Organizational and Non-Organizational Religious Participation and Trajectories of Cognitive Function among Older African Americans

Objectives The aims of this study were to determine 1) whether organizational and non-organizational religious participation are associated with cognitive function trajectories among older African Americans and 2) whether the associations between religious participation and cognitive function trajectories vary by age. Methods Data for this study come from the Minority Aging Research Study (N = 822). Organizational religious participation included service attendance, and non-organizational religious participation included religious coping and prayer/meditation. We utilized group-based trajectory modeling to identify cognitive function trajectories based on global cognitive function scores. Results We identified four distinct cognitive trajectories: fast decline, slow decline, moderate and stable, and high and stable. While prayer/meditation was associated with membership in the moderate-and-stable trajectory, significant interactions between the non-organizational religious participation variables and age indicated that the associations between non-organizational religious participation and cognitive trajectory varied by age. Neither religious coping nor service attendance was associated with cognitive trajectories. Discussion These findings illustrate substantial heterogeneity in cognitive aging among older African Americans. Non-organizational religious participation primarily served as a preventive factor among younger participants but functioned more prominently as a coping resource among the oldest participants. These age-related distinctions emphasize the diverse ways in which religiosity could foster cognitive resilience or aid in navigating cognitive decline among older African Americans.