Social, behavioural, and functional characteristics of community‐dwelling South Korean adults with moderate and severe cognitive impairment

OBJECTIVES: This study used the 2016 Korean Longitudinal Study on Aging to investigate the social, behavioural, and functional characteristics of community‐dwelling South Korean adults with cognitive impairment. METHODS: Participants were classified as normal, moderate impairment, and severe impairment according to an algorithm that combined the Korean Mini‐Mental State Examination score and the number of difficulties in performing instrumental activities of daily living. Selected characteristics included grip strength, depression, participation in exercise and social activities, and living in a rural, urban, or suburban community. RESULTS: Most (72.7%) participants were classified as having normal cognition, 20.1% were classified as moderate impairment, and 7.2% were classified as severe impairment. Regardless of sex, the differences in grip strength across the cognitive status classifications were statistically significant, except for the difference between moderate and severe cognitive impairment in males (p = 0.8477). Greater number of depressive symptoms and living in rural areas were associated with significantly higher odds for severe cognitive impairment. Participants with moderate (OR = 0.51) and severe (OR = 0.33) cognitive impairment were less likely to participate in social activities than those with normal cognition. CONCLUSIONS: The study findings revealed that social, behavioural, and functional characteristics are closely related to the cognitive status of community‐dwelling adults in South Korea.