title: Stability and change in subjective well-being: The role of performance-based and self-rated cognition.
abstract: The primary goal of this study was to address the stability-despite-loss paradox of subjective well-being. Performance-based and self-evaluative measures of cognitive functioning were examined as predictors of subjective well-being in middle-aged and older adults using data from the Interdisciplinary Longitudinal Study of Adult Development (ILSE). Consistent with past work, subjective well-being remained relatively stable over a period of 12 years in both age groups, although performance-based and self-rated cognition declined over time. Cognitive status, as determined by standard psychometric tests of fluid cognitive abilities, was unrelated to longitudinal change in subjective well-being. A symmetrical measure of self-rated cognitive performance predicted intraindividual change in subjective well-being in middle-aged but not older adults. This pattern of findings helps clarify why many older people may be able to maintain their subjective well-being, while their cognitive abilities decline. (PsycINFO Database Record
authors.affiliation: University of Leipzig.
authors.forename: Tina
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-5073-0093
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Braun
authors.forename: Stefan C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Schmukle
authors.forename: Ute
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Kunzmann
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D059026:Diagnostic Self Evaluation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011594:Psychometrics; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D011897:Random Allocation; D012647:Self-Assessment; D055815:Young Adult