Search

Objectives The susceptibility of older adults' affect to fluctuations in their own health (within-person health sensitivity) indicates how they handle everyday health challenges. In old age, affective well-being is often increasingly influenced by close others, yet it is unknown whether older adults' affect is additionally susceptible to fluctuations in their spouse's health (within- partnership health sensitivity) and the extent to which age and relationship satisfaction moderate such associations. Methods Parallel sets of multilevel actor–partner interdependence models are applied to self-reported health (feelings of pain/discomfort) and positive and negative affect, obtained 6 times a day over 7 consecutive days from 2 independent samples, the Berlin Couple Dynamics Study (N = 87 couples; M age = 75 years; M relationship length = 46 years) and the Socio-Economic Panel Couple Dynamics Study (N = 151 couples; M age = 72 years; M relationship length = 47 years). Results Husbands and wives had lower positive affect and higher negative affect in moments when they reported more pain (within-person health sensitivity) and when their respective spouse reported more pain (within-partnership health sensitivity). Tests for moderation suggest that within-person, but not within-partnership, health sensitivity is lower at older ages and higher with more satisfying relationships. Discussion These findings empirically illustrate life-span notions that close relationships shape time-varying health–affect links and thus underscore the theoretical and practical utility of examining social–contextual antecedents of older adults' everyday affective well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Models of healthy aging highlight the motivating influence of social connections. Social experiences constantly shape our thoughts and behaviors throughout daily life, and these daily processes slowly and consistently influence our health and well-being. In this article, we discuss research that has moved from cross-sectional laboratory designs emphasizing individual behaviors to more naturalistic within-person paradigms linking daily social experiences to emotional, cognitive, and physical well-being. We mention research gaps that need to be filled to advance our knowledge of the powerful forces of the social environment for motivating healthy aging. We also offer future directions to move this research forward. We conclude with an outlook on how to leverage these powerful forces in novel intervention approaches that are sensitive to the constantly changing nature of the person and the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: An engaged lifestyle has been linked to measures of functional ability in everyday life. However, the underlying mechanism of this link is still understudied. We propose working memory as a potential mediator of this relation. Methods: Modeling data of 158 older adults with a latent-variables approach, we examined whether working memory mediated the relation between an engaged lifestyle, that is, intellectual, social, and physical activities, and functional ability, that is, self-reported everyday failures and test-based everyday performance. Results: Working memory was found to fully mediate the relation between gaming activities and test-based everyday performance. Furthermore, we found a negative association between sports activities and self-reported everyday failures not mediated through working memory, indicating that individuals who reported high levels of sports activities reported fewer everyday cognitive failures. All other lifestyle activities were, however, neither directly nor indirectly associated with functional ability. Discussion: Working memory is one pathway by which gaming activities are related to test-based measures of functional ability in everyday life. Given the overlapping cognitive demands of working memory, gaming activities, and the test-based measure of functional ability, the findings suggest that while an engaged lifestyle can benefit functional ability, those benefits may be limited to highly similar domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The bidirectional interplay between chronic pain and negative affect is well-established in patient samples. However, less is known about the day-to-day relationship between pain and affect of older adults without severe illnesses and to what extent this association differs within and between individuals. A total of 224 participants (Mage = 77.6, SDage = 6.2) reported their daily experience of pain, impairment by their pain and affect during 21 consecutive days. Multilevel modeling results showed that on days with increased pain individuals also reported less positive affect and more negative affect. Time-lagged results indicated a temporal carry-over from yesterday's pain to today's negative affect but not to today's positive affect. Moreover, on days when individuals reported stronger impairment by their pain, they showed a stronger within-person coupling between daily pain and affect in contrast to days with a weaker experience of daily impairment. Yesterday's pain and today's negative affect were more strongly associated within individuals who reported higher levels of impairment. Interindividual differences in the within-person coupling between daily pain and affect were found with regard to general physical health conditions and general satisfaction with health. This