Longitudinal Evolution of Financial Capacity and Cerebral Tau and Amyloid Burden in Older Adults with Normal Cognition or Mild Cognitive Impairment.

BACKGROUND: Declining ability to independently perform instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) is a hallmark of early-stage Alzheimer's disease (AD). Financial capacity, an aspect of IADL, includes financial skills such as balancing a checkbook and making change and is potentially sensitive to early decline in cognitive abilities, raising the question of how financial capacity is affected by buildup of cerebral tau and amyloid-hallmarks of AD pathology. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to examine the relationship between cerebral tau, amyloid, and their interaction with change in financial capacity over time. DESIGN: Participants were selected from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) to have at least one yearly follow-up Financial Capacity Instrument-Short Form (FCI-SF) exam and a flortaucipir (tau) PET scan within 6 months of baseline (and in a subset, a florbetapir (amyloid) PET scan within a year of baseline). SETTING: Multi-center international cohort study. PARTICIPANTS: Sample size was 507-322 cognitively normal (CN) and 185 with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Sixty-two percent (N=316) had amyloid data. MEASUREMENTS: Linear mixed-effects models predicted FCI-SF total score from baseline tau, age, gender, premorbid intelligence, executive function, memory, and the interaction of each with time. Regions of interest included inferior temporal, entorhinal cortex, precuneus, posterior cingulate, supramarginal, and dorsolateral prefrontal (DLPF). Additional models examined amyloid and its interaction with tau. Results were adjusted for multiple comparisons. RESULTS: Among the whole sample and in CN participants alone, higher baseline tau in all regions, most prominently in the inferior temporal, entorhinal cortex, and supramarginal regions, was significantly associated with worse performance on the FCI-SF over time. Among MCI participants alone, this relationship was significant in the entorhinal cortex (unstandardized b = 0.27, t = 3.71, adjusted p = 0.001), inferior temporal (b = 0.27, t = 3.96, p < 0.001), precuneus (b = 0.27, t = 3.04, p = 0.01), and supramarginal (b = 0.27, t = 2.74, p = 0.02) regions. Amyloid alone was significantly associated with worse FCI-SF performance in only the whole sample (b = 0.15, t = 2.37, p = 0.04), and a three-way interaction between tau, amyloid, and time was only present for entorhinal cortex tau in CN individuals (b = -1.61, t = -2.61, p = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS: Early tau accumulation is linked to worsening financial capacity over time in CN older adults and MCI. Declining financial capacity may signal pathological buildup and serve as an early warning sign for AD, and future research should continue to investigate the longitudinal relationship between tau, financial capacity, and other IADL.

Do sex and handedness influence general cognition and financial capacity in patients with aMCI and healthy older adults? Emphasis on women's performance.

Objectives: The effects of sex and handedness on financial capacity performance remain unexplored both in healthy older adults and in patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI). Methods: The aim of this study was to study the effect of the above factors (sex, handedness, and health condition), following a factorial experimental design; hence, eight groups (each with ten individuals) with similar demographic characteristics (age and education level) were formed consisting of right/left-handed, women/men and healthy/not healthy (with a diagnosis of aMCI) older adults. Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) was administered as a measure of general cognitive ability, and Legal Capacity for Property Law Transactions Assessment Scale (LCPLTAS) was used as an indicator of financial capacity; moreover, GDS-15 was used to assess depressive symptomatology. Self-reports of hand preference were also included. Results: Although as expected healthy men and women regardless of their handedness outperformed aMCI patients on MMSE and LCPLTAS, performance on cash transactions, bank statement management, bill payment, financial decision making, and knowledge of personal assets from LCPLTAS is significantly higher for right-handed aMCI women compared with left-handed aMCI women. Conclusions: Future research should further elucidate the reasons for this left-handed female patient with aMCI profile in larger groups of patients. This is an exploratory study, and the small sample size limits the strength of conclusions; further studies on this topic are needed.

The WALLET Study: Financial Decision Making and Key Financial Behaviors Associated with Excess Spending.

