{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,16]],"date-time":"2026-10-16T18:25:46Z","timestamp":1792175146906,"version":"4.4.0"},"reference-count":53,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,4]],"date-time":"2022-07-04T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1656892800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Aging Neurosci."],"abstract":"<jats:p>In the present study, we investigated whether interpretation of proverbs differs across the lifespan and if so, whether it is associated with age-related fronto-temporal atrophy. Using a sample of 333 healthy individuals aged 18\u201389 years, we found a significant effect of age on proverb interpretation [<jats:italic>H<\/jats:italic>(2) = 12.001, <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic> = 0.002]: old adults (OA) were better than young adults (YA) (<jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic> = 0.002), and so were middle-aged-adults (MA) (<jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic> = 0.005). OA and MA had significantly less grey matter (GM) than YA in frontal and temporal lobes bilaterally, and OA less than MA in the right temporal lobe. GM volumes in these regions did not moderate the effect of age on the proverbs scores. The whole-brain analysis of groups\u2019 GM maps revealed that the proverbs scores were associated with more GM in YA relative to OA in the right middle temporal gyrus, which is consistent with evidence on the role of this area in processing of unfamiliar proverbs. Overall, our data suggest that interpretation of proverbs is well preserved in late adulthood, despite considerable age-related cortical atrophy.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fnagi.2022.919470","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,4]],"date-time":"2022-07-04T07:41:03Z","timestamp":1656920463000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":8,"title":["Older and Wiser: Interpretation of Proverbs in the Face of Age-Related Cortical Atrophy"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"14","author":[{"given":"Vanja","family":"Kljajevic","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,4]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3389\/fpsyg.2016.00070","article-title":"A test for the assessment of pragmatic abilities and cognitive substrates (APACS): normative data and psychometric properties.","volume":"7","author":"Arcara","year":"2016","journal-title":"Front. Psychol."},{"key":"B2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"95","DOI":"10.1016\/j.neuroimage.2007.07.007","article-title":"A fast diffeomorphic image registration algorithm","volume":"38","author":"Ashburner","year":"2007","journal-title":"Neuroimage"},{"key":"B3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.neuropsychologia.2020.107332","article-title":"A leopard cannot change its spots: a novel pragmatic account of concretism in schizophrenia.","volume":"139","author":"Bambini","year":"2020","journal-title":"Neuropsychologia"},{"key":"B4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1244","DOI":"10.1016\/j.neuroimage.2010.06.025","article-title":"Head size, age and gender adjustment in MRI studies: a necessary nuisance?","volume":"53","author":"Barnes","year":"2010","journal-title":"Neuroimage"},{"key":"B5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3389\/fpsyg.2012.00204","article-title":"Old proverbs in new skins \u2013 an fMRI study on defamiliarization.","volume":"3","author":"Bohrn","year":"2012","journal-title":"Front. Psychol."},{"key":"B6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"2166","DOI":"10.1093\/brain\/awab092","article-title":"To what degree is late life cognitive decline driven by age-related neuropathologies?.","volume":"144","author":"Boyle","year":"2021","journal-title":"Brain"},{"key":"B7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1394","DOI":"10.1006\/nimg.2002.1280","article-title":"Aging gracefully: compensatory brain activity in high-performing older adults.","volume":"17","author":"Cabeza","year":"2002","journal-title":"NeuroImage"},{"key":"B8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"222","DOI":"10.1111\/psyg.12101","article-title":"Non-literal language deficits in mild cognitive impairment.","volume":"14","author":"Cardoso","year":"2014","journal-title":"Psychogeriatrics"},{"key":"B9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"337","DOI":"10.1080\/02687039708248475","article-title":"Proverb interpretation in fluent aphasia and Alzheimer\u2019s disease: implications beyond abstract thinking","volume":"11","author":"Chapman","year":"1997","journal-title":"Aphasiology"},{"key":"B10","author":"Delis","year":"1984","journal-title":"The California Proverbs Test"},{"key":"B11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1488","DOI":"10.1016\/j.neuroimage.2010.08.058","article-title":"The structure and connectivity of semantic memory in the healthy older adult brain.","volume":"54","author":"de Zubicaray","year":"2011","journal-title":"NeuroImage"},{"key":"B12","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"604","DOI":"10.3758\/s13415-020-00790-9","article-title":"How discourse constraints influence neurolinguistics mechanisms during the comprehension of proverbs.","volume":"20","author":"Ferretti","year":"2020","journal-title":"Cogn. Affect. Behav. Neurosci."},{"key":"B13","author":"Field","year":"2018","journal-title":"Discovering Statistics Using SPSS \u2013 5th Edition."},{"key":"B14","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"133","DOI":"10.1037\/0033-2909.118.1.133","article-title":"What proverb understanding reveals about how people think.","volume":"118","author":"Gibbs","year":"1995","journal-title":"Psychol. Bull."