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Background Stroke significantly impacts an individual’s ability to perform instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs). Intraindividual variability (IIV) is characterized by heightened fluctuations across multiple attempts at a task. IIV is a behavioral indicator of central nervous system instability that may contribute directly to compromised capacity to perform IADLs following stroke. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between IIV and IADL performance in stroke survivors and determine whether executive control and/or motor capacity serve as mediating pathways. Methods In this cross-sectional observational study, 84 stroke survivors and 35 healthy older adults participated. We derived latent factor scores for IIV from reaction time and goal directed tasks, IADL performance from the Observed Task of Daily Living and Functional Activities Questionnaire, executive control from tests of divided attention, selective attention, cognitive flexibility, and processing speed, and motor capacity from grip and ankle strength. We examined the association between IIV and IADL performance and conducted a parallel mediation analysis to determine whether executive control and motor capacity mediated this relationship. Results Higher IIV was associated with compromised IADL performance. Mediation analyses showed that the relationship between IIV and IADL performance was significantly mediated by executive control but not motor capacity while controlling for the covariate of age. Conclusions Behavioral variability after stroke impacts everyday function primarily through a cognitive pathway. These findings highlight executive control as a key therapeutic target in stroke rehabilitation to mitigate the functional consequences of neural instability on instrumental activities of daily living.

INTRODUCTION This study aimed to determine whether simulated driving performance can reliably predict cognitive impairment in stroke survivors. METHODS Cognitively impaired (n = 35) and normal (n = 54) stroke survivors completed a simulated driving course with reactive, distracted, and route‐planning sections. Performance was assessed using lane departures, average speed, brake reaction time, task completion time, and route accuracy. RESULTS Logistic regression models correctly distinguished cognitive status in 77.5% of cases for reactive and distracted driving, and 80.9% for route planning. Notably, the route planning task also achieved the highest classification rate of cognitively impaired participants (∼70%). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analyses on the strongest predictors from each driving section revealed significant areas under the curve (AUCs), with optimal cutoffs identifying cognitively impaired participants at 70%–80% accuracy. DISCUSSION These findings provide a critical foundation for developing simulator‐based assessments as practical, functionally relevant screening tools for identifying cognitive impairment and determining driving readiness post‐stroke. Highlights Stroke survivors were tested on simulated driving tasks. Driving metrics were lane departures, speed, reaction time, and route accuracy. Cognitive status was predicted with greater than 75% accuracy. Simulators may be a clinical tool for assessing post‐stroke driving readiness.

Background Intraindividual variability (IIV) in motor performance reflects unintentional fluctuations in the motor output across repeated attempts. Behavioral variability in older adults has been linked to impaired neuronal integrity and cognitive decline. Despite this, the traditional motor assessments in stroke have neglected to characterize IIV in motor performance also known as “motor inconsistency.” Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the impact of stroke on motor inconsistency and its relationship with cognitive and clinical outcomes. Methods Sixty‐six stroke survivors and 32 healthy older adults performed 30 trials of a goal‐directed task to match a force‐time target of 10 N in 180 ms. To measure motor inconsistency, we applied a well‐established approach to measuring IIV from the cognitive aging literature that accounts for the inherent, systematic effects of practice and mean‐level performance on IIV. In addition, participants completed domain‐specific cognitive evaluations and global clinical assessments. Domain‐specific cognitive evaluations assessed episodic memory, visuospatial processing, processing speed, and executive function. Global clinical assessments included years of education as a proxy of cognitive reserve, the Dementia Rating Scale‐2 (DRS‐2), ankle strength, and the Modified Rankin Score (mRS). Results Stroke survivors exhibited greater motor inconsistency compared with healthy older adults. Declines in domain‐specific cognitive function, particularly executive dysfunction, predicted motor inconsistency in stroke survivors. Cognitive reserve and mRS emerged as significant predictors of motor inconsistency. Conclusions Stroke significantly impairs the ability to perform a motor task with consistency. Compromised executive function following stroke is associated with increased motor inconsistency. Interestingly, reduced cognitive reserve and greater functional disability are linked to increased motor inconsistency in stroke survivors. These findings highlight that inconsistency is an important indicator of motor dysfunction following stroke that is linked to cognitive and clinical outcomes and may serve as an important target for stroke rehabilitation. Stroke survivors exhibit greater intraindividual variability (IIV) in motor performance. The elevated IIV in motor performance is linked to executive dysfunction, reduced cognitive reserve, and greater functional disability. These findings highlight motor inconsistency as a critical marker of post‐stroke motor dysfunction and a potential target for rehabilitation interventions.

