Perceptions and Experiences of Iranian Older Adults with High Cognitive Performance on Psychosocial Determinants of Cognitive Health: A Qualitative Descriptive Study.

Λεπτομέρειες βιβλιογραφικής εγγραφής
Τίτλος:	Perceptions and Experiences of Iranian Older Adults with High Cognitive Performance on Psychosocial Determinants of Cognitive Health: A Qualitative Descriptive Study.
Συγγραφείς:	Abdekhodaie E; Department of Psychology, Hekmat Razavi Institute of Higher Education, Mashhad, Islamic Republic of Iran. ehsabd@hri.ac.ir., Hatami J; Department of Psychology, University of Tehran, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran., Bahrami Ehsan H; Department of Psychology, University of Tehran, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran.
Πηγή:	Journal of cross-cultural gerontology [J Cross Cult Gerontol] 2026 Jul 23; Vol. 41 (3). Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Jul 23.
Τύπος έκδοσης:	Journal Article
Γλώσσα:	English
Στοιχεία περιοδικού:	Publisher: Springer Country of Publication: Netherlands NLM ID: 8700909 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1573-0719 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 01693816 NLM ISO Abbreviation: J Cross Cult Gerontol Subsets: MEDLINE
Imprint Name(s):	Publication: <2004->: New York : Springer Original Publication: Dordrecht ; Boston : D. Reidel Pub. Co., c1986-
Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH):	Cognitive Aging/psychology , Cognition, Humans ; Aged ; Iran ; Female ; Male ; Qualitative Research ; Motivation ; Middle Aged ; Interviews as Topic ; Memory, Episodic
Περίληψη:	This article explores the perceptions and experiences of older adults with high cognitive function regarding the factors that influence cognitive health. Nineteen purposefully selected Iranian older adults with above-average performance in episodic memory and word fluency cognitive tasks participated in in-depth interviews and reflected on what causes good memory and cognitive function. By conducting a thematic analysis, the researchers identified 25 themes in the participants' articulations. The most frequently cited themes were: motivation, working and job, thought processes, social life and social network, reading and books, and ethics and responsibility. Although the participants' viewpoints reflected many determinants of cognitive maintenance found in the literature, they placed more emphasis on the importance of psychosocial factors in cognitive health. They particularly reflected on the importance of motivation to engage in mental stimulation and emphasized activities that occur naturally in daily life like work, social engagement, and reading for cognitive maintenance. Unlike previous literature on motivational reserve, our participants emphasized goal setting over regulatory processes, while their preference for diverse mental engagement aligns with the engagement-over-training framework. (© 2026. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)
Competing Interests:	Declarations. Ethical Approval: Access to the data and contact with the participants were done according to the study protocol approved by the ethical committee of Iran University of Medical Sciences and Health Services. The procedures used in this study adhere to the tenets of the Declaration of Helsinki. Informed Consent: Participants provided informed consent for the interview, audio recording, and subsequent use of their anonymized data by the researchers. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
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Contributed Indexing:	Keywords: Cognitive health; Iran; Memory; Motivation; Successful cognitive aging; Work
Entry Date(s):	Date Created: 20260723 Date Completed: 20260723 Latest Revision: 20260723
Update Code:	20260723
DOI:	10.1007/s10823-026-09593-w
PMID:	42489735
Βάση Δεδομένων:	MEDLINE

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ISSN:	1573-0719
DOI:	10.1007/s10823-026-09593-w