Music Engagement and Episodic Memory Among Middle-Aged and Older Adults: A National Longitudinal Analysis

Hillary J. Rouse, Cassidy Doyle, Gizem Hueluer, Mia D. Torres, Lindsay J. Peterson, Xi Pan, Debra Dobbs, Yan Du, Kyaien Conner, Hongdao Meng

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

Objectives: The objective of this study was to examine associations between music engagement and episodic memory for more than 12 years in a nationally representative sample of middle- and older-aged adults in the United States. Methods: This study is based on a secondary analysis of data from a sample (N = 5,021) of cognitively normal adults from the Health and Retirement Study (2006–2018). Episodic memory was measured by immediate and delayed recall tasks. Music engagement was classified as none, passive (i.e., listening to music), active (i.e., singing and/or playing an instrument), or both (i.e., listening to music and singing or playing an instrument). Results: Compared with those with no music engagement, respondents who reported both passive and active engagement performed 0.258 points better at baseline on episodic memory tasks. This group also performed better across time with scores that declined by 0.043 points fewer per study visit. Additionally, compared to those with no music engagement, participants with passive music engagement had scores that declined by 0.023 points fewer per visit. There were no significant differences in performance at baseline for those with passive or active music engagement, or across time for those with active engagement. Discussion: The results of this study suggest that engaging in both passive and active music engagement may be superior to engaging with music only passively or actively and that engaging in music both ways may be able to protect against age-related declines in episodic memory. Future research should examine whether community-based music engagement interventions can affect this trajectory of decline.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1484-1492
Number of pages9
JournalJournals of Gerontology - Series B Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences
Volume78
Issue number9
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 1 2023

Keywords

  • Health care and interventions
  • Longitudinal methods
  • Memory
  • Music

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Health(social science)
  • Life-span and Life-course Studies
  • Sociology and Political Science

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