fundamental challenge and responsibility for modern science is to progress toward understanding neuroprotective factors that will support and optimize cognitive aging. The present chapter describes the scientifically driven efforts of our research group to this end. We do this in three ways beginning with a review of the latest findings regarding the neurocognitive declines that are part of the normal aging process. Next, we present the Scaffolding Theory of Aging and Cognition (STAC; Annu Rev Psychol 60:173–196, 2009), which describes a model for how the brain adapts to the neural deterioration that occurs as a natural part of the aging process. Finally, we introduce a program of research designed using the tenets of the STAC model to investigate how engaging in cognitively and socially stimulating activities may promote the neurocognitive health of seniors long term.

“People don’t understand what goes on in here”: A consensual qualitative research analysis of inmate-caregiver perspectives on prison-based end-of-life care:

Background: The age demographic of the incarcerated is quickly shifting from young to old. Correctional facilities are responsible for navigating inmate access to healthcare; currently, there is no standardization for access to end-of-life care. There is growing research support for prison-based end-of-life care programs that incorporate inmate peer caregivers as a way to meet the needs of the elderly and dying who are incarcerated. Aim: This project aims to (a) describe a prison-based end-of-life program utilizing inmate peer caregivers, (b) identify inmate-caregiver motivations for participation, and (c) analyze the role of building trust and meaningful relationships within the correctional end-of-life care setting. Design: A total of 22 semi-structured interviews were conducted with inmate-caregivers. Data were analyzed using Consensual Qualitative Research methodology. Setting/participants: All inmate-caregivers currently participating in the end-of-life peer care program at Briarcliff Correctional Facility were given the opportunity to participate. All participants were male, over the age of 18, and also incarcerated at Briarcliff Correctional Facility, a maximum security, state-level correctional facility. Results: In total, five over-arching and distinct domains emerged; this manuscript focuses on the following three: (a) program description, (b) motivation, and (c) connections with others. Conclusion: Findings suggest that inmate-caregivers believe they provide a unique and necessary adaptation to prison-based end-of-life care resulting in multilevel benefits. These additional perceived benefits go beyond a marginalized group gaining access to patient-centered end-of-life care and include potential inmate-caregiver rehabilitation, correctional medical staff feeling supported, and correctional facilities meeting end-of-life care mandates. Additional research is imperative to work toward greater standardization of and access to end-of-life care for the incarcerated.