The Impact of Life‐Course Socioeconomic Trajectories on Late‐Life Cognitive Aging among Chinese people

Over the past decades, older Chinese adults have experienced upward trends in education and income mobility, with relatively stable occupational changes. Life-course education, paternal occupation, and adulthood income are more strongly associated with CF than other life-stage SES measures. Furthermore, stable high and upward SES trajectories protect against cognitive decline, particularly among women. This study emphasizes that enhancements in lifelong education, occupation, and income may help mitigate the risk of cognitive aging in later life, especially for Chinese women.