| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 909584 | Journal of Anxiety Disorders | 2013 | 8 Pages |
•We critically review empirical evidence supporting an association between anxiety and control processes that is particularly salient in older adults.•We describe constructs of anxiety and cognitive control from cognitive neuroscience and cognitive aging theoretical perspectives.•Methodological approaches and measures used to assess cognitive control are evaluated.•Hypotheses are provided regarding an interactive relationship between late-life anxiety and cognitive control.•Clinical implications for treatment, including behavioral and cognitive strategies, are discussed.
Recent evidence supports a negative association between anxiety and cognitive control. Given age-related reductions in some cognitive abilities and the relation of late life anxiety to cognitive impairment, this negative association may be particularly relevant to older adults. This critical review conceptualizes anxiety and cognitive control from cognitive neuroscience and cognitive aging theoretical perspectives and evaluates the methodological approaches and measures used to assess cognitive control. Consistent with behavioral investigations of young adults, the studies reviewed implicate specific and potentially negative effects of anxiety on cognitive control processes in older adults. Hypotheses regarding the role of both aging and anxiety on cognitive control, the bi-directionality between anxiety and cognitive control, and the potential for specific symptoms of anxiety (particularly worry) to mediate this association, are specified and discussed.