study demonstrated the importance of focusing on within-person couplings between daily pain and affect beyond patient samples in order to better understand the maintenance of emotional stability despite daily hassles in older adults' everyday lives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract In light of novel opportunities to use sensor data to observe individuals' day-to-day mobility in the context of healthy aging research, it is important to understand how meaningful mobility indicators can be extracted from such data and to which degree these sensor-derived indicators are comparable to corresponding self-reports. We used sensor (GPS and accelerometer) and self-reported data from 27 healthy older adults (≥67 years) who participated in the MOASIS project over a 30-day period. Based on sensor data we computed three commonly used daily mobility indicators: life space (LS), travel duration using passive (i.e., motorized) modes of transportation (pMOT) and travel duration using active (i.e., non-motorized) modes of transportation (aMOT). We assessed the degree to which these sensor-derived indicators compare to corresponding self-reports at a within-person level, computing intraindividual correlations (iCorrs), subsequently assessing whether iCorrs can be associated with participants' socio-demographic characteristics on a between-person level. Moderate to large positive mean iCorrs between the respective self-reported and sensor-derived indicators were found (r = 0.75 for LS, 0.51 for pMOT and 0.36 for aMOT). In comparison to sensor-derived indicators, self-reported LS slightly underestimates, while self-reported aMOT as well as pMOT considerably overestimate the amount of daily mobility. Participants with access to a car have higher probabilities of agreement in the pMOT indicator. Sensor-based assessments are promising as they are "objective", involve less participant burden and observations can be extended over long periods. The findings of this paper help researchers on mobility and aging to estimate the magnitude and direction of potential differences in the assessed variable due to the assessment methods. Highlights • We derive three common self-reported mobility indicators from GPS data. • Self-reported and sensor-derived life space indicators agree to a large degree. • Self-reports overestimate travel durations with active and passive travel modes. • Participants' characteristics are meaningfully related to indicator agreement. • Indicator discrepancies due to assessment method are relevant for aging research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Does a single bout of activity engagement have short-term effects on cognition in daily life? Using a smartphone-based ambulatory assessment design, this study examined the duration of the effects of three types of activities (i.e., sociocognitive, passive leisure, and physical activities) on working memory performance. For seven times per day (i.e., approximately every 2 hr) over 15 days, 150 healthy older adults (aged 65–91 years) in Switzerland reported their present activities and completed working memory assessments. In an examination of within-person concurrent associations, results from a multilevel model showed that passive leisure activities were negatively associated with working memory. Extending this to time-lagged dynamics, results from multilevel vector autoregression models showed that the negative effect of passive leisure activities and a positive effect of sociocognitive activities on working memory performance appeared 6 hr later and faded out completely by 8 hr later. Follow-up analyses showed that the time-lagged effects of activity engagement were evident among relatively younger individuals with lower levels of formal education. In sum, our findings suggest that a single bout of activity engagement has an impact on cognitive performance as quickly as 6 hr. In line with the "use it or lose it" hypothesis, our findings highlight the importance of continuous and active engagement in sociocognitive activities in older age. Public Significance Statement: A single bout of activity engagement was shown to have an impact on cognitive performance as quickly as 6 hr later and faded out by 8 hr. It is important to continuously engage in sociocognitive activities in older age. Understanding "how to" engage in everyday activities in relation to cognitive performance could help older adults manage their daily activities strategically and, possibly, wisely. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Time spent on being with others (social interactions) and being alone (solitude) in day to day life might reflect older adults' agentic regulatory strategies to balance the needs to belong and to conserve energy. Motivated from a joint lifespan psychological and social relationship theoretical perspective, this study examined how time spent on social interactions and solitude alternatively unfolds within individuals in daily life, relating to individual differences in trait‐level well‐being and fatigue. Over 21 days, a total of 11,172 valid records of social interactions were collected from 118 older adults (aged 65–94 years) in a smartphone‐based event‐contingent ambulatory assessment study in Switzerland. On average, a social interaction episode lasted 39 min and a solitude episode lasted 5.03 hr. Multilevel models showed that, at the within‐person level, a longer‐than‐usual social interaction