Speaker: Jeremy Grant, Department of Clinical & Health Psychology at the University of Florida
Bio: Jeremy Grant, Ph.D., is a post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Clinical & Health Psychology at the University of Florida. His research focuses on modifiable risk factors of cognitive decline (cognitive reserve/resilience, aerobic exercise, metabolic syndrome) and promoting healthy cognitive aging among individuals with neurodegenerative disorders, particularly among historically marginalized groups. He obtained his B.S. in Biology from Andrews University in 2013, followed by an M.Sc. in Neuroscience at Carleton University in 2016. He completed his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at Wayne State University in 2022, where his research examined psychosocial predictors of health outcomes among individuals with multiple sclerosis. As a clinician, he specializes in conducting neuropsychological assessments for individuals with various neurological disorders and providing multicomponent interventions for older adults with mild cognitive impairment.
Abstract: The theory of cognitive reserve is often invoked to explain why some people with multiple sclerosis (MS) exhibit better cognitive performance than expected for their level of disease progression. The most commonly used proxy of cognitive reserve is years of education; however, few studies have examined how cognitively enriching activities outside of formal education contribute to cognitive reserve. Furthermore, education quality often provides a better estimate of cognitive reserve than education quantity, particularly among systematically marginalized groups in the United States. This study examined three proxies of reserve—years of education, education quality, and cognitive enrichment—and the extent to which their relationship with cognitive performance differs based on race in a sample of 82 adults with multiple sclerosis. The findings indicate that cognitive reserve can indeed be built through multiple routes, but with a threshold. Among individuals with high education quality, engaging in cognitively enriching activities may not provide any additional protection from cognitive decline. However, among individuals with low education quality, cognitive enrichment can be a vital source of reserve, capable of providing a similar level of protection as observed among individuals with high education quality. Furthermore, the protective effects of cognitive reserve differed by race. Among the Black participants, cognitive enrichment and education quality moderated the relationship between disease progression and cognitive performance. However, among the White participants, cognitive enrichment did not provide additional protection beyond the buffering effect of education quality.