Everyday Cognition and Resilient Aging Lab

Our Mission: 

A main goal of our research is to understand modifiable psychosocial and behavioral determinants of cognitive health and independence among diverse older adults. We also aim to translate this knowledge into interventions to support healthy aging and applying technology to develop novel approaches to assess and support cognition and daily function. 

Areas of Research: 

1.  Measuring and understanding everyday function among older adults

• Development of novel tools to measure everyday function
• Ecologically valid and technology-based assessment
• Early cognitive and functional indicators of disease and outcomes to track disease progression
• Select Publications:
  • Farias ST, Mungas D, Reed BR, Cahn-Weiner D, Jagust W, Baynes K, Decarli C. The measurement of everyday cognition (ECog): scale development and psychometric properties. Neuropsychology. 2008 Jul;22(4):531-44.
  • Weakley A, Schmitter-Edgecombe M. Naturalistic assessment of task interruption in individuals with mild cognitive impairment. Neuropsychology. 2019 Jan;33(1):1-12.
  • Farias ST, Lau K, Harvey D, Denny KG, Barba C, Mefford AN. Early Functional Limitations in Cognitively Normal Older Adults Predict Diagnostic Conversion to Mild Cognitive Impairment. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2017 Jun;65(6):1152-1158. 

2.  Understanding the psychosocial and behavior determinants of cognitive and functional aging

• The impact of behavioral compensation in everyday life
• The impact of physical, social activities, and socioenvironmental factors
• Select Publications:
  • Tomaszewski Farias S, Gravano J, Weakley A, Schmitter-Edgecombe M, Harvey D, Mungas D, Chan M, Giovannetti T. The Everyday Compensation (EComp) Questionnaire: Construct Validity and Associations with Diagnosis and Longitudinal Change in Cognition and Everyday Function in Older Adults. J Int Neuropsychol Soc. 2020 Mar;26(3):303-313. 
  • Weakley A, Weakley AT, Schmitter-Edgecombe M. Compensatory strategy use improves real-world functional performance in community dwelling older adults. Neuropsychology. 2019 Nov;33(8):1121-1135.
  • Gilsanz P, Quesenberry CP Jr, Mayeda ER, Glymour MM, Farias ST, Whitmer RA. Stressors in Midlife and Risk of Dementia: The Role of Race and Education. Alzheimer Dis Assoc Disord. 2019 Jul-Sep;33(3):200-205.
  • Brewster PW, Melrose RJ, Marquine MJ, Johnson JK, Napoles A, MacKay-Brandt A, Farias S, Reed B, Mungas D. Life experience and demographic influences on cognitive function in older adults. Neuropsychology. 2014 Nov;28(6):846-58. 

3.  Developing and evaluating behavioral interventions including:

• Training in compensatory strategy use in everyday life
• Promotion of activities to support cognitive and brain health (e.g., exercise, diet, stress reduction)
• Technology to support compensation and healthy lifestyles
• Select Publications:
  • Weakley A, Farias, ST.  Rehabilitation of Neuropsychological Deficits: Compensatory Approaches. In APA Handbook of Neuropsychology. American Psychological Association. In Press.
  • Denny KG, Harvey D, Meyer OL, Chan ML, Barba C, Farias ST. A Combined Treatment Approach to Support Everyday Function and Promote Brain Health in Older Adults: A Pilot Study. Clin Gerontol. 2020 Mar-Apr;43(2):209-220. 
  • Weakley A, Schmitter-Edgecombe M. Interventions for functional impairment. In (Johnson-Greene Ed.) Neuropsychology: A Review of Science and Practice V.3. Oxford University Press. 2019.
  • Weakley A, Tam JW, Van Son C, Schmitter-Edgecombe M. Effectiveness of a video-based aging services technology education program for health care professionals. Gerontol Geriatr Educ. 2019 Jul-Sep;40(3):339-356.