preceded and was followed by a longer‐than‐usual solitude episode. Moderator analyses showed that older adults with higher trait life satisfaction and lower trait fatigue spent even more time in social interactions after longer solitude episodes, amplifying the solitude‐then‐interaction association. Our findings suggest that whereas social interaction is a means to improve well‐being, solitude is also an integral part in older adults' daily life supporting energy recovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives and Method. Using 5 measurement bursts spanning 1 year, this study examined correspondences between retrospective end-of-year ratings and momentary ratings of positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA) in 53 older adult participants from the Berlin Aging Study. Results. Average momentary assessments were moderately positively correlated with retrospective ratings of PA and NA. Hierarchical regression analyses further indicate that mean momentary PA best predicted retrospective PA over and above peak or recent momentary PA, whereas no such pattern emerged for NA. No evidence for age differences in these patterns was found. Discussion. Our discussion focuses on the implications of affective memory biases for examining affective experiences as they occur in peoples’ daily lives and points to implications concerning methods and theory development. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Opposing scenarios about age-related increases and decreases in intraindividual variability are found in the literature: Whereas accumulating evidence indicates that cognitive functioning is characterized by an age-related increase of short-term variability, age-related decreases in variability could be expected in affective stores on the basis of theories of emotion regulation and self development. We examined age differences in intraindividual variability of positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA) and in contingencies among daily affect, daily stress, and daily events using up to 45 daily assessments of 18 young (20-30 years) and 19 older (70-80 years) adults. Whereas age groups differed little in average affect levels, older adults showed significantly less variability in PA and NA than young adults. Age differences accounted for greater variance in variability than personality factors. Multilevel modeling indicated that for young but not older adults, PA was higher (lower) on days with a positive (negative) event, and NA was lower on days with a positive event. There were no age differences in daily affect reactivity to appraised stress severity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite longitudinal stability in subjective well-being across adulthood, many adults perceive self-related change. This study was aimed at identifying differential subjective change profiles in life satisfaction rated for the present, the past, and the future and to examine their associations with sociodemographic variables and changes in adaptive functioning. The authors addressed this aim using Midlife in the United States survey data from 2 measurement occasions (N = 3,631; age at Time I: 24-75). A cluster analysis was used to identify a continuous high subgroup and an incremental subgroup at both occasions. A 3rd subgroup was labeled present low at Time 1 and decremental at Time 2. Although the average pattern across individual variables suggested stability, up to 60% of individuals fit profiles depicting perceived change, and some individuals changed subgroup membership over time. After controlling for sociode-mographic characteristics, subgroups differed in level and change in biopsychosocial measures of adaptive functioning, with sense of control and social relationship quality showing stronger associations than personality and physical health. Results indicate that a person-centered approach to assessing life satisfaction provides a rich and dynamic picture of individual differences in subjective well-being across the adult life span. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined actual and perceived trajectories of change in life satisfaction in a national sample of 3,793 adults, ages 24 to 74 at baseline, who provided retrospective, present, and prospective ratings on two occasions 8 to 10 years apart. There was little actual change in satisfaction ratings, but there were age differences in anticipated change, with young adults expecting things to improve and older adults expecting decline. When we compared the actual (present) ratings with corresponding past or future ratings, older adults showed more temporal realism (retrospective and anticipatory ratings matched actual levels) than did young and middle-aged adults; in other words, young and middle-aged adults showed greater illusion (retrospective and prospective ratings overestimated or underestimated actual levels). At all ages, however, temporal realism was associated with more adaptive current functioning than was illusion. We discuss these findings from a life-span developmental perspective on motivational shifts from growth to maintenance and consider the implications of accuracy in evaluating the past and future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the topic of death from historic and contemporary perspectives. Changes of life expectancy; Examination on the developmental task of adulthood; Study on the acceptance of death and grief processes.

