Cognitive resilience in adulthood

A resilience framework for understanding cognitive aging implies a search for factors that buffer against existing risk, enabling one to thrive in what might otherwise be adverse circumstances. The cascade of biological processes associated with senescence and a cultural context that does not take into account this biological imperative each create risk for cognitive decline in later adulthood. We propose that (a) engagement, a sustained investment in mental stimulation, and (b) personal agency, which enables one to construct a niche for successful life span development, constitute the centerpiece of cognitive resilience. Numerous factors at the level of the individual and the sociocultural context set the stage for engagement and agency, thereby contributing to life span cognitive resilience, which can in turn impact factors promoting engagement and agency (e.g., health management, disposition affecting how experience in regulated) to support cognitive growth.