Aging Audiences: Association of Live Performance Attendance and Cognitive Decline in a Biracial Sample.

OBJECTIVES To examine if attendance in live performances was associated with change in cognition among African Americans (AAs) and European Americans (EAs). METHOD The study consisted of 5,567 older adults with at least follow-up interview and analyzed using a linear mixed effects regression model adjusting for demographic and health variables. RESULTS We found that frequent performance attendance was associated with slower decline in composite cognitive function among older AAs and EAs. Attending 10 or more performances per year was associated with 23% slower cognitive decline among AAs and 31% slower cognitive decline among EAs compared with those who never attend any performance. However, this difference was not significant ( p = .56). Attending live performances was also associated with slower decline in individual tests of perceptual speed, episodic memory, and mini-mental state exam (MMSE). DISCUSSION Our findings suggest that live performances form a valuable component of arts engagement and should be encouraged for potential cognitive benefits.