SynthesisJournal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD2019
Social Isolation and Cognitive Function in Later Life: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Synthesis in Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 265 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
265 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Interventions against loneliness and social isolation in older adults- a systematic review.BMC public health · 2026Pooled it
- Pooled it
- From verbal fluency to naturalistic speech: a scoping review of language correlates of loneliness and social isolation in older adults.Frontiers in aging neuroscience · 2026Pooled it
- Writing as cognitive rehabilitation in MCI and dementia: a systematic review of therapeutic benefits and applications.Frontiers in neurology · 2025Pooled it
- Healthy aging meta-analyses and scoping review of risk factors across Latin America reveal large heterogeneity and weak predictive models.Nature aging · 2024Pooled it
- Associations between constructs related to social relationships and mental health conditions and symptoms: an umbrella review.BMC psychiatry · 2023Pooled it
- A 20-week, randomized controlled trial to determine the efficacy of the Aging Well through Interaction and Scientific Education - Action Plan (AgeWISE-AP) program in older Veterans.BMC geriatrics · 2025Trial
- Trial
- Can changes in social contact (frequency and mode) mitigate low mood before and during the COVID-19 pandemic? The I-CONECT project.Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · 2022Trial
- Cognitively healthy life expectancy of older women and men in India.SSM - population health · 2026Article
- Pathways from chronic stress to cognitive decline: A multi-cohort mediation analysis of inflammation and immune-related gene expression.Brain, behavior, & immunity - health · 2026Article
- Sensory Difficulty, Social and Physical Activity, and Dementia Risk Among Older Adults.Journal of aging and health · 2026Article
- The Association Between Living Environment and Depression: The Mediating Role of Sleep Duration.Journal of prevention (2022) · 2026Article
- Structured exercise, cognitive-social engagement, and cognitive impairment-free life expectancy across four longitudinal aging cohorts.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2026Article
- Associations of Social Support, Loneliness, and Physical Activity with Cognitive Function in Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Is my loneliness killing me? Effects of loneliness and social isolation on transitions between cognitive status categories and death.Journal of personality and social psychology · 2026Article
- Prevalence of social disconnection in the general adult population - results from DISCONNECT study.Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology · 2026Article
- Childhood maltreatment and joint trajectories of social isolation and depression as predictors of cognitive impairment in late midlife: a prospective cohort study.Epidemiology and psychiatric sciences · 2026Article
- Socioeconomic status and cognitive function in older adults: the mediating roles of social activity and loneliness in three aging cohorts.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Comparison of Health, Quality of Life, and Psychological and Cognitive Function Between Perimenopausal and Postmenopausal Women: A Cross-Sectional Study.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
205 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThere is some evidence to suggest that social isolation may be associated with poor cognitive function in later life. However, findings are inconsistent and there is wide variation in the measures used to assess social isolation.
objectiveWe conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate the association between social isolation and cognitive function in later life.
methodsA search for longitudinal studies assessing the relationship between aspects of social isolation (including social activity and social networks) and cognitive function (including global measures of cognition, memory, and executive function) was conducted in PsycInfo, CINAHL, PubMed, and AgeLine. A random effects meta-analysis was conducted to assess the overall association between measures of social isolation and cognitive function. Sub-analyses investigated the association between different aspects of social isolation and each of the measures of cognitive function.
resultsSixty-five articles were identified by the systematic review and 51 articles were included in the meta-analysis. Low levels of social isolation characterized by high engagement in social activity and large social networks were associated with better late-life cognitive function (r = 0.054, 95% CI: 0.043, 0.065). Sub-analyses suggested that the association between social isolation and measures of global cognitive function, memory, and executive function were similar and there was no difference according to gender or number of years follow-up.
conclusionsAspects of social isolation are associated with cognitive function in later life. There is wide variation in approaches to measuring social activity and social networks across studies which may contribute to inconsistencies in reported findings.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.