Getting the growing population of older adults actively involved in issues of climate change requires moving away from a deficit- and loss-focused view of later adulthood. A new narrative should be adopted recognizing the many contributions older adults can make to addressing the climate crisis. These contributions arise out of concerns for the health and well-being of the next generations and draw on older adults' legacy thinking, lifelong experiences, professional expertise, and ability to work in multigenerational contexts. Such a new narrative recognizes older adults as a \"natural resource\" and important \"human capital.\"

Background: Motor impairments following stroke contribute to deficits in functional mobility. Traditionally, these impairments are quantified by mean-level motor performance. However, this mean-level approach neglects the well-established fact that motor performance becomes highly variable in aging and disease. Increased intra-individual variability (IIV) in behavior predicts functional decline in neurological disorders. Despite this, the impact of stroke on IIV in motor performance and its influence on functional mobility has not been investigated. This study aimed to (1) quantify the impact of stroke on IIV in motor performance, and (2) determine the contribution of IIV and mean motor performance to functional mobility. Methods: Twenty stroke survivors and 20 age-matched controls performed a goal-directed ankle movement task over 30 trials. We measured average accuracy (mean endpoint error) and IIV (within-person SD of endpoint error). Functional mobility was assessed with postural control (sway area during quiet standing) and braking response time in a driving simulator. Results: Stroke participants showed a higher mean (p = 0.04) and greater IIV (p = 0.016) in endpoint error than controls. Sway area did not differ between groups (p = 0.24), but stroke survivors had increased braking response time (p = 0.016). In stroke survivors, IIV significantly predicted sway area (R2 = 0.33, p = 0.008) and braking response time (R2 = 0.27, p = 0.02), and mean error did not account for any additional variance. Conclusions: Stroke reduces the trial-to-trial consistency of executing motor tasks with precision. IIV in motor performance predicts postural balance and braking response time and can potentially serve as an indicator of increased vulnerability and an important target for stroke rehabilitation.

Abstract In the context of climate change, older adults are often solely portrayed in terms of vulnerability and victimization. Although older adults’ vulnerability to the growing effects of climate change and natural disasters is an important topic, this presentation focuses on how to get older adults involved in climate change initiatives and as advocates for the adoption of climate-friendly behavior. The presentation argues that getting the growing population of older adults actively involved in issues of climate change requires moving away from a deficit- and loss-focused view of later adulthood. Instead, a new narrative about aging needs to be adopted, recognizing the many contributions older adults can make to addressing the global climate crisis. These contributions arise out of concerns for the health and well-being of the next generations and draw on older adults’ legacy thinking, lifelong experiences, professional expertise, and ability to work in multigenerational contexts. Such a new narrative recognizes and supports older adults as a “natural resource” and important “human capital.” The presentation will conclude with a discussion of the challenges to get older adults involved in climate change initiatives and with a description of several exemplary programs that have already generated foundational knowledge in this domain.

Previous studies on predictors of out-of-home behavior (OOHB) have often neglected the multidimensional nature of this construct. The present study distinguished between two levels of analyzing OOHB: out-of-home mobility seen as single behavioral units (e.g., number of places visited, action range, and walking) versus OOHBs seen as engagement in integrated, larger activity units (e.g., cognitively and physically demanding activities). We examined whether a differential relationship between these levels of OOHBs with established predictors of OOHBs, i.e., socio-demographic variables, cognitive abilities, physical functioning, and depression, exists. A sample of 100 cognitively healthy, community-dwelling adults with a mean age of 70.8 years underwent a multi-method OOHB assessment using GPS- (out-of-home mobility) and questionnaire-based (out-of-home activity engagement) measures. Predictors were assessed based on internationally implemented procedures. Regression analyses showed that walking-based mobility and engagement in physical activities could be predicted by physical functioning, whereas most effects of socio-demographic variables, such as age and gender, and of depression on OOHBs were negligible. At the bivariate level, episodic memory was related to action range, global mobility, and to cognitively demanding activity engagement, but not to walking, whereas executive function was related with physically demanding activity engagement only. However, some of these connections became weaker in the full predictor model. Findings support the notion that it is necessary to assess OOHB as a multiple-indicator construct.

