Before we examine adaptive functioning and changes in the brain, we will look at another impor­tant area that is receiving growing attention: the interplay between culture and neurobiological aging as it affects the mind. Denise Park has spear­headed this approach by asking questions such as where we are likely to find neurocultural differ­ences in the […]

The major theoretical approach reviewed above focuses on age-related changes in brain function and is typically labeled the frontal lobe theory of aging (Buckner, 2004; Raz, 2000; West, 1996). This theo­retical approach suggests that the many age-related declines in cognitive functioning are a function of insults to the frontal lobes, both structurally and neurochemically. Functional […]

We have just reviewed the literature address­ing structural and neurochemical changes in the brain as we grow older and how deteriorative structural changes relate to decreases in cogni­tive functioning. We now explore other brain — related factors that might explain age differences in cognitive functioning: age-related changes in brain activity. Functional imaging (e. g., fMRI) […]

Advances have also been made in techniques mea­suring neurochemical changes in the aging brain, particularly in studies examining the role of brain dopamine (DA), a neurotransmitter substance that sends messages throughout the brain, in per­formance on various cognitive tasks (Backman, Nybert, Lindenberger, Li, & Farde, 2006). First, it is important to note that the dopaminergic […]

It will be useful at this point to provide a brief overview of the anatomy of the human brain (see Figure 2.1). Neuroanatomy is fundamental to the discipline of neuroscience, and we will refer to a number of brain regions that exhibit age- related changes in both structure and function. The cerebral cortex is the […]

LEARNING OBJECTIVES • What are the basic structural changes in the brain as we age? • What cognitive functions are associated with volume shrinkage in the aging brain? • How do decreases in the dopaminergic system relate to changes in cognitive functioning as we grow older? • What happens to brain activation as we age? […]

With all the hype about keeping your brain fit, what do people believe you have to do to accomplish this? To find out, ask some people of different ages these questions: What happensto the brain as we grow older? What do you think causes these changes? What do you think you can do to make […]

Researchers take three general methodologi­cal perspectives in tackling the neuroscience of aging: the neuropsychological, the correlational, and the activation imaging approach (see Cabeza, 2004). The neuropsychological approach com­pares brain functioning of healthy older adults with adults displaying various pathological dis­orders in the brain. In this approach researchers are interested in whether patients of any age […]

LEARNING OBJECTIVES • How do the basic developmental forces benefit from the neuroscience approach? • What is the major focus of the neuropsychological approach to neuroscience? • Describe the difference between the correlational approach and the activation imaging approach to studying neuroscience. • What is the difference between MRI and fMRI scanning? A t age […]

2.1 THE NEUROSCIENCE APPROACH Implications of the Developmental Forces • Neuroscience Tools • Neuroscience Perspectives • Discovering Development: What Do People Believe about Brain Fitness? 2.2 NEUROSCIENCE AND COGNITIVE AGING Structure of the Brain • Age-Related Changes in Neurochemical Properties Age-Related Changes in Brain Activity • Functional Consequences of Brain Deterioration • Culture, Neuroimaging, and […]