OBJECTIVES: To examine the unique contribution of generative leisure activities, defined as activities motivated by a concern for others and a need to contribute something to the next generation.

DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey.

SETTING: Peri-urban and rural area in southern Sri Lanka.

PARTICIPANTS: Community-dwelling adults aged 60 and older (N = 252).

MEASUREMENTS: The main predictors were leisure activities, grouped into generative, social, or solitary. The main outcome was cognitive function, assessed using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and the Informant Questionnaire on Cognitive Decline in the Elderly (IQCODE).

RESULTS: More-frequent engagement in generative leisure activities was associated with higher levels of cognitive function, independent of the effect of other social and solitary leisure activities. In a fully adjusted model combining all three leisure activities, generative activities independently predicted cognitive function as measured using the MoCA (β = 0.47, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.11-0.83) and the IQCODE (β = -0.81, 95% CI = -1.54 to -0.09). In this combined model, solitary activities were also independently associated with slower cognitive decline using the MoCA (β = 0.40, 95% CI = 0.16-0.64) but not the IQCODE (β = -0.38, 95% CI = -0.88-0.12); the association with social activities did not reach statistical significance with either measure. These associations did not differ meaningfully according to sex.

CONCLUSION: Generative leisure activities are a promising area for the development of interventions aimed at reducing cognitive decline in elderly adults.