eprintid: 10126988 rev_number: 14 eprint_status: archive userid: 608 dir: disk0/10/12/69/88 datestamp: 2021-12-17 17:14:06 lastmod: 2021-12-18 23:37:37 status_changed: 2021-12-17 17:14:06 type: working_paper metadata_visibility: show creators_name: Cegelon, A creators_name: Jenkins, A title: Engaging in cognitively stimulating activities and change in cognitive function: a cross-country analysis using SHARE ispublished: pub divisions: UCL divisions: B16 divisions: B14 divisions: J81 keywords: ageing, cognitive decline, memory, verbal fluency, cognitively stimulating activities note: This version is the version of record. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. abstract: We examine the relationship between different types of cognitively stimulating activities (CSAs) and cognitive function in a sample of community-dwelling Europeans aged 50 and older. The data were drawn from the fourth, fifth and sixth waves of the Survey on Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). The cognitive activities analysed were: educational and training courses; reading books, newspapers and magazines; word or number games (such as crossword puzzles or Sudoku); and playing chess or cards. The cognitive function outcomes under investigation were memory and verbal fluency. Our longitudinal analysis of changes in cognitive abilities show that CSAs can constitute a potential source for the delay or reduction of cognitive decline, even after a short period - only 4 years - of engagement in such activities and regardless of one’s age. date: 2021-04 date_type: published publisher: UCL Social Research Institute official_url: https://ideas.repec.org/p/qss/dqsswp/2115.html oa_status: green full_text_type: pub language: eng primo: open primo_central: open_green verified: verified_manual elements_id: 1861258 lyricists_name: Jenkins, Andrew lyricists_id: AJENK22 actors_name: Jenkins, Andrew actors_id: AJENK22 actors_role: owner full_text_status: public series: QSS Working Papers number: 21-15 place_of_pub: London, UK pages: 47 citation: Cegelon, A; Jenkins, A; (2021) Engaging in cognitively stimulating activities and change in cognitive function: a cross-country analysis using SHARE. (QSS Working Papers 21-15). UCL Social Research Institute: London, UK. Green open access document_url: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10126988/1/qsswp2115_final_published.pdf