The cognitive aging group focuses on understanding interindividual differences in cognitive functioning across the adult lifespan as well as in pathological aging. For this, we try delineate behavioural and imaging correlates of different cognitive profiles, and link them to the concept of cognitive reserve (CR). At the behavioural level, we focus on understanding the role of different CR proxies (e.g., education, intelligence estimates) and the presumed underlying role of strategy use in differences in cognition in aging individuals. In line, we study the use of strategy training to enhance memory performance in aging. Moreover, we try to identify how aging-associated changes in brain structures influence cognition and how this is moderated by the level of CR and strategy use. We also aim to understand how CR can be translated to the structural and functional organization of the brain. Finally, we study how lifestyle interventions can be employed to optimize cognitive aging, identifying underlying neurobiocognitive correlates, as well as eHealth methodology to optimize these interventions.
Within the cognitive aging perspective, part of the work is focused on the question of which neurocognitive functions are associated with experimental pain experience and clinical pain report. This is studied using experimental approaches combined with MRI and EEG in healthy younger and older volunteers, together with clinical pain studies in chronic pain patients and in older people with dementia.