Cited by 1,298Aging and Gerontology ResearchDementia and Cognitive Impairment ResearchCognitive Functions and Memory

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 123 of the 123 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; 39 of the 74 sources its claims cite were checked for support.

Maintenance, reserve and compensation: the cognitive neuroscience of healthy ageing

Open access

Abstract

Cognitive ageing research examines the cognitive abilities that are preserved and/or those that decline with advanced age. There is great individual variability in cognitive ageing trajectories. Some older adults show little decline in cognitive ability compared with young adults and are thus termed 'optimally ageing'. By contrast, others exhibit substantial cognitive decline and may develop dementia. Human neuroimaging research has led to a number of important advances in our understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying these two outcomes. However, interpreting the age-related changes and differences in brain structure, activation and functional connectivity that this research reveals is an ongoing challenge. Ambiguous terminology is a major source of difficulty in this venture. Three terms in particular - compensation, maintenance and reserve - have been used in a number of different ways, and researchers continue to disagree about the kinds of evidence or patterns of results that are required to interpret findings related to these concepts. As such inconsistencies can impede progress in both theoretical and empirical research, here, we aim to clarify and propose consensual definitions of these terms.

Overview

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1038/s41583-018-0068-2

Cites

123 of 123 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Nothing to recompute.

Verification

Claims the paper makes

54 Own interpretation · 14 No full text of the sources · 12 Couldn’t confirm · 11 Partly supported · 8 No basis given · 2 Not checked yet · 1 Not supported · 1 Sources not found · accuracy not yet measured

Show all 46 claims

  • It may state two separate claims as one. 31
  • Probably not a substantial claim. 38
57 of 57
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    Mechanisms, understood as putative causal explanations of age-related changes, exist at multiple levels of analysis, such as genetic, cellular, and system levels.

    “We assume that mechanisms, which refer to putative causal explanations of age-related changes, exist at multiple levels of analysis (genetic, cellular, system, etc.).”
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    Because of age-related neural decline, some older adults have difficulty implementing cognitive operations that would not have taxed them when younger.

    “we assume that due to age-related neural decline, some older adults have difficulty implementing cognitive operations that would not have taxed their younger selves.”
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    The asymptote in neural activity reflects available neural resources, and the final decline reflects breakdown in cognitive performance when those resources are exceeded.

    “It is assumed that the asymptote reflects available neural resources, and the final decline reflects the breakdown in cognitive performance when these resources are exceeded.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Reserve cannot be measured directly.

    “Given that it is not possible to measure reserve directly, most studies of reserve have focused on a particular proxy and how it relates to the functioning brain.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Most cognitive aging research so far has used samples composed largely of healthy, well-educated, high-functioning older adults who are mostly Caucasian.

    “We also note with caution that most studies of cognitive aging to date have been limited to testing samples of high functioning, highly educated, and mostly Caucasian healthy older adults.”
5 of 5

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Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

Citations

Cites

Research works printed but not linked: 1

  1. Nyberg, L., Pudas, S. & Lundquist, A. in Cogntiive Neuroscience of Aging 2nd edn (eds Cabeza, R., Nyberg, L. & Park, D. C.) (Oxford Univ. Press, 2016).

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Metadata

Authors
Cabeza, R., Albert, M., Belleville, S., Craik, F. I. M., Duarte, A., Grady, C. L., Lindenberger, U., Nyberg, L., Park, D. C., Reuter-Lorenz, P. A., Rugg, M. D., Steffener, J., & Rajah, M. N.
Affiliations
  • Duke University (US)
  • Johns Hopkins University (US)
  • Institut Universitaire de Gériatrie de Montréal (CA)
  • Baycrest Hospital (CA)
  • Georgia Institute of Technology (US)
  • Max Planck Institute for Human Development (DE)
  • Umeå University (SE)
  • The University of Texas at Dallas (US)
  • University of Ottawa (CA)
  • Douglas Mental Health University Institute (CA)
Corresponding author
Cabeza, Roberto
Venue
Nature Reviews Neuroscience
Published
2018-10-10
Volume
19
Issue
11
Pages
701-710
ISSN
  • 1471-003X (ISSN-L)
  • 1471-0048
OpenAlex
W2896204498
Cited by
1,298
References
123
Citations by year
2026: 235 · 2025: 181 · 2024: 168 · 2023: 185 · 2022: 162 · 2021: 168 · 2020: 123 · 2019: 68 · 2018: 5
FWCI
14.60
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Nature reviews. Neuroscience (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • UEA Digital Repository (University of East Anglia) (acceptedVersion)
  • MPG.PuRe (Max Planck Society) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
Funders
  • Canadian Institutes of Health Research
  • National Institute on Aging (RF1AG039103, RF1AG006265)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Aging and Gerontology Research
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Cognitive Functions and Memory
Keywords
cognitive aging, cognitive reserve, cognitive compensation, cognitive maintenance, dementia, brain aging, functional connectivity, terminology definitions
MeSH terms
Cognitive Aging, Cognitive Neuroscience, Healthy Aging, Brain, Humans, Cognitive Reserve

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