  Cognition, a component of human capital, is fundamental for decision-making,
and understanding the causes of human capital depreciation in old age is
especially important in aging societies. Using various proxy measures of
cognitive performance from a longitudinal survey in South Africa, we study how
education affects cognition in late adulthood. We show that an extra year of
schooling improves memory performance and general cognition. We find evidence
of heterogeneous effects by gender: the effects are stronger among women. We
explore potential mechanisms, and we show that a more supportive social
environment, improved health habits, and reduced stress levels likely play a
critical role in mediating the beneficial effects of educational attainment on
cognition among the elderly.
