Midlife in the United States (MIDUS 2): Cognitive Project, 2004-2006

In 1994/1995, the MacArthur Midlife Research Network carried out a national survey of over 7,000 Americans aged 25 to 74. The purpose of the study was to investigate the role of behavioral, psychological, and social factors in understanding age-related differences in physical and mental health. A description of the study and findings from it are available at the MIDUS website. With support from the National Institute on Aging, a longitudinal follow-up of the original MIDUS samples (core sample (N = 3,487), metropolitan over-samples (N = 757), twins (N = 957 pairs), and siblings (N = 950)) was conducted in 2004-2006. Guiding hypotheses, at the most general level, were that behavioral and psychosocial factors are consequential for health (physical and mental). The purpose of the Cognitive Project was to determine how cognition is related to overall mental and physical health. Specific goals were: (1) to characterize the nature and range of midlife cognitive performance, relative to those younger and older, across multiple domains in a nationally representative sample (MIDUS); and (2) to examine the relationship between biopsychosocial factors (e.g., SES, health status, health-promoting behaviors, metabolic and cardiovascular biomarkers, depression, personality, control beliefs, stressful life events) and individual differences in cognitive functioning. The development of a cognitive battery for the second wave of testing of the Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS) study provided an opportunity to examine the cognitive performance of young, middle-aged and older adults from a wide range of education levels in a large-scale, national sample. As part of the Cognitive Project of the MIDUS II the Brief Test of Adult Cognition by Telephone (BTACT) (Lachman & Tun, 2008; Tun & Lachman, 2006) was administered. More information about the BTACT can be found at the Brandeis website. The BTACT represents the first comprehensive cognitive battery, including measures of speed and reaction time, to be administered by telephone to a national sample across the adult years and into later life. With a response rate of over 86 percent for the cognitive testing component of the MIDUS II, a cognitive data set of unprecedented range in terms of age, gender, socioeconomic status (SES), education, and geographic diversity was produced.

1994年至1995年间，麦克阿瑟中年研究网络对超过7,000名25至74岁的美国人进行了全国性调查。研究旨在探究行为、心理及社会因素在理解年龄相关差异对身心健康的影响中所扮演的角色。该研究的描述及结果可在MIDUS网站上查阅。在获得美国老化国家研究所的支持下，对原始MIDUS样本（核心样本（N = 3,487）、都市区额外样本（N = 757）、双胞胎（N = 957对）和兄弟姐妹（N = 950））进行了纵向追踪调查，调查时间为2004至2006年。总体假设是，行为和心理社会因素对健康（包括身体和心理健康）具有决定性影响。认知项目旨在确定认知与整体身心健康之间的关系。具体目标包括：（1）在MIDUS（全国代表性样本）的多个领域内，描述中年认知表现的性质和范围，相对于年轻和年长者；（2）研究生物心理社会因素（例如，社会经济地位、健康状况、促进健康的行为、代谢和心血管生物标志物、抑郁症、人格、控制信念、压力性生活事件）与认知功能个体差异之间的关系。美国中年发展研究（MIDUS）第二波测试的认知能力测试库的开发，为考察来自广泛教育水平的大规模、全国样本中的年轻、中年和老年成人的认知表现提供了机会。作为MIDUS II认知项目的一部分，实施了成人电话认知简测（BTACT）（Lachman & Tun，2008；Tun & Lachman，2006）。更多关于BTACT的信息可在布兰代斯网站找到。BTACT代表了首个通过电话对全国成年人和老年人进行全面认知能力测试的认知能力库，包括速度和反应时间的测量。MIDUS II认知测试部分的响应率超过86%，产生了前所未有的认知数据集，涵盖了年龄、性别、社会经济地位（SES）、教育水平和地域多样性等多个方面。