Effects of Aging on Cognitive Development

Effects of Aging on Cognitive Development

Aging it is a natural process in the stages of life. Reasoning and problem-solving may decrease with age and mental processes become more complex and advanced, however, elderly individuals who stay active have shown better memory performances. The focus of this paper involves a news release about aging and cognitive development and how this is challenging for the elderly. The effects of aging on cognitive development are evaluated in this article.

Article on The effects of aging on cognitive development

When people reach adulthood the changes in cognition do not stop happening. The learning process continues as people get older, however, human cognitive ability does not consistently increase with added years (Anderson, 2009). According to Germine, Duchaine, and Nakayama (2009) individuals' cognitive faculties reach the highest point where development ends, and development ends around the age of 20, which is considered to be the biological maturity age.

Data compiled from the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R) displays how one component deals the elements of verbal intelligence, which includes vocabulary and language comprehension, prove to be consistent through the years, however, the performance component decreased significantly. This component included abilities such as reasoning and problem solving, In basic measurements of cognitive ability this type of tests are often exaggerated because they are rapidly timed, which can be a challenge to older adults. The tests are structured like school test, giving the younger adults an edge because they have more recent experience with tests of this nature. The older adults will do better on tests more job-related behavior because of their more mature method and accumulation of knowledge to job demands (Anderson, 2009).

The longer an individual lives, the more challenging life becomes. There are considerable age-related declines in brain function. Brain cells eventually die. Some areas of the brain are particularly susceptible to cell death. The hippocampus (HC) is known to play a vital role for long-term memory however; this memory cell loses about five per cent of its cells every decade. Other cells in the hippocampus, though they may not die, have been observed to shrink and weaken (Anderson, 2009).

The decline of cognitive development is at a risk for the elderly generation because it threatens their quality of life and presents challenges to health care systems (Williams, 2013). Professional medical nurse advisors are in a special position to advise clients about cognitive health promotion and to develop ways of interventions that enhances cognition in the growing aging population (Williams, 2013).

Memory as well as Motor skills decline with aging the affected individuals will not be able to exist without help from a caregiver.