overall rate of decline can, as mentioned, be moderated. Moreover, not all cognitive abilities necessarily decline during aging, at least not before 80 years of age, and some even improve at older ages. For example, the ability to receive information declines relatively early, but the capacity to direct information and act on the information (orienting and executive functions) can in fact increase, well into the 70s. Whereas some skills such as verbal memory and perceptual speed peak relatively early in adulthood, other skills such as verbal ability or auditory comprehension, which draw on orienting and executive functions, peak much later, often after 50 years of age. As a result, the aging brain may in fact retain a high degree of functionality.<sup>52</sup>

**The ability to develop new skills is critical to retaining productivity, however** . Whereas improved health is increasing the potential years of work, the shelf-life of skills is falling.<sup>53</sup> The evidence on capacity to learn at older age suggests that older adults’ learning process is different from that among younger people, but not necessarily less efficient.<sup>54</sup> In fact, workers can continue to contribute significantly to workplace productivity at older ages, drawing on experience and capacity for judgement. Whereas they may be somewhat slower to complete some tasks, they compensate for lack of speed by executing them better.<sup>55</sup>

**Mature workers may also have stronger socio-emotional skills that are in increasing demand.** Contrary to common perceptions, mature workers score higher than younger colleagues on broad concepts of job performance, including on reducing counterproductive work behaviors, workplace aggression, and tardiness, all of which are important factors affecting overall productivity. Moreover, mature workers are not necessarily less innovative in the workplace than younger workers.<sup>56</sup> A metastudy found that mature workers generally function equally well or even slightly better than young workers on emotional competencies, which are specifically important for the growing services sector (and arguably for the broader economy, as well).<sup>57</sup> A study of German workers in the services sector showed that older workers were more engaged with their work, more confident in their abilities to do the job, and less prone to burnout than younger employees.<sup>58</sup>

# 4. What holds back productive longevity?

**What can be done to promote longer and more productive working lives?** Several factors can constrain mature workers’ participation in the labor market and their productivity at work. This section presents a framework highlighting constraints that can affect mature workers’ incentives and ability to work and do so productively, employers’ incentives to hire or retain them and invest in their human capital, and matching between demand and supply (Figure 6). Throughout the remainder of the report, we try to identify L/MIC dimensions where possible.

**Institutional, market, and behavioral failures create constraints for mature workers and the firms that may employ them** . _Institutions_ and _policy and regulatory frameworks_ affect incentives and opportunities for workers to engage, and for firms to hire them. Examples include labor regulations

> 52 Veríssimo et al. 2022, Desjardins and Warnke 2012.

> 53https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/07/skill-reskill-prepare-for-future-of-work/

> 54 Picchio 2021; Thomas et al. 2020.

> 55 Backes-Gellner et al. 2011.

> 56 Ng and Feldman 2008.

> 57 Doerwald et al. 2016.

> 58 Johnson et al. 2017.

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