Background: Given the increasing number of people achieving exceptionally long lifespans, there is an urgent need for a better understanding of mental health in centenarians. This study aimed to understand the prevalence of mental health conditions—depressive symptoms, anxiety, sleep disturbances, disinhibition, and aberrant motor behaviour—among centenarians in Switzerland. Methods: Data were collected from N = 169 participants via telephone interviews or paper questionnaires, either directly from centenarians or through proxy informants. Half the data were collected during a period when protective measures were imposed due to the COVID‐19 pandemic, and half were collected after the measures were lifted. Results: Mental health conditions were prevalent in our sample, particularly depressive symptoms (44.51%) and anxiety (42.17%). Significant positive associations were found between depressive symptoms and anxiety, and between disinhibition and aberrant motor behaviour. Furthermore, we identified statistical predictors for the occurrence of mental health conditions. Notably, institutionalised living increased the odds of depressive symptomatology, while those with higher education levels or an absence of cognitive impairment experienced more sleep disturbances. Finally, cognitive impairment was linked to increased disinhibition and aberrant motor behaviour. Conclusions: The high prevalence of mental health conditions underscores the need for proactive mental health care strategies in advanced old age. Moreover, it is vital to consider the interconnected nature of mental health conditions and to prioritise vulnerable groups, such as centenarians in institutional settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Although higher activity diversity is associated with higher well-being at the between-person level, it is unknown whether a day with higher activity diversity is related to higher well-being within persons. Within 24 hr per day, there are a limited number of activities on which individuals could spend their time and energy. Personal resources could influence the expenditure of energy and thus the experience with daily activities. This study examined daily associations between activity diversity and well-being and whether age and self-related health moderated the associations. Methods For seven times per day over 2 weeks, 129 retired older adults (M age = 73.9 years, SD age = 5.6) reported their present activity engagement and positive and negative affect. Daily activity diversity was operationalized as the number of different activity types reported per day. Daily positive and negative affect were assessed as the average of a range of high- and low-arousal affective states. Self-rated health was assessed with an item from the 12-Item Short-Form Health Survey at baseline. Results Multilevel models showed that daily activity diversity was unrelated, on average, to daily positive or negative affect at the between- and within-person levels. Daily activity diversity was associated with lower daily positive affect in participants with lower self-rated health, but the Johnson-Neyman regions of significance were outside of the range of observed data. Discussion Divergent patterns were observed in the within-person associations between activity diversity and well-being across participants. Results are discussed in the context of time use and well-being in older age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With growing use of machine learning algorithms and big data in health applications, digital measures, such as digital biomarkers, have become highly relevant in digital health. In this paper, we focus on one important use case, the long-term continuous monitoring of cognitive ability in older adults. Cognitive ability is a factor both for long-term monitoring of people living alone as well as a relevant outcome in clinical studies. In this work, we propose a new potential digital biomarker for cognitive abilities based on location eigenbehaviour obtained from contactless ambient sensors. Indoor location information obtained from passive infrared sensors is used to build a location matrix covering several weeks of measurement. Based on the eigenvectors of this matrix, the reconstruction error is calculated for various numbers of used eigenvectors. The reconstruction error in turn is used to predict cognitive ability scores collected at baseline, using linear regression. Additionally, classification of normal versus pathological cognition level is performed using a support-vector machine. Prediction performance is strong for high levels of cognitive ability but grows weaker for low levels of cognitive ability. Classification into normal and older adults with mild cognitive impairment, using age and the reconstruction error, shows high discriminative performance with an ROC AUC of 0.94. This is an improvement of 0.08 as compared with a classification with age only. Due to the unobtrusive method of measurement, this potential digital biomarker of cognitive ability can be obtained entirely unobtrusively—it does not impose any patient burden. In conclusion, the usage of the reconstruction error is a strong potential digital biomarker for binary classification and, to a lesser extent, for more detailed prediction of inter-individual differences in cognition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: It has been shown that activity engagement is associated with cognitive ability in older age, but mechanisms behind the associations have rarely been examined. Following a recent study which showed short-term effects of activity engagement on working memory performance appearing 6 h later, this study examined the mediating role of affective states in this process. Methods: For 7 times per day over 2 weeks, 150 Swiss older adults (aged 65–91 years) reported their present (sociocognitive/passive leisure) activities and affective states (high-arousal positive, low-arousal positive, high-arousal negative, and low-arousal negative) and completed an ambulatory working memory task