Type of job linked to brain power in old age PEOPLE who negotiate or mentor others as part of their job are more likely to stay mentally sharp in later life, according to new research. A team of Scottish psychologists found that employees in challenging work environments - such as those which involve management or teaching skills - fared better in memory and thinking tests once they retired, compared to staff in other professions. The researchers at the University of Edinburgh concluded that although the advantage is slight, it demonstrates how certain areas of employment can deliver a boost to brain power in older age, similar to the way regular exercise and healthy lifestyles have an advantage. Psychologists tested 1,066 people over the age of 70 for memory, mental processing speed and general thinking ability. They judged the complexity of each participant's main jobs according to the Dictionary of Occupational Titles, a guide used by employment services to define the structure and content of occupations. Using statistical models, they then analysed how a person's occupation impacted on the test results. They found that participants whose work had involved tasks such as analysing data or instructing, mentoring and negotiating with people gained a small advantage, the equivalent of a 2 per cent improvement in performance. Professor Ian Deary, director of the Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology at the University of Edinburgh, who leads the research project, said: "It is interesting to see this new finding added to some other factors that seem to give a little boost to thinking skills in older age, such as not smoking, being physically fit and active, and knowing more than one language. It seems that having to exercise one's thought processes concerning data and people at work is helpful too. The group tested were part of the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936, a group of individuals who were born in 1936 and took part in the Scottish Mental Survey of 1947. They have been tested on a number of physical and mental functions over the course of their lifetime, including changes in reasoning, memory, speed of thinking, many aspects of fitness and health, eyesight, blood composition and genetics. The scientists in the latest study said they took into account the results of intelligence tests taken by the participants when they were 11 years old, as well as lifestyle factors, such as education and the relative deprivation of their environment. Dr Alan Gow, a research leader in psychology at Heriot-Watt University and co-author of the study, said: "Our findings have helped to identify the kinds of job demands that preserve memory and thinking later on."