Social interaction has been shown to prolong lifespan and healthspan. For older adults living alone, social interaction largely comes from formal social participation, and thus depends on the sociability of the individual, according to the authors of a recent study that aimed to understand the effect of age on sociability, and the possible mechanisms behind the change.

Participants were 196 German adults ages 20-77 who completed a series of questionnaires as part of the Leipzig Study for Mind-Body-Emotion Interactions. Sociability was measured by a subscale of the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire (Short Form), and analyses of connectivity data were used to identify brain networks positively and negatively correlated with age.

Overall, the brain network correlating positively with age correlated negatively with sociability, and vice versa The researchers propose that age-related disruptions in brain connectivity may impair the socio-cognitive functions essential for forming and maintaining relationships. This is supported by the social brain hypothesis, which suggests that social behavior relies on a network of brain regions.

The study identified specific connectivity patterns associated with age-related changes in sociability. These include the limbic-insular and ventral attention-somatomotor connectivity in the age-positive network and subcortical-parietal and frontoparietal-default mode connections in the age-negative network.

This research highlights the importance of brain connectivity for social well-being, particularly in the context of aging. It suggests that disruptions in these neural networks can contribute to impairments in our ability to effectively communicate, manage emotions in social contexts, and be assertive in social interactions, all of which are encompassed in the trait of sociability.

The researchers suggest that educating individuals about these changes in brain connectivity and how they relate to sociability could be beneficial in promoting successful aging.

To download the full article, published in PLOS One, click here