Disparities in First Instrumental Activity of Daily Living Difficulty between Black and White Older Adults: Findings from the Advanced Cognitive Training in Independent and Vital Elderly Study

Abstract

Objectives: Few studies have examined differences in age of onset of first self-reported instrumental activities of daily living difficulty, much less differences by race. Our objective was to determine whether there are differences in the first reported difficulty with IADLs between Black and white older adults. Methods: We analyzed data from N = 1168 participants in the Advanced Cognitive Training in Independent and Vital Elderly (ACTIVE) study. A multiple group discrete-time multiple-event process survival mixture (MEPSUM) model was used to estimate the hazard of incident IADL difficulty in seven IADL task groups. Results: No statistically significant differences were identified in the first reported IADL task group difficulty between Black and white older adults. Discussion: Our findings indicate similar patterns of early IADL difficulty in Black and white older adults, suggesting that previously reported racial disparities in ability to perform IADLs may be attributable to differences in absolute risk, not timing.