OBJECTIVES: The Wealth Accumulation and Losses in Later life Early Cognitive Transitions (WALLET) study data was used to examine correlates with excess spending in older adults who do and do not have early memory loss. METHODS: The WALLET study collected detailed financial information from participants' primary checking account statements (n = 150). Information on participant sociodemographic, health, and disability status, memory functioning, financial decision-making, and financial literacy was also collected. Participants either had no memory problems or early memory loss. Bivariate and multiple regression analyses were conducted. RESULTS: The early memory loss group had significantly higher excess spending than those with no memory loss. Financial decision-making and higher-risk financial behaviors were also linked to higher excess spending. Early memory loss was no longer statistically significant after accounting for financial stressors and resources. CONCLUSIONS: The multidimensional nature of financial capacity assessment has long been known. The WALLET study data is unique, however, in that it demonstrates the links between excess spending with decision-making, early memory loss, and a set of specific financial behaviors. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Real-world assessments of financial management and financial decision-making yield important information about how older adults are managing money and making key financial decisions. Checking account reviews can be used to determine excess spending.

A person-centered approach to financial capacity: early memory loss, financial management and decision-making.

OBJECTIVES: Previous research has noted that a person-centered approach to financial capacity assessment is feasible. This study of personal finance included a review of 12 months of checking account statements followed by research interviews to investigate income, spending, financial literacy, and financial decision-making. The objective of the study was to determine the convergent validity of excess spending to contextual aspects of financial decision-making, financial literacy, and early memory loss. METHOD: Participants were 114 adults over the age of 60 who came primarily from two research registries; the Healthier Black Elders registry and the Michigan Alzheimer's Disease Research Center registry. After sharing their checking statements participants completed two telephone interviews. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were used to compare those with no memory loss to the memory loss group, and to determine which measures were significantly related to excess spending. RESULTS: There was a significant difference in excess spending between those with early memory loss and those with no memory loss. There was a significant difference in financial decision-making risk scores between the groups, as well as on a memory measure and a financial literacy measure. In a hierarchical regression analysis financial decision-making was the only measure significantly related to excess spending. CONCLUSION: This study documented the convergent validity of person-centered measures of personal spending and financial decision-making with early memory loss. Early memory loss was related to both excess spending and contextual aspects of financial decision-making.

Association Between Small Vessel Disease and Financial Capacity: A Study Based on Cognitively Normal Older Adults.

Background: Financial capacity is vital for the elderly, who possess a substantial share of global wealth but are vulnerable to financial fraud. Objective: We explored the link between small vessel disease (SVD) and financial capacity in cognitively unimpaired (CU) older adults via both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses. Methods: 414 CU participants underwent MRI and completed the Financial Capacity Instrument-Short Form (FCI-SF). Subsequent longitudinal FCI-SF data were obtained from 104, 240, and 141 participants at one, two, and four years, respectively. SVD imaging markers, encompassing white matter hyperintensities (WMH), cerebral microbleeds (CMB), and lacune were evaluated. We used linear regression analyses to cross-sectionally explore the association between FCI-SF and SVD severity, and linear mixed models to assess how baseline SVD severity impacted longitudinal FCI-SF change. The false discovery rate method was used to adjust multiple comparisons. Results: Cross-sectional analysis revealed a significant association between baseline WMH and Bank Statement (BANK, ß=-0.194), as well as between lacune number and Financial Conceptual Knowledge (FC, ß= -0.171). These associations were stronger in APOE ɛ4 carriers, with ß= -0.282 for WMH and BANK, and ß= -0.366 for lacune number and FC. Longitudinally, higher baseline SVD total score was associated with severe FCI-SF total score decrease (ß= -0.335). Additionally, baseline WMH burden predicted future decreases in Single Checkbook/Register Task (SNG, ß= -0.137) and FC (ß= -0.052). Notably, the association between baseline WMH and SNG changes was amplified in APOE ɛ4 carriers (ß= -0.187). Conclusions: Severe SVD was associated with worse FCI-SF and could predict the decline of financial capacity in CU older adults.

In the Hands of Hypnos: Associations between Sleep, Cognitive Performance and Financial Capacity in aMCI and Mild AD.

Objective The aim of this monocentric observational study is to assess whether sleep disorders can predict financial capacity in single-and multiple-domain aMCI (amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment), mild Alzheimer's Disease (AD), and healthy controls. Methods Older participants from Northern Greece were examined with several neuropsychological tests, including Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15), and the Legal Capacity for Property Law Transactions Assessment Scale (LCPLTAS). Sleep duration and quality were based on caregiver/family members' reports in the Sleep Disorders Inventory (SDI). Results These preliminary findings coming from 147 participants indicate for the first time that apart from MMSE, complex cognitive functions, such as financial capacity may be also directly linked to the frequency of sleep-disturbed behaviours as indicated by SDI frequency questions, both in aMCI and mild AD. Discussion An urgency for further investigation of the neglected sleep factor should be added in financial capacity assessment protocols.

