Abstract
OBJECTIVES: Perceived control has been identified as a modifiable predictor of healthy cognitive aging. However, little is known about the link between perceived control and intraindividual variability in cognitive performance, a sensitive indicator of early changes in cognition that confers increased risk of later impairment. A better understanding of the association between perceived control and variability in cognitive performance is needed to elucidate protective psychosocial factors that buffer against increased cognitive variability. METHODS: Data from the Modifiable Antecedents of Memory and Behavior in Adulthood (MAMBA) Study (n = 217, Mage = 53.6 years, SD = 14.8, range = 30-80, 65% female) was used to (a) examine the link between individual differences in perceived control at baseline and subsequent day-to-day variability in cognitive performance and (b) evaluate when in the adult lifespan this relationship becomes most prominent. RESULTS: Multilevel heterogeneous variance models revealed that greater perceived control predicted less day-to-day variability (Level-1 residual variances) in executive functioning and processing speed, but not episodic memory. Subsequent age moderation models showed that higher levels of perceived control were most protective against day-to-day cognitive variability in early-to-late midlife. DISCUSSION: Study findings suggest that perceived control, a modifiable predictor of healthy aging, may facilitate the maintenance of more stable cognitive performance, especially among individuals who are in early-to-late midlife.