on a smartphone. Results: Multilevel vector autoregression models showed that passive leisure activities were associated with worse working memory performance 6 h later. Passive leisure activities were negatively associated with concurrent high-arousal positive affect (and high-arousal negative affect); high-arousal positive affect was negatively associated with working memory performance 6 h later. A Sobel test showed a significant mediation effect of high-arousal positive affect linking the time-lagged relationship between passive leisure activities and working memory. Additionally, sociocognitive activities were associated with better working memory performance 6 h later. Sociocognitive activities were associated with concurrent higher high- and low-arousal positive affect, which, however, were not associated with working memory performance 6 h later. Thus, a mediation related to sociocognitive activities was not found. Discussion: Passive leisure activities could influence working memory performance through high-arousal positive affect within a timeframe of several hours. Results are discussed in relation to an emotional, and possibly a neuroendocrine, pathway explaining the time-lagged effects of affective states on working memory performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Mobility as a multidimensional concept has rarely been examined as a day-to-day varying phenomenon in its within-person association with older adults' daily well-being. This study examined associations between daily mobility and daily well-being in community-dwelling older adults with a set of GPS-derived mobility indicators that were representative of older adults' daily mobility. Methods: Participants wore a custom-built mobile GPS sensor ("uTrail") and completed smartphone-based experience sampling questionnaires on momentary affective states (7 times per day) and daily life satisfaction (in the evening). Analyses included data across 947 days from 109 Swiss older adults aged 65–89 years. Results: Multilevel modeling showed that, within persons, a day with a larger life space area, more time spent in passive transport modes, and a higher number of different locations was associated with higher daily life satisfaction but not daily positive or negative affect. Follow-up analysis showed that the daily maximum distance from home was positively associated with daily life satisfaction, providing a first indication that exposure to non-habitual environments might be a possible underlying mechanism to explain the effects of mobility. Conclusions: Traveling a long distance away from home and visiting diverse locations may be a way to improve life satisfaction. Results are discussed in the context of research on healthy aging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Mobile sensing has transformed research in Mobility, Health, and Place. • It enables pervasive real-life measurements of personal behavior, context and health. • It enables the development of novel digital biomarkers and personalized intervention. • Classification of mobile sensing technologies and methods is proposed. • Issues remain in data collection and analysis to address uncertainties and biases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A substantial part of age-related episodic memory decline has been attributed to the decreasing ability of older adults to encode and retrieve associations among simultaneously processed information units from long-term memory. In addition, this ability seems to share unique variance with reasoning. In this study, we therefore examined whether process-based training of the ability to learn and remember associations has the potential to induce transfer effects to untrained episodic memory and reasoning tasks in healthy older adults (60-75 years). For this purpose, the experimental group (n = 36) completed 30 sessions of process-based object-location memory training, while the active control group (n = 31) practiced visual perception on the same material. Near (spatial episodic memory), intermediate (verbal episodic memory), and far transfer effects (reasoning) were each assessed with multiple tasks at four measurements (before, midway through, immediately after, and 4 months after training). Linear mixed-effects models revealed transfer effects on spatial episodic memory and reasoning that were still observed 4 months after training. These results provide first empirical evidence that process-based training can enhance healthy older adults' associative memory performance and positively affect untrained episodic memory and reasoning abilities. (PsycINFO Database Record [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Research on emotional functioning in adulthood has focused primarily on positive and negative affect rather than on discrete emotions. To close this gap, 948 adults aged 18–78years reported their affect on a German version of the Positive Affect Negative Affect Schedule – Extended (PANAS-X). Besides positive and negative affect, the scale assessed discrete negative affects (fear, hostility, guilt, sadness), discrete positive affects (joviality, self-assurance, attentiveness), and other affective states (shyness, fatigue, serenity, surprise). Findings showed divergent shapes across the adult lifespan documenting multidimensionality and multidirectionality. Personality factors explained a large portion of interindividual differences in discrete affects; however, after controlling for sociodemographic and personality factors, age showed still significant associations to some but not all discrete affects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using 12-year longitudinal data from deceased participants of the Berlin Aging Study (N = 414; age 70-103 years, at first occasion; M = 87 years, SD = 8.13), the authors examined whether and how old and very old individuals exhibit terminal decline in reported life satisfaction at the end of life. Relative to age-related decline, mortality-related decline (i.e., distance-to-death) accounted for more variance in interindividual