Mitigating the Risk of Digital Financial Exploitation.

The article by Zhang and colleagues in this issue of The Journal calls attention to an important but underrecognized problem facing today's seniors and their loved ones. The risk of digital financial exploitation, particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, has risen considerably in recent years and continues to rise today. Zhang et al. provide a helpful analysis of assessment tools currently available to forensic psychiatrists for the evaluation of financial capacity. Although many of these tools were not originally intended to encompass technologically based transactions, the risks of fraud and scams associated with payment apps, social media, and electronic fund transfers are considerable and growing. Fraudsters frequently target vulnerable older adults, and victims have lost large sums through some of the more prevalent schemes. Several strategies can help to mitigate the risk of severe losses and to increase the likelihood that lost assets can be recovered. Proactive education through increased awareness will prove helpful, but given the growing sophistication of modern digital cons, such as romance scams, increased technological safeguards are warranted in the setting of reduced financial capacity. When losses do occur, there are some resources for recovery and for filing complaints against perpetrators.

Elder Financial Exploitation in the Digital Age.

Elder financial abuse violates the dignity, mental integrity, and fundamental rights of older adults. Reports of elder financial exploitation climbed during the COVID-19 pandemic, as many older adults were targeted by perpetrators seeking to take advantage of their worries about health and finances, increased isolation, and relative lack of familiarity with the digital technologies prevalent in their everyday lives. This article examines trends in usage of electronic financial technologies by older adults and describes new technology-based mechanisms of elder financial exploitation. We review the conceptual approaches and instruments used in financial capacity assessments, as well as the limitations of their applicability to the growing cohort of older adults who have adopted modern digital technologies to manage finances. We discuss elder abuse statutes and the variations in legal definitions of protected older adults and the perpetrators who can be held accountable for elder financial exploitation. In addition, we explore new directions for elaborating current approaches to financial capacity assessments and elder protection to address the demands and perils of the technology-driven postpandemic era.

Illustrating a Person-Centered Approach to Financial Capacity Evaluations Through a Case Study.

OBJECTIVES: Although the National Institute of Medicine Social Security committee recommended that a person's financial capacity should be defined and assessed as real-world performance, there has been scant progress on creating methods to translate this idea into reliable methods. The current clinical comment focuses on analyzing actual financial management and decision-making in an evaluation to determine whether the older person needed a conservator. METHODS: A case study is used to illustrate how to take a feasible approach to analyzing financial management and decisions and applying those to financial capacity assessment. RESULTS: By employing a person-centered analysis of checking and credit card statements and using a semi-structured interview, the clinician was able to assess the financial management and decision-making skills of an older adult. CONCLUSIONS: Clinical gerontologists have an ethical prerogative to enhance autonomy where possible. Analyzing a person's actual financial management records as opposed to hypothetical and perhaps unfamiliar financial tasks may represent a step forward in person-centered assessment of financial management and capacity. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Clinical gerontologists are often asked to provide financial capacity assessments. Using a person-centered approach to assessing financial management and financial decision-making offers a new and reliable method of assessing financial capacity.

Understanding the role of financial capacity in the delivery of opioid use disorder treatment.

Opioid treatment programs must have adequate financial capacity to sustain operations and deliver a high standard of care for individuals suffering from opioid use disorder. However, there is limited consistency in the health services literature about the concept and relationship of organizational financial capacity and key outcome measures (wait time and retention). In this study, we explored five common measures of financial capacity that can be applied to opioid treatment programs: (a) reserve ratio, (b) equity ratio, (c) markup, (d) revenue growth, and (e) earned revenue. We used these measures to compare financial capacity among 135 opioid treatment programs across four data collection points: 2011 (66 programs), 2013 (77 programs), 2015 (75 programs), and 2017 (69 programs). We examined the relationship between financial capacity and wait time and retention. Findings from the literature review show inconsistencies in the definition and application of concepts associated with financial capacity across business and social service delivery fields. The analysis shows significant differences in components of financial capacity across years. We observed an increase in average earned revenue and markup in 2017 compared to prior years. The interaction between minorities and markup was significantly associated with higher likelihood of waiting (IRR = 1.077, p < .05). Earned revenue (IRR = 0.225, p < .05) was related to shorter wait time in treatment. The interaction between minorities and equity ratio is also significantly associated with retention (IRR = 0.796, p < .05). Our study offers a baseline view of the role of financial capacity in opioid treatment and suggests a framework to determine its effect on client-centered outcomes.