},{"key":"B15","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"6","DOI":"10.1016\/j.bandc.2009.08.009","article-title":"Mapping gray matter development: implications for typical development and vulnerability in psychopathology.","volume":"72","author":"Gogtay","year":"2010","journal-title":"Brain Cogn."},{"key":"B16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.2466\/PR0.2..1-12","article-title":"A proverbs test for clinical and experimental use.","volume":"2","author":"Gorham","year":"1956","journal-title":"Psychol. Rep."},{"key":"B17","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"41","DOI":"10.1186\/s41235-021-00275-4","article-title":"Logic and conversation","author":"Grice","year":"1975","journal-title":"Syntax and Semantics, vol. 3: Speech Acts"},{"key":"B18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"27","DOI":"10.1001\/archpsyc.1974.01760130013002","article-title":"Abstract and concrete thinking in schizophrenia during the prechronic phases","volume":"31","author":"Harrow","year":"1974","journal-title":"Arch. Gen. Psychiatry"},{"key":"B19","author":"Hayes","year":"2018","journal-title":"Introduction to Mediation, Moderation, and Conditional Process Analysis. A Regression-Based Approach (2nd Extended Edition)."},{"key":"B20","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"709","DOI":"10.3758\/bf03192961","article-title":"Using heteroskedasticity-consistent standard error estimators in OLS regression: an introduction and software implementation.","volume":"39","author":"Hayes","year":"2007","journal-title":"Behav. Res. Methods"},{"key":"B21","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"394","DOI":"10.1016\/j.neuroimage.2017.05.052","article-title":"Brain grey and white matter predictors of verbal ability traits in older age: the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936.","volume":"156","author":"Hoffman","year":"2017","journal-title":"NeuroImage"},{"key":"B22","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1726","DOI":"10.1016\/j.neuropsychologia.2013.05.021","article-title":"What dementia reveals about proverb interpretation and its neuroanatomical correlates.","volume":"51","author":"Kaiser","year":"2013","journal-title":"Neuropsychologia"},{"key":"B23","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"653","DOI":"10.1017\/S1355617707070816","article-title":"Cognitive, neuropsychological, and functional correlates of proverb interpretation abnormalities in schizophrenia.","volume":"13","author":"Kiang","year":"2007","journal-title":"J. Int. Neuropsychol. Soc."},{"key":"B24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"19","DOI":"10.1037\/h0080696","article-title":"Sex differences in cerebral organization for speech and praxic function.","volume":"37","author":"Kimura","year":"1983","journal-title":"Can. J. Psychol."},{"key":"B25","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3389\/fnagi.2015.00164","article-title":"Overestimating the effects of healthy aging.","volume":"7","author":"Kljajevic","year":"2015","journal-title":"Front. Aging Neurosci."},{"key":"B26","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3389\/fpsyg.2021.809192","article-title":"Verbal learning and hemispheric asymmetry.","volume":"12","author":"Kljajevic","year":"2022","journal-title":"Front. Psychol."},{"key":"B27","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"26","DOI":"10.1016\/j.bandc.2017.11.003","article-title":"Proper name retrieval and structural integrity of cerebral cortex in midlife: a cross-sectional study.","volume":"120","author":"Kljajevic","year":"2018","journal-title":"Brain Cogn."},{"key":"B28","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"55","DOI":"10.2174\/1874609812666190614110214","article-title":"Dorsal white matter integrity and name retrieval in midlife.","volume":"12","author":"Kljajevic","year":"2019","journal-title":"Curr. Aging Sci."},{"key":"B29","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"51","DOI":"10.1159\/000323864","article-title":"Impairment in proverb interpretation as an executive function deficit in patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment and early Alzheimer\u2019s disease.","volume":"1","author":"Leyhe","year":"2011","journal-title":"Dement. Geriatr. Cogn. Disord."},{"key":"B30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"283","DOI":"10.1006\/jmla.1997.2543","article-title":"Modeling the influence of thematic fit (and other constraints) in on-line sentence comprehension.","volume":"38","author":"McRae","year":"1998","journal-title":"J. Mem. Lang."},{"key":"B31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"56","DOI":"10.3758\/BF03209457","article-title":"Is age kinder to females than to males?","volume":"5","author":"Meinz","year":"1998","journal-title":"Psychon. Bull. Rev."},{"key":"B32","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"2075","DOI":"10.1016\/j.neuropsychologia.2013.06.029","article-title":"Impairments in proverb interpretation following frontal lobe lesions.","volume":"51","author":"Murphy","year":"2013","journal-title":"Neuropsychologia"},{"key":"B33","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1044\/jslhr.4002.245","article-title":"Proverb explanation through the lifespan: a developmental study of adolescents and adults.","volume":"40","author":"Nippold","year":"1997","journal-title":"J. Speech Lang. Hear. Res."},{"key":"B34","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1515\/revneuro-2018-0096","article-title":"Brain structure and cognitive ability in healthy aging: a review of longitudinal correlated evidence.","volume":"31","author":"Oschwald","year":"2019","journal-title":"Rev. Neurosci."