Study Details

The purpose of this study is to identify factors that contribute to the maintenance of functioning in old age (age 80 and above). We will be looking at a variety of factors including cognition, personality traits, psychosocial factors, genetic factors, and brain structure. The second purpose of this study is to look at how performance on these variables changes over time. The study consists of a baseline evaluation and follow-up visits every two years. The baseline evaluation consists of nine hours of testing. All visits will take place at our research lab on Northwestern University’s Chicago campus. Testing is split into three different days of three hours each. During the enrollment visit, participants will complete an MRI scan, a blood draw, and neuropsychological testing. We also ask some demographic and health history questions and request that participants fill out surveys and questionnaires. Following study enrollment, participants are required to complete follow up visits every two years which have the same structure as the initial visit. The follow-up evaluations will only total about six hours of testing.