Spouses Show Greater Sensitivity to Age-Related Cognitive Changes Than Children

Barcelona, Spain · May 2026

Posters · Connection & Belonging: Relationships in Social Life

Authors

Malcolm TaongPresenting Author
Psychology, Nanyang Technological University
Min Huey Teo
Psychology, Nanyang Technological University
Cheuk Ni Kan
Psychology, Nanyang Technological University
Jacinth Tan
Singapore Management University
Chin Hong Tan
Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine
Chin Hong Tan
Psychology, Nanyang Technological University

Abstract

We examined whether study partner type (spouse vs. child) interacts with participant age and diagnosis to influence cognitive scores at first clinical visit among 8,709 married participants. Spouse-accompanied cognitively normal individuals scored higher than child-accompanied individuals below age 62.3. Our findings suggest that spouses may detect subtle cognitive changes earlier.

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Spouses Show Greater Sensitivity to Age-Related Cognitive Changes Than Children

Authors

Abstract

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