A recent scientific article written by researchers of LISER and the University of Luxembourg has revealed worldwide evidence of the link between inequalities in education and the cognitive functioning of older adults.
The article, written by researchers Javier Olivera, Francesco Andreoli, Anja Leist and Louis Chauvel and published in the journal Economics & Human Biology, documents the persistent effects of past educational inequalities on the differences of cognitive functioning observed today among older adults in 29 countries.
Intact cognitive functioning in old age refers to attention, thinking, understanding, learning, decision-making and problem solving. At older ages, higher starting levels of cognitive functioning are even more important, as processes of cognitive aging lead to decline in cognitive functioning. Though many studies have focused on measuring the level of cognitive functioning and its determinants, little is known regarding the inequalities in cognitive functioning in old age.
However, the distribution of cognitive functioning in old age may reflect undeveloped potential for cognitive functioning due to early-life educational inequalities and lack of educational opportunities. Therefore, high inequality in old age cognition may be associated with low average levels of old age cognition. Given the high costs of cognitive impairment and its importance for health expenditures, it is expected that a high inequality of cognitive functioning may undermine the sustainability of healthcare. In a broader perspective, inequality of old age cognition can also be related to the distribution of wellbeing among old people. In fact, cognitive functioning may determine key dimensions for this population group, such as autonomy, mental health, and planning ability, among others. Educational inequalities have been shown to have long-run consequences on hampering equality of opportunity for accumulation of resources over the life course.
The study used all publicly available and representative old age surveys with comparable information to assess inequalities of cognitive functioning in 29 countries. It also considered different measures of cognitive functioning that are regarded as indicators of cognitive performance of elderly individuals. A very relevant result of this study is the finding that unequal opportunities for education -captured by differences in parental background and gender- also have significant and persistent effects on inequality of cognition in old age.
