Cognitive engagement

5 papers4 findings

C, W, M, H: cells, worms or flies, mice, humans. Dark: independent labs found the same change there. Light: one lab or one study. Outline: nothing yet.

Labs are independent when their papers share no last author and no institution.

Against: findings that point the other way from most findings on the same outcome.

On aging: the drug’s trials ARN judged to be about aging, of every trial that tests it for any use.

No results posted: trials that ended more than a year ago with no results on ClinicalTrials.gov and no paper in ARN’s record.

Company ties: findings with an author at a company, or from a paper whose competing-interests statement declares ties to one.

4 independent labs in 1 country

Funders: National Institute of General Medical Sciences and 2 more

Humans5

Outcomes

Semantic fluency

upin humans1

1 study

Cognitive engagement improves semantic fluency in humans.
“higher cognitive engagement is associated with stronger semantic fluency”
Humanscontrolling for age, sex, education, and diagnosischildhood
Dynamic neurocognitive adaptation: childhood and adult-midlife engagement associated with later-life brain structure and cognition in older adults with and without mild cognitive impairment
Brain imaging and behavior21 Mar 2026

Associations

Intrinsic capacity

upin humans1OR 1.21

1 study

Cognitive engagement is associated with intrinsic capacity in humans (OR = 1.21, 95% CI = 1.12–1.30).
“cognitive engagement (OR = 1.21, 95% CI = 1.12–1.30, p<.001)”
Humans
Association Between Multidimensional Environmental Enrichment Domains and Intrinsic Capacity Among Older Adults
GSA 2025 abstract31 Dec 2025

Cognitive function

upin humans1

1 study

Cognitive engagement is associated with cognitive function in humans.
“For both groups of workers, education, occupational complexity, and cognitive engagement are associated with late-life cognitive health.”
Humansmales
Job sector and occupational complexity influence on late-life cognitive function among men
The Gerontologist22 Oct 2025

upin humans1

1 study

Cognitive engagement is associated with IQ in humans.
“We replicated the known influence of cognitive engagement on IQ, irrespective of locale.”
Humansn = 1,201
LEISURE ACTIVITY ENGAGEMENT, SOCIAL CAPITAL, AND URBAN–RURAL INFLUENCES ON IQ: IMPLICATIONS FOR COGNITIVE AGING
GSA 2024 abstract31 Dec 2024