title: Developmental change and intraindividual variability: relating cognitive aging to cognitive plasticity, cardiovascular lability, and emotional diversity.
abstract: Repeated assessments obtained over years can be used to measure individuals' developmental change, whereas repeated assessments obtained over a few weeks can be used to measure individuals' dynamic characteristics. Using data from a burst of measurement embedded in the Berlin Aging Study (BASE; Baltes & Mayer, 1999), we illustrate and examine how long-term changes in cognitive ability are related to short-term changes in cognitive performance, cardiovascular function, and emotional experience. Our findings suggest that "better" cognitive aging over approximately 13 years was associated with greater cognitive plasticity, less cardiovascular lability, and less emotional diversity over approximately 2 weeks at age 90 years. The study highlights the potential benefits of multi-time scale longitudinal designs for the study of individual function and development.
authors: Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802-6505, USA. nilam.ram@psu.edu
authors: Nilam
authors: N
authors: Ram
authors: Denis
authors: D
authors: Gerstorf
authors: Ulman
authors: U
authors: Lindenberger
authors: Jacqui
authors: J
authors: Smith
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological / Q000502:physiology; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology*; D001604:Berlin; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests