When does the brain function at its best?
There’s no denying that we reach our physical peaks sometime in our 20s or early 30s. But when is the mind sharpest? Many people would answer around those years, too. This has to do with our strongly ingrained cultural biases about ageing and cognitive decline.
When are the best years for our brains?
A research team from Australia and Poland explored when the brain actually reaches its all-around mental and emotional peak. The surprising findings were published in the journal ‘Intelligence’(opens in new window). The researchers measured 16 dimensions associated with life outcomes during adulthood, such as reasoning, processing speed, knowledge, emotional intelligence, memory span and financial literacy. They also examined five major personality traits: extraversion, emotional stability, conscientiousness, openness to experience and agreeableness. Information was collected from a fairly large sample size. Data on cognitive ability was taken from a study of about 5 000 people between the ages of 19 and 88. Personality data involved over 10 000 Dutch volunteers observed for more than 12 years. Emotional intelligence data came from over 400 adults aged 20 to 72. Financial literacy data involved around 15 000 Japanese adults. “Overall mental functioning peaked between ages 55 and 60, before beginning to decline from around 65,” explained author Gilles Gignac, associate professor of psychology at The University of Western Australia, in ‘The Conversation’(opens in new window). “That decline became more pronounced after age 75, suggesting that later-life reductions in functioning can accelerate once they begin.” The results showed several traits reaching their peak much later in life. “[C]onscientiousness peaked around age 65. Emotional stability peaked around age 75,” he further elaborated. “Less commonly discussed dimensions, such as moral reasoning, also appear to peak in older adulthood. And the capacity to resist cognitive biases – mental shortcuts that can lead us to make irrational or less accurate decisions – may continue improving well into the 70s and even 80s.” While quick thinking and raw speed slowed with age, better judgment and decision-making improved. These abilities are key to climbing the ladder of success, noted Gignac. “Our findings may help explain why many of the most demanding leadership roles in business, politics, and public life are often held by people in their fifties and early sixties. So while several abilities decline with age, they’re balanced by growth in other important traits.”
Age is just a number
Charles Darwin was 50 when he published ‘On the Origin of the Species’ – a book that changed how people understand life on Earth. Ludwig van Beethoven was severely hearing impaired at 53 when he debuted the Ninth Symphony, one of the greatest achievements in Western music. Colonel Harland Sanders, the man behind the world’s most famous fried chicken chain, was 62 when he franchised his recipe. British actress Helen Mirren didn't get her big break in film until she was in her 50s, and she won her first Academy Award at 62. “History is full of people who reached their greatest breakthroughs well past what society often labels as ‘peak age’,” concluded Gignac. “Perhaps it’s time we stopped treating midlife as a countdown and started recognising it as a peak.” Our best days are indeed ahead of us.