Journal article
Occupational Physical Stress Is Negatively Associated With Hippocampal Volume and Memory in Older Adults
Frontiers in human neuroscience, Vol.14, pp.266-266
07/15/2020
DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2020.00266
PMCID: PMC7381137
PMID: 32765239
Abstract
Our jobs can provide intellectually and socially enriched environments but also be the source of major psychological and physical stressors. As the average full-time worker spends >8 h at work per weekday and remains in the workforce for about 40 years, occupational experiences must be important factors in cognitive and brain aging. Therefore, we studied whether occupational complexity and stress are associated with hippocampal volume and cognitive ability in 99 cognitively normal older adults. We estimated occupational complexity, physical stress, and psychological stress using the Work Design Questionnaire (
Morgeson and Humphrey, 2006
), Quantitative Workload Inventory and Interpersonal Conflict at Work Scale (
Spector and Jex, 1998
). We found that physical stress, comprising physical demands and work conditions, was associated with smaller hippocampal volume and poorer memory performance. These associations were independent of age, gender, brain size, socioeconomic factors (education, income, and job title), duration of the job, employment status, leisure physical activity and general stress. This suggests that physical demands at work and leisure physical activity may have largely independent and opposite effects on brain and cognitive health. Our findings highlight the importance of considering midlife occupational experiences, such as work physical stress, in understanding individual trajectories of cognitive and brain aging.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Occupational Physical Stress Is Negatively Associated With Hippocampal Volume and Memory in Older Adults
- Creators
- Agnieszka Z Burzynska - Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Molecular, Cellular and Integrative Neurosciences Graduate Interdisciplinary Studies Program, Colorado State UniversityDaniel C Ganster - Department of Management, Colorado State UniversityJason Fanning - Department of Health & Exercise Sciences, Wake Forest UniversityElizabeth A Salerno - Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program, Division of Cancer Epidemiology & Genetics, National Cancer InstituteNeha P Gothe - Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois at Urbana–ChampaignMichelle W Voss - Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of IowaEdward McAuley - Department of Kinesiology and Community Health, University of Illinois at Urbana–ChampaignArthur F Kramer - Beckman Institute for Advanced Science & Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Frontiers in human neuroscience, Vol.14, pp.266-266
- DOI
- 10.3389/fnhum.2020.00266
- PMID
- 32765239
- PMCID
- PMC7381137
- NLM abbreviation
- Front Hum Neurosci
- ISSN
- 1662-5161
- eISSN
- 1662-5161
- Publisher
- Frontiers Media S.A
- Grant note
- Colorado State University
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 07/15/2020
- Academic Unit
- Psychological and Brain Sciences; Iowa Neuroscience Institute
- Record Identifier
- 9984070871102771
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