Ageing and subjective cognitive decline in males and females: Associations with objective cognitive abilities, mental health, and autistic traits

Norris, Jade Eloise, Tales, Andrea, Richards, Emma, Cousins, Alecia L. and Badger, Julia R. 2025. Ageing and subjective cognitive decline in males and females: Associations with objective cognitive abilities, mental health, and autistic traits. Research in Autism 127 , 202682. 10.1016/j.reia.2025.202682

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Abstract

Little is known about the impact of ageing on Subjective Cognitive Decline (SCD) and objective cognition in adults on the autism spectrum, and autism and autistic traits are not typically considered when assessing older adults in Memory Clinics for dementia. Therefore, individual variation in autistic traits have not been taken into account when producing normative data for such assessments. The current study aimed to examine SCD and objective cognitive performance in older adults (aged 50–78 years), investigating relationships with autistic traits, depression, anxiety, and sex. Relationships varied depending on sex: for males, SCD was associated with higher levels of anxiety and depression, and a higher degree of systemizing was associated with better speed of processing and backwards working memory span. For females, older age was associated with poorer cognitive flexibility. Findings indicate that relationships between subjective and objective cognitive abilities, autistic traits, and mental health differ based on sex in older adults. This may help to explain outcome variability in previous studies, and has important implications for the use, adaptation, and interpretation of tests used in Memory Clinics.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Schools > Social Sciences (Includes Criminology and Education) Schools > School of Social and Spatial Sciences Research Institutes & Centres > Centre for Adult Social Care Research (CARE)
Publisher:	Elsevier
ISSN:	3050-6565
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	10 November 2026
Date of Acceptance:	2 August 2025
Last Modified:	10 Nov 2026 16:45
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/190833

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