Interpretation
The fixed effects estimates indicate that the average cognition score at baseline (time = 0) is 46.1 (SE = 0.32, p < 0.001). Over time, cognition declines by approximately 0.35 points per biannual assessment (SE = 0.05, p < 0.001), suggesting a gradual decline in cognitive performance. Additionally, higher parental education levels are associated with significantly higher cognition scores (ฮฒ = 1.17, SE = 0.08, p < 0.001), indicating a positive relationship between parental education and cognitive performance.The random effects (see Model Summary Output-2) reveal substantial variability in both baseline cognition scores (ฯโโ = 87.27) and individual rates of cognitive decline (ฯโโ = 2.30). The negative correlation (ฯโโ = -0.31) between the intercept and slope suggests that individuals with higher initial cognition scores tend to experience steeper declines over time. The intraclass correlation (ICC = 0.71) indicates that 71% of the total variance in cognition scores is attributable to between-individual differences rather than within-person fluctuations over time.
Visualization Notes
The plot illustrates the effect of parental education on predicted neurocognition scores. Each point represents the model-estimated neurocognition score for a given level of parental education, with error bars showing the 95% confidence intervals. The visualization demonstrates a clear positive relationship: as parental education increases, predicted neurocognition scores also increase, controlling for time and individual variability.This pattern confirms the significant positive effect of parental education (ฮฒ = 1.17, p < 0.001) observed in the fixed effects, showing that higher parental education levels are associated with better cognitive performance across all time points.