The main aim of the study is to validate the factor structure of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) of China’s older population using the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey. The validation process used the exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to determine the number of dimensions of MMSE, the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to confirm the factorial structure of MMSE, and the factorial invariance to conclude the factor structure does not differ between the young-old (aged 65 – 79) and old-old (aged 80 or older). The results of the EFAs suggested two possible factor structures: A six-factor and a seven-factor solution. The seven-factor confirmatory factor model turned out as the best fit by comparison to the four competing confirmatory models. Strict factorial invariance was attained for the two age groups, indicating a high level of measurement equality, a property of invariance was seldom achieved in the literature of factorial invariance studies. In comparison to the MMSE literature that focused solely on EFA that aims to establish a single summated score, the present study suggests using EFA, CFA, and factorial invariance that takes into consideration of measurement errors as the preferred procedure since it establishes the appropriate MMSE dimensionality that is in line with their respective cognitive functions.

There has been increasing attention to the role of hearing loss as a potentially modifiable risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. However, more nationally-representative studies are needed to understand the co-occurring changes in hearing loss and cognitive function in older adults over time, and how hearing aid use might influence this association. The purpose of this report is to examine how age-related changes in hearing loss and hearing aid use are associated with trajectories of cognitive function in a nationally-representative sample of U.S. older adults. We used 11 waves of longitudinal data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) from 1998 to 2018 to examine changes in self-reported hearing loss, hearing aid use, and cognitive function in adults 65 and older by race and ethnicity. Results from mixed models showed that greater levels of hearing loss were associated with lower levels of cognitive function at age 65 in non-Hispanic White, non-Hispanic Black, and Hispanic older adults. We also found that the associations diminished across age in White and Black individuals; but remained persistent in Hispanic individuals. The use of hearing aids was not associated with cognitive function in Black older adults but appeared protective for White and Hispanic older adults. Overall, the findings from this report suggest that the timely identification of hearing loss and subsequent acquisition of hearing aids may be important considerations for reducing declines in cognitive function that manifests differently in U.S. population subgroups.

School dropouts, early marriages, and low age at childbearing are issues still prevalent in Indian states like Bihar, which may be responsible for poor mental health among young adults. The present study examined the effect of life-course events such as school dropouts, early marriages, and early childbearing on mental health status at later ages (23–28 years). Using data from the Understanding the Lives of Adolescents and Young Adults consisting of a 2360 adolescent (ages 15 – 19) girl cohort interviewed in 2007 and re-interviewed at ages 23 – 28 in 2016 from the state of Bihar, India, we applied ordinal logistic regression models in analyzing factors associated with mental health status. Women who never attended school, or dropped out from school, and who got married before age 19 showed a poorer mental health status in their young adulthood (22 – 28 years) compared to their respective counterparts who attended a school and who got married at age 19 or older. As compared to women who had a child before age 19, those who did not have any child, or who had children after 20 years of age were more likely to have poor mental health. Working women, high self-efficacy of women, and women who have decision-making power showed better mental health outcomes as compared to their respective counterparts. To enhance psychological well-being of young women, the study recommends continue education and delaying marriage as the programmatic keys with attention to improving young women’s autonomy and gender role attitudes and reducing societal pressure for bearing first child soon after marriage.

As in recent decades, Malta has experienced an increase in both the number of available university programs in ageing studies and graduate students, the aim of this article is to evaluate the country’s efforts in ensuring a trained workforce in gerontology, geriatrics, and dementia education. While Malta punches above its weight as far as gerontology education is concerned, one also notes a number of shortcomings. The country is still devoid of a clear space for professional gerontologists to put in practice all their knowledge, and unfortunately both public and private employers are still highly unaware of the skills that professional gerontologists can bring toward the improvement of the quality of life and well-being of older persons living either in the community or long-term care. Moreover, curricula remain hindered by two key limitations. Primarily, there is a disproportionate Western bias in the choice of theories and practices in all realms of ageing studies. Second, that no full-time faculty member at the Department of Gerontology and Dementia Studies is a geriatrician, and that such faculty members all service the University on a visiting basis. In this respect, this chapter recommends three key and urgent strategies for gerontology education in Malta. These include establishing gerontology as a discipline in its own right is long overdue, founding gerontology as a bona fide profession, and accrediting gerontology. 

This study aimed to examine the pattern of active life engagement and the association between cognitive functioning and active life engagement among older adults in rural China. Two waves of panel data with the previous day’s activities in a time-use survey were collected among older adults age 60 and older in rural China. Logistic and OLS regressions were used to examine the impacts of cognitive functioning on participation and intensity in six types of activities. The overall active life engagement level of older adults in rural China was relatively low. Cognitive functioning and its decline significantly associated with the active life engagement. Older adults with higher cognitive functioning were more likely to engage in household work, recreational activity, and socially connected activity, and the decline in cognitive functioning was also significantly associated with the lower likelihood of engaging in household work, recreational activity, physical activity, and lower intensity of socially connected activity. Participation in diverse life activities is an important component of successful aging. The findings of this study suggest the need for increasing awareness of the influence of cognition on daily activities. Future interventions need to consider cognitive health to maximize active life engagement in Chinese rural older adults.