The Senior Odyssey: A Lab-to-Life Translation

University Of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Champaign IL

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Abstract

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The engagement hypothesis of cognitive aging suggests that age-related declines in intellectual functioning may to some extent be buffered by a lifestyle marked by social and intellectual engagement. Evidence for this idea, however, is primarily based on correlation data, which is subject to other interpretations, making it unclear whether engagement enhances cognitive function - or whether more intellectually capable individuals are prone to engagement. Training studies, in which cognitive and intellectual abilities are selectively trained, have been found to produce very little transfer to other abilities. Our goal in this project is to collect pilot data on the effects of a program of intellectual and social engagement, involving creative problem solving in a social/collaborative context. The Senior Odyssey project, developed in conjunction with the NIA-funded Roybal Center for Healthy Minds, is modeled on the Odyssey of the Mind program, developed for children and young adults over 20 years ago. In this program, participants work in teams to develop solutions to "long-term" problems that require reflection and negotiated planning in the generation of a creative product (e.g., building a wood structure to hold a certain amount of weight or a vehicle to achieve a given transportation goal, or write and perform a play to illustrate a certain point), as well as to practice "spontaneous" problems, which require fluency, flexibility, and originality in the context of social interaction. Senior volunteers will be randomly assigned to participate in the Senior Odyssey program or to selective cognitive training (i.e., speed training or memory training). The hypothesis to be tested is that the practice of basic cognitive skills (e.g., speed, memory, fluency, executive function) situated in the rich context of social interaction and goals for creative work will broadly enhance cognitive function as well as increase mindfulness, perceived control, and life satisfaction.