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Neighborhood disadvantage and cognitive function in older adults: The moderating role of young adult general cognitive ability
Rongxiang Tang, Jeremy A. Elman, J R Hunt, Lisa T. Eyler, Tyler Reed Bell, Erik J. Buchholz, Christine Fennema‐Notestine, Michael J. Lyons et al.. Health & Place, 2026-05-31
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Neighborhood disadvantage in later life is associated with poorer cognition and increased vulnerability to dementia. Cognitive reserve (CR), an individual's total cognitive resources, may foster cognitive resilience against dementia in the face of neighborhood disadvantage. However, whether the neighborhood disadvantage-cognition association varies across older adults remains understudied and its moderators remain underexplored. We examined associations between late midlife neighborhood disadvantage and five domain-specific cognitive functions as well as the moderating role of young adult CR on these associations. In 1149 community-dwelling men age 61-73 living across the United States, we assessed neighborhood-level socioeconomic disadvantage using the area deprivation index and cognitive performance in executive function, episodic memory, processing speed, verbal fluency, and visual-spatial ability. General cognitive ability assessed at average age 20 was used as a measure of young adult CR. Years of education was included as another potential moderator for comparison. Greater late midlife neighborhood disadvantage was associated with poorer executive function (β = -.09, p < .05) and processing speed (β = -.12, p < .05). Moreover, those with higher young adult CR showed a weaker association between neighborhood disadvantage and executive function (β = .07, p < .02). The same moderation effect was not observed for years of education. Findings are consistent with the idea that neighborhood disadvantage negatively associates with executive function, albeit less so among those with higher young adult CR. Fostering cognitive development to enhance CR earlier in life may buffer against environmental threats to later-life executive function, which is among the earliest cognitive functions affected in aging, and may, in turn, decrease vulnerability to dementia.
Key findings
- Neighborhood disadvantage in later life is associated with poorer cognition and increased vulnerability to dementia.
- Greater late midlife neighborhood disadvantage was associated with poorer executive function (β = -.09, p < .05) and processing speed (β = -.12, p < .05).
Why it matters
In this study of 1149 men, living in a more disadvantaged neighborhood was linked to poorer executive function and processing speed. Men with higher general cognitive ability at about age 20 showed a weaker link between neighborhood disadvantage and executive function, suggesting early-life cognitive resources may offer some protection.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 36/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Health & Place) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Health & Place: journal h-index 177 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 0 / 7 | Cited 0 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 0 / 5 | 0.0 citations a year over 2 year(s) since 2026 |
| Impact for its field and year | 0 / 6 | Cited 0.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 0 / 4 | Cited 0 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Carol E. Franz: h-index 63 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University of California San Diego: institution h-index 1,852 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 4 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 42218841) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 36 / 100 | — |
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Read the original
- DOI: 10.1016/j.healthplace.2026.103690
- PubMed: 42218841
- Original source →
- Free full text: Health & Place →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Tang, R., Elman, J. A., Hunt, J. R., Eyler, L. T., Bell, T. R., Buchholz, E. J., et al. (2026). Neighborhood disadvantage and cognitive function in older adults: The moderating role of young adult general cognitive ability. Health & Place. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthplace.2026.103690
Vancouver
Tang R, Elman JA, Hunt JR, Eyler LT, Bell TR, Buchholz EJ, et al. Neighborhood disadvantage and cognitive function in older adults: The moderating role of young adult general cognitive ability. Health & Place. 2026. doi:10.1016/j.healthplace.2026.103690. PMID: 42218841.
BibTeX
@article{tang2026-42218841,
author = {Tang, Rongxiang and Elman, Jeremy A. and Hunt, J R and Eyler, Lisa T. and Bell, Tyler Reed and Buchholz, Erik J. and Fennema‐Notestine, Christine and Lyons, Michael J. and others},
title = {{Neighborhood disadvantage and cognitive function in older adults: The moderating role of young adult general cognitive ability}},
journal = {Health \& Place},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.1016/j.healthplace.2026.103690},
pmid = {42218841},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthplace.2026.103690}
}
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