Cognitive Training amongst Older Adults - An Intervention

Older adults face a gradual decline in cognitive abilities, which can have a severe impact on an individual’s standard of living. Sometimes, this cognitive decline eventually leads to dementia. Cognitive training has been used as a method to slow this process. It involves training of specific parts of the brain to keep the participants cognitively healthy. Cognitive decline becomes common after the age of 60. Thus, the present intervention was designed to study the impact of a 6-week cognitive training programme on individuals above 60 years of age. The participants engaged in daily activities which included solving arithmetic problems, quizzes, comprehension, among other things. The participants were tested using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, and the research followed a pre-post-test design. A paired-sample t-test was conducted, and the results were found to be statistically significant. Thus, well-structured cognitive training can sharpen mental performance in older adults, and highlight the potential of non-pharmacological, easy to access cognitive training in allowing the elderly to remain cognitively flexible and independent.