Intelligence and life expectancy in late adulthood: A meta-analysis

Abstract

In an aging society, it is crucial to understand why some people live long and others do not. There has been a proliferation of studies in recent years that highlight the importance of psycho-behavioural factors in the ways of aging, one of those psychological components is intelligence. In this meta-analysis, the association between intelligence and life expectancy in late adulthood is analysed through the Hazard Ratio (HR). Our objectives are: (i) to update Calvin's meta-analysis, especially the estimate of the association between survival and intelligence; and (ii) to evaluate the role of some moderators, especially the age of the participants, to explore intelligence–mortality throughout adulthood and old age. The results show a positive relationship between intelligence and survival (HR_•: 0.79; 95% CI: 0.81–0.76). This association is significantly moderated by the years of follow-up, the effect size being smaller the more years elapse between the intelligence assessment and the recording of the outcome. Intelligence is a protective factor to reach middle-high age, but from then on survival depends less and less on intelligence and more on other factors.