Apathy and executive functioning among non-demented community-dwelling elderly individuals in an everyday environment: the mediating effect of impulsivity.

These preliminary findings suggest that, in normal ageing, apathy may share an overlap with impulsivity, contradicting the notion they represent opposite ends of a single behavioural spectrum. Our results argue for bidirectional relationship between a specific apathy dimension (i.e. cognitive apathy) and executive functioning. Moreover, they shed new light on the underlying psychological process implicated (i.e. lack of perseverance) among older adults without dementia and represent an interesting prospect for psychological interventions.