},{"key":"B35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"299","DOI":"10.1037\/0882-7974.17.2.299","article-title":"Models of visuospatial and verbal memory across the adult lifespan.","volume":"17","author":"Park","year":"2002","journal-title":"Psychol. Aging"},{"key":"B36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"21","DOI":"10.1016\/j.bandl.2016.07.001","article-title":"Proverb comprehension in individuals with agenesis of the corpus callosum.","volume":"160","author":"Rehmel","year":"2016","journal-title":"Brain Lang."},{"key":"B37","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"234","DOI":"10.1093\/brain\/awp269","article-title":"Executive function and fluid intelligence after frontal lobe lesions.","volume":"133","author":"Roca","year":"2010","journal-title":"Brain"},{"key":"B38","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"507","DOI":"10.1016\/j.neurobiolaging.2008.09.023","article-title":"When does age-related cognitive decline begin?","volume":"30","author":"Salthouse","year":"2009","journal-title":"Neurobiol. Aging"},{"key":"B39","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"754","DOI":"10.1017\/S1355617710000706","article-title":"Selective review of cognitive aging.","volume":"16","author":"Salthouse","year":"2010","journal-title":"J. Int. Neuropscyhol. Soc."},{"key":"B40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.1017\/CBO9780511609213","author":"Searle","year":"1979","journal-title":"Expression and Meaning: Studies in the Theory of Speech Acts."},{"key":"B41","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1029","DOI":"10.1177\/0898264319878095","article-title":"Cognitive diversity in a healthy aging cohort: cross-domain cognition in the CamCAN project.","volume":"32","author":"Shafto","year":"2020","journal-title":"J. Aging Health"},{"key":"B42","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1186\/s12883-014-0204-1","article-title":"The Cambridge Centre for Ageing and Neuroscience (CamCAN) study protocol: a cross-sectional, lifespan, multidisciplinary examination of healthy cognitive ageing.","volume":"14","author":"Shafto","year":"2014","journal-title":"BMC Neurol."},{"key":"B43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.1093\/acref\/9780198734901.001.0001","author":"Speake","year":"2015","journal-title":"Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs (6th Edition)."},{"key":"B44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2015","DOI":"10.1016\/j.neuropsychologia.2009.03.004","article-title":"Cognitive reserve.","volume":"47","author":"Stern","year":"2009","journal-title":"Neuropsychologia"},{"key":"B45","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"841","DOI":"10.1111\/1460-6984.12631","article-title":"Interpretation of familiar metaphors and proverbs by Polish people in middle and late adulthood.","volume":"56","author":"Szepietowska","year":"2021","journal-title":"Int. J. Lang. Commun. Disord."},{"key":"B46","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"262","DOI":"10.1016\/j.neuroimage.2015.09.018","article-title":"The Cambridge Centre for Ageing and Neuroscience (CamCAN) data repository: structural and functional MRI, MEG, and cognitive data from a cross-sectional adult lifespan sample.","volume":"144","author":"Taylor","year":"2016","journal-title":"NeuroImage"},{"key":"B47","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"67","DOI":"10.3758\/BF03330399","article-title":"Literal versus nonliteral reminders for proverbs.","volume":"30","author":"Temple","year":"1992","journal-title":"Bull. Psyhonom. Soc."},{"key":"B48","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1182","DOI":"10.1016\/j.neubiorev.2006.09.001","article-title":"Neurocognitive mechanisms of figurative language processing \u2013 evidence for clinical dysfunction.","volume":"30","author":"Thoma","year":"2006","journal-title":"Neurosci. Biobehav. Rev."},{"key":"B49","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"777","DOI":"10.1017\/S1355617709990415","article-title":"INECO Frontal Screening (IFS): a brief, sensitive, and specific tool to assess executive functions in dementia.","volume":"15","author":"Torralva","year":"2009","journal-title":"J. Int. Neuropsychol. Soc."},{"key":"B50","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"51","DOI":"10.1016\/j.bandc.2007.11.003","article-title":"Proverb interpretation changes in aging.","volume":"67","author":"Uekermann","year":"2008","journal-title":"Brain Cogn."},{"key":"B51","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"619","DOI":"10.1080\/02687039808249562","article-title":"Discourse in healthy old-elderly adults: a longitudinal study.","volume":"12","author":"Ulatowska","year":"1998","journal-title":"Aphasiology"},{"key":"B52","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"169","DOI":"10.1155\/1990\/261504","article-title":"The neurology of proverbs.","volume":"3","author":"van Lancker","year":"1990","journal-title":"Behav. Neurol."},{"key":"B53","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/brb3.829","article-title":"Neural correlates of Korean proverb processing: a functional magnetic resonance imaging study.","volume":"7","author":"Yi","year":"2017","journal-title":"Brain Behav."}],"container-title":["Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience"],"original-title":[],"link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fnagi.2022.919470\/full","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,4]],"date-time":"2022-07-04T07:41:18Z","timestamp":1656920478000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fnagi.2022.919470\/full"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,4]]},"references-count":53,"alternative-id":["10.3389\/fnagi.2022.919470"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/fnagi.2022.919470","relation":{},"ISSN":["1663-4365"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1663-4365","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2022,7,4]]},"article-number":"919470"}}