Memory and executive functioning show differential associations with scam susceptibility in middle to older adulthood

Objectives: The rising prevalence of financial exploitation among older adults has prompted research on the cognitive mechanisms underlying financial decision making in later life. Prior work has demonstrated a link between cognitive impairment and financial vulnerability. The present study examined the unique contributions of composite measures of memory and executive functioning to scam susceptibility in middle-aged to older adults without dementia. Methods: One hundred and fifty-one participants (age= 68.2 {+/-} 8.0 years, 72.2% female, years of education= 16.4 {+/-} 2.2) completed standard neuropsychological measures from the Uniform Data Set (UDS), Version 3, and the California Verbal Learning Test, Second Edition, and a self-report scam susceptibility measure. Psychometrically robust composite scores, the UDS-M+ and UDS3-EF, were computed to represent memory and executive functioning domains. Linear regression models examined independent associations between UDS-M+ and UDS3-EF performance and scam susceptibility. Nested model comparisons evaluated unique contributions of the UDS-M+ and UDS3-EF when included in a joint model. Results: Lower UDS-M+ (b= -0.25, 95% CI [-0.45, -0.04], p= .018) and lower UDS3-EF (b= -0.33, 95% CI [-0.54, -0.12], p= .002) scores were independently associated with greater scam susceptibility after adjusting for age, sex, years of education, and income. However, only UDS3-EF remained significant in a joint model. Post hoc analyses revealed that only memory was associated with scam susceptibility in middle-aged adults whereas only executive functioning was significant in older adults. Conclusions: These findings highlight the importance of monitoring memory and executive functioning across middle to older adulthood when considering susceptibility to scams.