The linkage between parenthood and cognitive health has not been explored in-depth in the United States. This dissertation contributes to the broad literature on parenthood and parental well-being by examining how parental status, parent-child relationship quality, and history of fertility influence parents’ cognitive functioning as well as potential gender variations. I use three empirical studies based on national representative, longitudinal datasets to address these questions. The first study examines the association between parental status in later life and older parents’ risk of cognitive impairment. The results suggest that being childless or having only stepchildren is a potential risk factor for cognitive impairment, while having more adult children, especially one or more adult daughters, is a possible protective factor for parents’ cognitive health. The second study investigates the impact of relationship quality between older parents and children on their parents’ cognitive functioning and how this association varies by parents’ gender. The results indicate that both greater contact frequency with children and relationship support from children are associated with higher initial cognitive functioning. In contrast, relationship strain with children is associated with lower initial cognitive functioning for older parents. Moreover, contact frequency is associated with slower cognitive decline, while a relationship strain triggers a faster cognitive decline. These associations are more pronounced for older mothers than older fathers. The third study focuses on the association between fertility history (i.e., age at first birth and parity) and risk of cognitive impairment among older parents. The findings suggest a U-shaped relationship between a parent’s age at first birth and risk of cognitive impairment for both fathers and mothers. However, older age at first birth is associated with mothers’ risk more than early age. Socioeconomic status plays a strong role in reducing the effects of age at first birth on parents’ cognition, especially for mothers. High parity also increases mothers’ risk of cognitive impairment, but not fathers. My dissertation addresses the gap of knowledge in social determinants of cognitive health by examining the dynamics of parenthood in later life and identifying older adults who have more harmful exposure to the risk of cognitive impairment. The findings can speak to medical practitioners, social workers, and policymakers so that they could make more effective interventions to promote older adults’ cognitive well-being as well as successful aging.
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