Job sector and occupational complexity influence on late-life cognitive function among men.

The rapid aging of population in low- and middle-income countries, their economic disadvantages, and the increase in Alzheimer's disease related dementia point to a need to understand cognitive aging of disadvantaged individuals. This research considers the effects of education, occupational complexity, and cognitive engagement on late-life cognitive performance, and how these may vary by economic sector. We analyze data from the 2012 Mexican Health and Aging Study (MHAS) linked to O*NET (Occupational Information Network) and social security administrative data. We constructed a lifetime occupational complexity index using information on workers' cognitive abilities for males 60 or older with normal cognitive function. We found a higher level of education, degree of occupational complexity, and cognitive engagement for formal-sector workers than for informal-sector ones. For both groups of workers, education, occupational complexity, and cognitive engagement are associated with late-life cognitive health. Yet, occupational complexity was associated with higher late-life cognitive health for informal-sector workers than for formal-sector ones. This study, the first to analyze the role of informal-sector work in shaping late-life cognitive health, highlights the relevance of occupation for cognitive health. Our findings are relevant for both developing countries with large shares of workers in the informal sector and developed ones with ethnic minorities and growing proportions of workers in the "gig economy."