AUTHOR=Ourry Valentin , Marchant Natalie L. , Schild Ann-Katrin , Coll-Padros Nina , Klimecki Olga M. , Krolak-Salmon Pierre , Goldet Karine , Reyrolle Leslie , Bachelet Romain , Sannemann Lena , Meiberth Dix , Demnitz-King Harriet , Whitfield Tim , Botton Maëlle , Lebahar Julie , Gonneaud Julie , de Flores Robin , Molinuevo José Luis , Jessen Frank , Vivien Denis , de la Sayette Vincent , Valenzuela Michael J. , Rauchs Géraldine , Wirth Miranka , Chételat Gaël , Arenaza-Urquijo Eider M. ,  The Medit-Ageing Research Group 

TITLE=Harmonisation and Between-Country Differences of the Lifetime of Experiences Questionnaire in Older Adults

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience

VOLUME=13

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/aging-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnagi.2021.740005

DOI=10.3389/fnagi.2021.740005

ISSN=1663-4365

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Background:</bold> The Lifetime of Experiences Questionnaire (LEQ) assesses complex mental activity across the life-course and has been associated with brain and cognitive health. The different education systems and occupation classifications across countries represent a challenge for international comparisons. The objectives of this study were four-fold: to adapt and harmonise the LEQ across four European countries, assess its validity across countries, explore its association with brain and cognition and begin to investigate between-country differences in life-course mental activities.</p><p><bold>Method:</bold> The LEQ was administered to 359 cognitively unimpaired older adults (mean age and education: 71.2, 13.2 years) from IMAP and EU-funded Medit-Ageing projects. Education systems, classification of occupations and scoring guidelines were adapted to allow comparisons between France, Germany, Spain and United Kingdom. We assessed the LEQ's (i) concurrent validity with a similar instrument (cognitive activities questionnaire - CAQ) and its structural validity by testing the factors' structure across countries, (ii) we investigated its association with cognition and neuroimaging, and (iii) compared its scores between countries.</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> The LEQ showed moderate to strong positive associations with the CAQ and revealed a stable multidimensional structure across countries that was similar to the original LEQ. The LEQ was positively associated with global cognition. Between-country differences were observed in leisure activities across the life-course.</p><p><bold>Conclusions:</bold> The LEQ is a promising tool for assessing the multidimensional construct of cognitive reserve and can be used to measure socio-behavioural determinants of cognitive reserve in older adults across countries. Longitudinal studies are warranted to test further its clinical utility.</p>