associated with self-control. Another possibility is that the urgency of emotions and physical drives, such as hunger and sex, also decline, perhaps even more rapidly than self-control resources. Understanding why self-control is generally maintained with declining prefrontal cortex function could help us understand the ongoing mystery of self-control.

As the population grows older, the decisions older people make will affect not only their own lives, but also the lives of their families, and public policies and societal functioning as well. Research on social and emotional aspects of decision making and on the intersection of emotional and cognitive processes is particularly promising because the marriage of these areas is likely to yield considerable progress in a relatively short period of time.