Subjective Cognitive Decline and Excessive Spending in WALLET study participants
Emily Flores, LaToya Hall, Peter Lichtenberg

TL;DR
Older adults who believe their memory loss affects financial decisions are more likely to overspend and be vulnerable to financial exploitation.
Contribution
This study introduces a new 3-point scale to assess subjective cognitive decline's impact on financial decision-making.
Findings
Excessive spending was significantly more common in those who reported memory loss affecting financial decisions.
Participants who reported cognitive impact had higher financial exploitation vulnerability scores.
The association remained significant even after removing cognition-related items from the vulnerability score.
Abstract
Older adults experiencing cognitive decline are at an increased risk of financial vulnerability, yet self-awareness of this relationship remains unclear. This study examines the association between self-reported cognitive decline and excessive spending, exploring whether individuals who perceive memory loss recognize its financial impact. Data were drawn from a sample of 83 older adults in the WALLET study who shared 12 months of their checking account statements (M = 73.54, SD = 8.05), who were experiencing early memory loss. Twenty-five participants reported that memory loss was impacting their financial decision making and 58 said memory loss had no impact on their financial decision-making. Excessive spending was significantly more prevalent in those who reported that memory loss was impacting their financial decision-making, X² = 9.285, p < .01, d = .34. The group reporting that…
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Taxonomy
TopicsElder Abuse and Neglect · Financial Literacy, Pension, Retirement Analysis · Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
