The association between distress proneness and cognitive decline was examined in 
older residents of a biracial community in Chicago. At baseline, participants 
completed four cognitive tests that yielded a global measure (baseline 
mean=101.2; standard deviation (SD)=7.8), and a brief measure of the tendency to 
experience negative emotions (mean=16.5; SD=6.7) based on the Neuroticism scale 
of the NEO Five-Factor Inventory. Cognitive testing was repeated twice at 
three-year intervals. In mixed models that controlled age, sex, race, and 
education, for each point on the distress proneness scale, global cognitive 
score was 0.12 unit lower at baseline (p<0.001) and annual rate of decline 
increased by 0.01 unit (p=0.002), or about 2%. Thus, cognitive decline was about 
30% faster in a person highly prone to distress (score=24, 90th percentile) 
compared to the one low in distress proneness (score=9, 10th percentile). This 
effect was unchanged after controlling for level of cognitive activity or 
excluding people with cognitive impairment at baseline, but it was reduced to a 
trend (p=0.059) after controlling for depressive symptoms. The results suggest 
that the tendency to experience psychological distress is associated with 
increased cognitive decline in old age.