Age may bring more than just experience — it could also bring sharper mental skills. A new study from the University of Western Australia suggests that humans reach their cognitive peak between the ages of 55 and 60, challenging the long-held belief that mental performance declines steadily after youth.
Published in the journal Intelligence, the research analyzed 16 key psychological characteristics, including reasoning, memory, and the “big five” personality traits — openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. The findings revealed that overall mental functioning improves through midlife, peaking just before 60, before beginning to decline gradually after age 65.
“While several abilities decline with age, they’re balanced by growth in other important traits,” said Professor Gilles Gignac, co-author of the study. “Combined, these strengths support better judgment and more measured decision-making — qualities that are crucial at the top.”
The research team examined existing data sets to track how each trait developed over a lifetime, identifying what Gignac called a “striking pattern.” Not only did mental performance peak later than expected, but certain abilities continued to strengthen well into older age — with conscientiousness reaching its height around 65 and emotional stability peaking at 75.
The results challenge decades of assumptions about ageing and intelligence. While earlier studies suggested cognitive abilities peak in the 20s and decline steadily after middle age, mounting evidence shows the brain remains adaptable well into later life.
“It is hard to decide which aspects of cognition are most important to study,” said Mischa von Krause, a researcher at Heidelberg University who was not involved in the Australian study. “Their relative importance probably depends on the context and research question at hand.”
Von Krause’s own 2022 study, published in Nature Human Behaviour, found that mental speed — measured by how quickly people respond to stimuli — remains largely stable until around 60, with only minor declines afterward. “Until older adulthood, mean levels in the efficiency of information processing barely changed,” he said.
Even specialized skills show a similar trajectory. A 2020 study on professional chess players found their peak performance between ages 35 and 40, after which abilities gradually declined.
Together, these findings suggest that ageing is far from a one-way decline. Instead, certain cognitive and emotional capacities may strengthen with time, leading to better judgment, patience, and decision-making.
As Gignac concluded, “Age alone doesn’t determine overall cognitive functioning. Evaluations should focus on individuals’ actual abilities and traits rather than age-based assumptions.”