differences in life satisfaction change and revealed steeper average rates of decline, by a factor of 2. By applying change-point growth models, the authors identified a point, about 4 years before death, at which decline showed a two-fold increase in steepness relative to the preterminal phase. For the oldest old (85+ years), a threefold increase was observed. Established mortality predictors, including sex, comorbidities, dementia, and cognition, accounted for only small portions of interindividual differences in mortality-related change in life satisfaction. The authors conclude that late-life changes in subjective well-being are related to mechanisms predicting death and suggest routes for further inquiry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined competing hypotheses about dynamic cross-domain associations between perceptual speed and well-being in advanced old age. We applied the bivariate dual change score model (J. J. McArdle & F. Hamagami, 2001) to 13-year incomplete longitudinal data from the Berlin Aging Study (P. B. Baltes & K. U. Mayer, 1999; N = 516, 70-103 years at TI, M = 85 years). Reports of well-being were found to influence subsequent decline in perceptual speed (time lags of 2 years). No evidence was found for a directed effect in the other direction. None of the potential covariates examined (initial health constraints, personality, and social participation) accounted for these differential lead-lag associations. Our results suggest that well-being is not only a consequence of but also a source for successful aging. The discussion focuses on conceptual implications and methodological considerations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article provides information on study which examined what it is that people have reason to value into very old age, and how they can attain and maintain these valued aspects of their lives, using a heuristic model of motivation and healthy aging. Topics discussed include explanation on goals and aspects that define the contexts and situations in which people find themselves.

No abstract available [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

No abstract available Copyright © 2010 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multi-domain training potentially increases the likelihood of overlap in processing components with transfer tasks and everyday life, and hence is a promising training approach for older adults. To empirically test this, 84 healthy older adults aged 64 to 75 years were randomly assigned to one of three single-domain training conditions (inhibition, visuomotor function, spatial navigation) or to the simultaneous training of all three cognitive functions (multi-domain training condition). All participants trained on an iPad at home for 50 training sessions. Before and after the training, and at a 6-month follow-up measurement, cognitive functioning and training transfer were assessed with a neuropsychological test battery including tests targeting the trained functions (near transfer) and transfer to executive functions (far transfer: attentional control, working memory, speed). Participants in all four training groups showed a linear increase in training performance over the 50 training sessions. Using a latent difference score model, the multi-domain training group, compared with the single-domain training groups, showed more improvement on the far transfer attentional control composite. Individuals with initially lower baseline performance showed higher training-related improvements, indicating that training compensated for lower initial cognitive performance. At the 6-month follow-up, performance on the cognitive test battery remained stable. This is one of the first studies to investigate systematically multi-domain training including comparable single-domain training conditions. Our findings suggest that multi-domain training enhances attentional control involved in handling several different tasks at the same time, an aspect in everyday life that is particularly challenging for older people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adult age differences in cognitive plasticity have been studied less 01 ten in working memory than in episodic memory. The authors investigated the effects of extensive working memory practice on performance improvement, transfer, and short-term maintenance of practice gains and transfer effects. Adults age 20-30 years and 70-80 years practiced a spatial working memory task with 2 levels of processing demands across 45 days for about 15 min per day. In both age groups and relative to age-matched, no-contact control groups, we found (a) substantial performance gains on the practiced task, (b) near transfer to a more demanding spatial n-back task and to numerical n-back tasks, and (c) 3-month maintenance of practice gains and near transfer effects, with decrements relative to postpractice performance among older but not younger adults. No evidence was found for far transfer to complex span tasks. The authors discuss neuronal mechanisms underlying adult age differences and similarities in patterns of plasticity and conclude that the potential of deliberate working memory practice as a tool for improving cognition in old age merits further exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The key objective of the International Normal Aging and Plasticity Imaging Center (INAPIC) at the University of Zürich is to facilitate research on normal healthy behavioral and neural development and aging to explore the potential for plasticity and compensation across the lifespan. The INAPIC invites international research groups to submit proposals for collaborative projects on these subjects. It is unique in Europe in giving partner groups 'plug and play' access to state-of-the-art neuroimaging techniques, technical support, and assistance in data collection. This article introduces the core ideas of the INAPIC, its key research areas, and the available infrastructure. Copyright © 2011 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]