ABSTRACT
A considerable body of research indicates that multiple cognitive abilities decline as we grow older (see Craik & Salthouse, 2000; Dixon, Backman, & Nilsson, 2004 for reviews). At the same time, a growing body of research on cognitive performance suggests that older adults who participate in a variety of intellectually engaging activities outperform their coevals who are less engaged in such activities (see Anstey & Christensen, 2000; Kramer, Bherer, Colcombe, Dong, & Greenough, 2004, for reviews). Furthermore, some studies have even suggested that participation in intellectually demanding leisure activities may protect against the occurrence of dementing diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (see Fratiglioni, Paillard-Borg, & Winblad, 2004 for a review). Taken at face value, such results would suggest that late-life lifestyles featuring intellectual activities might buffer cognitive decline-an effect often referred to as "use it or lose it." However, despite these promising results and the intuitive appeal of a "use it or lose it" explanation for adult age differences in cognitive functioning, the full literature on this topic is mixed.
