Isolation, Not Loneliness or Cynical Hostility, Predicts Cognitive Decline in Older Americans

Abstract

Objective: To jointly examine isolation, loneliness, and cynical hostility as risk factors for cognitive decline in older adults. Method: Data came from the 2006 to 2012 waves of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), a longitudinal study of U.S. older adults (age ⩾ 65 years, n = 6,654). Measures included frequency of contact with social network (objective isolation), the Hughes Loneliness Scale (loneliness), a modified version of the Cook–Medley Hostility Inventory (cynical hostility), and a modified version of the Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status (cognitive function). Multilevel modeling (random slope + intercept) was used to examine the association between these factors and trajectories of cognitive function. Results and Discussion: After controlling for demographic characteristics, self-reported health, and functional limitations, loneliness (β = −.34, 95% confidence interval [CI] = [−0.56, −0.11), and cynical hostility (β = −.14, 95% CI = [−0.24, −0.04) correlated with lower cognitive function, but none predicted change in cognitive function. Objective social isolation was associated with lower cognitive function (β = −.27, 95% CI = [−0.41, −0.12]) and steeper decline in cognitive function (β = −.09, 95% CI = [−0.16, −0.01]).