"Adult-Life Occupational Exposures: Enriched Environment or a Stressor for the Aging Brain?"

by Burzynska, Agnieszka Z; Jiao, Yuqin; Ganster, Daniel C (2018)

Abstract

Demographic changes and economic demands of aging populations are raising the age of retirement. It is common knowledge that one’s occupation is associated with socioeconomic status, and also has a significant impact on physical and mental health. However, research on the long-term effects of employment on cognition and brain health in old age is still rare. Understanding occupational factors shaping our brains is necessary to develop interventions at the workplace, aimed at optimizing neurocognitive outcomes in old age. This review outlines the emerging empirical research on the relationships between occupational characteristics and cognitive and brain aging. We propose the “brain aging: occupational stimulation and stress” (BOSS) model that outlines the long-term interplay of antiaging (occupational stimulation or environmental enrichment) and proaging factors (occupational stress) on the development and aging of the adult mind and brain. The BOSS model outlines the mechanisms of the employment–brain relationships that include immune system, cortisol responsivity, neurotrophins, hypertension, and sleep quality. Existing at the intersection of organizational psychology, developmental sciences, and neuroscience, the BOSS model offers a framework for future “occupational neuroscience” research. We argue that decisions on retirement age should be viewed not only from an economic, but also from a public health perspective. We conclude that occupational activities need to be acknowledged as an important factor in lifespan cognitive and brain development.

Key Passage

There is ample evidence to expect that exposure to chronic occupational stress may have long-lasting negative effects on brain structure, function, vasculature, and metabolism, via a number of inter-related molecular and physiological mechanisms that induce inflammation, metabolic and circadian dysregulation, hypertension, and cortisol neurotoxicity. The research discussed in this section supports the stress component in the BOSS model, in which stress may oppose or modulate the positive effects of occupational stimulation on neurocognitive aging. Although there is a paucity of research that examines the direct link between chronic occupational stress and brain health in older age (as opposed to cognitive functioning), much research attests to the plausible pathways through which chronic stress can assert its damaging effects on the brain. There is thus ample justification for further research that directly examines the relationships between occupational stress, the physiological responses to this stress in midlife, and the later, long-term repercussions of this exposure on the aging brain. (p.13)

Keywords

Retirement, Aged Workers, Development, Healthy Work, Cognitive Development, Cognitive Maintenance, Stress, Enriched Environments

Themes

Psychological Centrality of Work

Links to Reference

• https://academic.oup.com/workar/article-abstract/5/1/3/5078555
• http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/workar/way007
• https://academic.oup.com/workar/article/5/1/3/5078555

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