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Symposium

Behavioral and Social Sciences

Data and Initial Evidence: Occupational Characteristics and Later-Life Physical and Cognitive Health

Thursday, November 9, 2023
8:00 AM – 9:30 AM ET
Location: Room 114

Research on aging is often based on evaluations of health and wellbeing once individuals have already reached later life. However, many of the problems observed are based on experiences that occurred during earlier phases of life. Adults spend approximately 1/3 of their time engaged in paid work, and consequently, occupational exposures are likely to play a critical role in shaping age-related changes over time. Occupational exposures are difficult to study because most studies only collect data on work environments at one point in time or only during the latest phases of one’s career. Further, much of the data on occupations is based on subjective experiences, or in association with a small subset of occupational categories. A linkage between the Health and Retirement Study Life History Module Survey (LHMS) and the recent introduction of a new data source measuring occupational characteristics based on the Department of Labor’s O*NET data now make it possible to comprehensively evaluate full life histories of work. This symposium provides an overview of this new dataset and how it was created, and provides initial evidence of the important role that occupational histories play in shaping early departure from work due to disability, mid-life metabolic disease risks, and later life cognitive function.

Learning Objectives:

  • Understand what the Health and Retirement Study Life History Module linkage with O*NET data includes, and how it was developed
  • Understand how different occupational exposures and activities measured at earlier phases of the adult life course are related to mid-life health
  • Understand how different occupational factors that influence cognitive engagement in the work environment measured at earlier phases of the adult life course are related to cognitive function in later life

Presentations:

  • 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM ET
    Life Course Exposure to Risky Work Environments and Early Retirement Due to Disability

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Amanda Sonnega, PhD (she/her/hers) – University of Michigan

  • 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM ET
    Risky Work Environments and Metabolic Disease: Cumulative Consequences of Bad Jobs in Early and Mid Life

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Rebekah Carpenter, MS (she/her/hers) – Florida State University

  • 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM ET
    The Association Between Job Complexity and Cognitive Function in Later Life Across Racial/Ethnic Group

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Katy (Qiuchang) Cao, PhD (she/her/hers) – Florida State University

  • 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM ET
    Introducing a New Age-Based Dataset for Evaluating Occupational Characteristics Across the Life Course

    Individual Symposium Abstract First Author: Qize Chen, MS (he/him/his) – University of Michigan