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2009-10 FELLOW MARGIE LACHMAN EXPLORES
THE BENEFITS OF MENTAL EXERCISE  

Dr. Margie E. Lachman,
a 2009-10 residential Fellow at The Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University, is an expert on lifespan development with a focus on midlife and later life.
 BIO >>
STANFORD, CA, FEBRUARY 9, 2010 — Benjamin Franklin once said, “In this world nothing is sure but death and taxes.”  Is it also fated that we will lose our mental sharpness as we age?  Apparently not, according to new research.

A large national study recently published by the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry tested the hypothesis that mental exercise is beneficial, and may help most those at greatest risk of memory problems. 

Senior author Dr. Margie E. Lachman explained, “Today, there is much interest in discovering the plasticity of our minds in later life.  Although there is promising evidence that we can keep our memories intact by remaining mentally active, it is not clear if the most disadvantaged also can benefit.  The findings of our recent study show that people who regularly engage in mental exercises like word games, puzzles, reading and listening to lectures have notably better memory performance compared to people who do not.”  She emphasized, “There is much we still need to learn about whether engaging in these exercises improves memory and whether they provide possibilities for slowing cognitive decline or minimizing risks of cognitive impairment and dementia. We are certainly not there yet, but this study is one step along the way, one piece of the ‘use it or lose it’ puzzle that many of us are anxious to solve.”

“This new research is interesting for a variety of reasons,” Lachman added.  “Many of the previous studies have focused on subjects who already have a good memory. One of the new pieces our study uncovered is that there is hope for those who need it most, those with less formal education, who are more likely to have poor memory.  We already know that people with a college degree have what could be called a cognitive advantage over people in middle and later life who do not.  But we don’t understand why these effects last so long.  What is the connection between maintaining better memory as people get older, and having a college degree?  One answer is that perhaps college educated people have been instilled with a lifelong interest in having an intellectually active and stimulating lifestyle.  But there was also something intriguing that our study revealed.  Individuals without college educations who regularly engage in mental exercises also did very well on our memory tests, just as well as our 'educationally advantaged' study participants.”

She emphasizes, “I believe that our new research has given us some hopeful, very promising clues.  It suggests that we have some degree of personal control over keeping our memories agile in later life.  In our time, there may be ways that we can level the playing field and protect the more vulnerable — those at greatest risk for memory declines.” 

Dr. Lachman is currently a residential Fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University during the 2009-10 academic year.  She is presently working on synthesizing ten-year longitudinal data from the “Midlife in the United States” study, a large national study on cognitive, psychological and physical health. 

Reflecting on the progress within her relatively young and rapidly advancing field, she shared, “When I began this work with colleagues on the MacArthur Foundation Research Network in the mid 1990’s, midlife was still a virtually uncharted territory of the life course. Today we are uncovering many important findings about the terrain of the middle years.”  Dr. Lachman articulated how she is focusing her research today.  “I am particularly interested in learning what can be done in the early adult years and midlife to promote optimal aging years down the road, taking a long-term perspective on the aging process.” 

And why did she wish to become a residential Fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford?  She responded enthusiastically, “This is an ideal place to work on integration of findings that are culled from many sources.  Here, Center Fellows have the luxury of uninterrupted time to think and write, and marvelous opportunities to converse with outstanding scholars from different disciplines with varied perspectives — all in a gorgeous, inspiring setting.” 

The Center’s Director Iris F. Litt, M.D. observed, "Margie Lachman is charting new territory while improving our understanding of aging and cognition.  We are proud that she has chosen to spend her sabbatical year here as a residential Fellow.  And we are greatly enriched by her presence.”

MORE ABOUT THE STUDY
The objective of the “Midlife in the United States” study was to test the hypothesis that frequent participation in cognitive activities can moderate the effects of limited education on cognitive functioning.  The study assessed more than 4,000 men and women between the ages of 32 and 84 with a mean age of 56 years.  Almost 40 percent of the participants had at least a four-year college degree.  The researchers evaluated how the participants performed in two cognitive areas, verbal memory and executive function (brain processes involved in planning, abstract thinking and cognitive flexibility.)  Participants were asked to perform a battery of tests including verbal fluency, word recall and backward counting.  This study was generously funded by the National Institute on Aging.

READ THE ARTICLE ABSTRACT >>
READ BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY'S PRESS RELEASE ABOUT THE STUDY >>
VISIT MARGIE E. LACHMAN'S WEBSITE >>

ABOUT DR. MARGIE E. LACHMAN
Dr. Margie E. Lachman is the Minnie and Harold Fierman Professor of Psychology and Director of the Lifespan Developmental Psychology Lab and the Lifespan Initiative on Healthy Aging at Brandeis University.  She received her Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Studies from The Pennsylvania State University.  She has received several awards for her research including the Distinguished Research Achievement Award from the American Psychological Association from the Division on Adult Development and Aging and the Archstone Foundation Award for Excellence in Program Innovation from the American Public Health Association.

Dr. Lachman's research is in the area of lifespan development with a focus on midlife and later life.  Her current work is aimed at identifying psychosocial (e.g., sense of control) and behavioral (e.g., physical exercise) factors that can protect against, minimize, or compensate for declines in cognition (e.g., memory) and health. She is conducting studies to examine long-term predictors of psychological and physical health, laboratory-based experiments to identify psychological and physiological processes involved in aging-related changes, and intervention studies to enhance performance and promote adaptive functioning.  MORE DETAILS >>

ABOUT THE CENTER
Founded in 1954, the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University is a national and international resource that exists to extend knowledge of the principles governing human behavior to help solve the critical problems of contemporary society. Through our residential postdoctoral fellowship programs for scientists and scholars from this country and abroad, we seek to advance basic understanding of the social, psychological, historical, biological and cultural foundations of behavior and society.

The Center was created to provide a refuge for distinguished and promising young scientists and scholars from diverse fields and disciplines. Here, ideas and thinking are the main business and scholars are encouraged to broaden their perspectives, reassess their intellectual positions and consider alternatives through sustained interaction with others.

Our formula for supporting advances in basic knowledge has stood the test of time and is a consciously replicated model for collaborative scholarly enterprises worldwide.



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Ralph W. Tyler Collection:


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