Warfare exposure in later life and cognitive function: The moderating role of social connectedness

This study examined the influence of warfare exposure on older adults' cognitive functioning and explored the protective role of social connectedness. The study used cross-sectional data from the Israeli component of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE-Israel) collected in 2015. We focused on a composite scale of social connectedness and on the exposure to war-related events during the 2014 Israel-Gaza conflict. Social connectedness and warfare exposure were used to predict three indicators of cognitive functioning. The results showed that warfare exposure was related to worse cognitive functioning, after controlling for socio-demographic and health covariates. However, social connectedness moderated this association. Persons who were highly connected did not suffer from worse cognitive functioning in recall (immediate and delayed) following warfare-related events and their fluency score increased. The results suggest that experiencing war related events is associated with poorer cognitive functioning, but social connectedness moderates the strength of the negative association. These findings can inform intervention initiatives for adults exposed to warfare events, encouraging them to strengthen their social connections.