Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38623965›Full record

ArticleThe journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences2024

Neurobehavioral Mechanisms Influencing the Association Between Generativity, the Desire to Promote Well-Being of Younger Generations, and Purpose in Life in Older Adults at Risk for Alzheimer's Disease.

Caitlin S Walker, Linda Li, Giulia Baracchini, Jennifer Tremblay-Mercier, R Nathan Spreng, PREVENT-AD Research Group, Maiya R Geddes

Open access · hybridAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
4.0field-weighted citation impact, top 7% of its field
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 5 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. The PREVENT-AD cohort: Accelerating Alzheimer's disease research and treatment in Canada and beyond.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2025
    Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 11 institutions in 2 countries.

Caitlin S WalkerFaculty of Medicine, Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI), McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Linda LiDepartment of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Giulia BaracchiniFaculty of Medicine, Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI), McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Jennifer Tremblay-MercierCentre for Studies in the Prevention of Alzheimer's Disease, Douglas Mental Health Institute, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
R Nathan SprengFaculty of Medicine, Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI), McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
PREVENT-AD Research Group
Maiya R GeddesFaculty of Medicine, Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI), McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
McGill University · CAAlzheimer Society of Canada · CADouglas Mental Health University Institute · CAMontreal Neurological Institute and Hospital · CAAlzheimer's Association · USHarvard University · USUniversité de Montréal · CAUniversity of California San Diego · USUniversity of Southern California · USWake Forest University · USWashington University in St. Louis · US

Funding

Core B - Pilot StudiesP30AG048785 · NIA · BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY · PI LACHMAN, MARGIE E · 2014 to 2023
$4.5M
Canada First Research Excellence FundNational Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) DGECR-2022-00299NIA NIH HHS P30 AG048785NSERC Early Career Researcher Supplement RGPIN-2022-04496
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesGenerativity, the desire and action to improve the well-being of younger generations, is associated with purpose in life among older adults. However, the neurobehavioral factors supporting the relationship between generativity and purpose in life remain unknown. This study aims to identify the functional neuroanatomy of generativity and mechanisms linking generativity with purpose in life in at-risk older adults.

methodsFifty-eight older adults (mean age = 70.8, SD = 5.03, 45 females) with a family history of Alzheimer's disease (AD) were recruited from the PREVENT-AD cohort. Participants underwent brain imaging and completed questionnaires assessing generativity, social support, and purpose in life. Mediation models examined whether social support mediated the association between generativity and purpose in life. Seed-to-voxel analyses investigated the association between generativity and resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) to the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) and ventral striatum (VS), and whether this rsFC moderated the relationship between generativity and purpose in life.

resultsAffectionate social support mediated the association between generative desire and purpose in life. Generative desire was associated with rsFC between VS and precuneus, and, vmPFC and right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (rdlPFC). The vmPFC-rdlPFC rsFC moderated the association between generative desire and purpose in life. DISCUSSION: These findings provide insight into how the brain supports complex social behavior and, separately, purpose in life in at-risk aging. Affectionate social support may be a putative target process to enhance purpose in life in older adults. This knowledge contributes to future developments of personalized interventions that promote healthy aging.

Indexed as

Alzheimer DiseaseMagnetic Resonance ImagingSocial SupportAgedAgingFemaleHumansMalePrefrontal CortexVentral StriatumProsocialityResting-state fMRISelf-transcendenceVentral striatumVentromedial prefrontal cortex

Identifiers

PMID38623965
PMCPMC11138215
OpenAlexW4394853388

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.