from the journal Psychology and Aging
Keeping brains of older people active is known
to help to improve cognitive qualities in, but a
program at the University of Illinois also
showed improvement in the personality trait
of openness, once thought to remain
unchanged throughout adult life. The study,
published in the journal Psychology and Aging,
found openness—being flexible and creative,
embracing new ideas and taking on
challenging intellectual or cultural pursuits—
appears related to cognitive abilities.
Researchers gave older adults a series of
pattern‐recognition and problem‐solving tasks
they could perform at home. They worked at
their own pace, getting more challenging tasks
each week. Those engaged in the tasks saw
improvement in cognitive skills, and a
significant increase in openness—challenging
the assumption personality doesn’t change
once we become adults.