This study examined the association between gratitude and loneliness across the adult lifespan using a seven-day daily diary study design. The sample consisted of young, middle-aged, and older adults ( N  = 128; age M  = 56.7 years; SD  = 18.7 years; range = 24.2–90.2 years; 46% women). A significant Age × Gender × Gratitude interaction effect on loneliness indicated that gratitude and loneliness were negatively associated in general. Results of simple slopes analyses showed that gender differences in loneliness were significant in young adults who were more grateful and in older adults who were less grateful. Women were less lonely than men, on average, and the gender difference was significant for those younger and more grateful, or older and less grateful. Thus, the beneficial effect of gratitude on loneliness differed across age and gender. These findings suggest that the potential benefits of gratitude on social relationships and emotional well-being, such as loneliness, should be examined differentially for men and women and in the context of changing social relationships in the aging process.

Abstract Engagement in physical activity (PA) has well-documented benefits for delaying or preventing age-related diseases. Thus, it is important to study innovative ways to increase PA in the adult population. This symposium describes AgingPLUS, an ongoing trial that addresses three psychological mechanisms to increase adults' PA: Negative views of aging (NVOA), low self-efficacy beliefs, and deficient goal-planning skills. The symposium also presents preliminary findings, based on a pre-pandemic subsample, on changes in explicit NVOA, implicit VOA, and changes in PA. Diehl et al. describe the theoretical background and study design of the ongoing RCT. This also includes the main study hypotheses. Rebok et al. present preliminary findings showing significant effects of the intervention on NVOA and frequency of moderate intensity exercise. Effects on physical function and accelerometry measures were not statistically significant in this subsample. Tseng et al. examined the effects of the intervention on two measures of implicit VOA: a lexical decision-making task (LDMT) and the Brief Implicit Association Test (BIAT). Findings showed that differences in post-intervention latencies on the LDMT were not statistically significant. Differences on post-intervention BIAT d scores also failed to be significant. Finally, Nehrkorn-Bailey et al. tested a multiple mediator model examining the mediational role of self-efficacy (SE) and exercise intention (EI) on PA. Results showed that Week 4 SE significantly mediated the effect of intervention condition to Week 8 anticipated PA engagement. Week 4 EI significantly mediated the effect of intervention condition on Month 6 PA engagement. Anticipated PA effects predicted subsequent involvement in PA.

Abstract Worldwide population aging has greatly increased the diversity of the \"aging enterprise.\" Research has established a solid portfolio of evidence showing that positive and negative views of aging represent independent resilience or risk factors for health, well-being, and longevity. Indeed, the effects of views of aging remain significant beyond the effects of other risk factors for health and mortality. This raises the following questions: What do we currently know about the effect of self-perceptions of aging (SPA) and subjective age (SA) on health, well-being, and longevity? What are recent advancements and perspectives? Which research questions should be addressed to stimulate further, sustainable developments in research and practice? This symposium addresses these questions with a diverse set of presentations and from different perspectives. Wahl and colleagues will discuss the role of SPA in the clinical context, namely in a sample of older adults with terminal cancer comparing them to older adults without a terminal illness. Based on a population-based sample, Wurm and Schaefer will report findings on the impact of different gain- and loss-related SPA and SA on mortality over a 23-year period. Building on an earlier meta-analysis, Westerberg and colleagues evaluated data from over 100 studies and will present the findings of a systematic review on the role of SPA and SA for health and longevity. Finally, Nehrkorn-Bailey et al. will present findings from a clinical trial that addressed views of aging as a mechanism to promote physical activity. Dr. Becca Levy will serve as the discussant.