Memory Predicts Changes in Depressive Symptoms in Older Adults: A Bidirectional Longitudinal Analysis

OBJECTIVES: Although research indicates that depressive symptoms and memory performance are related in older adults, the temporal associations between these variables remain unclear. This study examined whether depressive symptoms predicted later memory change and whether memory predicted later change in depressive symptoms. METHODS: The sample consisted of more than 14,000 adults from the Health and Retirement Study, a biannual longitudinal study of health and retirement in Americans older than age 50 years. Measures of delayed recall and depressive symptoms served as the main study variables. We included age, sex, education, and history of vascular diseases as covariates. RESULTS: Using dynamic change models with latent difference scores, we found that memory performance predicted change in depressive symptoms 2 years later. Depressive symptoms did not predict later change in memory. The inclusion of vascular health variables diminished the size of the observed relationship, suggesting that biological processes may partially explain the effect of memory on depressive symptoms. IMPLICATIONS: Future research should explore both biological and psychological processes that may explain the association between worse memory performance and subsequent increases in depressive symptoms.