Beneath the Top of the Iceberg: Financial Capacity Deficits in Mixed Dementia with and without Depression.

Nowadays, controversy exists regarding the influence of comorbid depression on cognition in old age. Additionally, we still know little about the influence of depression in mixed dementia (MD), that is, in cases where there is the co-existence of Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia (VaD). Given that the assessment of financial capacity is pivotal for independent living as well as in the prevention of financial exploitation and abuse in old age, in this pilot study, we aimed to examine whether comorbid depression in MD patients can influence financial capacity performance. A total of 115 participants were recruited. They were divided into four groups: MD patients with and without depressive symptoms and healthy elderly without depression as well as older adults suffering from depression. Participants were examined with a number of neuropsychological tests, including the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15), and Legal Capacity for Property Law Transactions Assessment Scale (LCPLTAS). The results of this study suggested that financial capacity as measured with LCPLTAS in MD patients was severely impaired when depression co-existed compared to patients suffering only from depression and healthy controls. Deficits in financial capacity in MD and comorbid depression should be a point on which healthcare professionals should focus during neuropsychological assessment in order to prevent financial exploitation.

Item Response Analysis of the Financial Capacity Instrument-Short Form.

OBJECTIVE: The Financial Capacity Instrument-Short Form (FCI-SF) is a performance-based measure of everyday financial skills that takes 15 min to administer. Although the FCI-SF has demonstrated excellent psychometric properties, advanced psychometric methods such as item response theory (IRT) can provide important information on the performance of individual test items in measuring financial capacity and in distinguishing between healthy and cognitively impaired individuals. METHOD: Participants were 272 older adults diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and 1,344 cognitively healthy controls recruited from the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota and also from the Cognitive Observations in Seniors study at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Participants in each study were administered the FCI-SF, which evaluates coin/currency calculation, financial conceptual knowledge, use of a checkbook/register, and use of a bank statement. RESULTS: A unidimensional two-parameter logistic model best fit the 37 FCI-SF Test items, and most FCI-SF items fit the unidimensional two-parameter model well. The results indicated that all FCI-SF items robustly distinguished cognitively healthy controls from persons with MCI. CONCLUSIONS: The study results showed that the FCI-SF performed well under IRT analysis, further highlighted the psychometric properties of the FCI-SF as a valid and reliable measure of financial capacity, and demonstrated the clinical utility of the FCI-SF in distinguishing between cognitively normal and cognitively impaired individuals.

Stressful life events, general cognitive performance, and financial capacity in healthy older adults and Alzheimer's disease patients.

BACKGROUND: The influence of stressful life events on general cognition and for the first time on financial capacity performance of patients with a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and in healthy controls (HC) is assessed. METHODS: A total of 268 participants (122 patients and 146 HCs with similar demographics) were examined with a number of neuropsychological tests, including Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE), Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15), and Legal Capacity for Property Law Transactions Assessment Scale (LCPLTAS) for measuring financial capacity. The life change unit (LCU) method was also used. RESULTS: HCs reported more stressful events than AD patients before the onset of the disease as the LCU load was higher for them (51.80 vs. 27.50), but in both groups the level of LCU load was far below 100, which is the threshold suggested for the induction of a psychosomatic disorder. The most frequently reported life event for AD patients was increased family arguments (n = 45/122), followed by increase in responsibilities (n = 32/122) and financial difficulties (n = 29/122), while the HC group reported problems within the family (n = 56/146), change in health status (n = 32/146), and a death of a beloved family member (n = 27/146). Regressions indicate no causal role for recent life events in the etiopathogenesis of AD, but an influence only of MMSE and diagnosis on financial capacity. CONCLUSIONS: Stressful life events do not seem to be important in financial capacity and relevant vulnerability to financial exploitation for either HCs or AD patients; therefore clinicians should not consider them per se as a possible aggravating factor for financial deficits.

What Biological Factors, Social Determinants, and Psychological and Behavioral Symptoms of Patients with Mild Alzheimer's Disease Correlate with Caregiver Estimations of Financial Capacity? Bringing Biases Against Older Women Into Focus.

This study examines the connection between biological factors, social determinants, and behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) and the estimations of financial capacity made by caregivers of mild AD patients in Greece. Financial capacity estimations negatively correlated with biological sex of the patients (female), but Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) scores were statistically lower for older females. BPSD (measured with NPI) was found to negatively correlate with estimates of financial capacity. The existence of delusions-hallucinations was reported in all males. No correlations were found between financial capacity estimations, actual cognitive and financial capacity performance, and all other included biological and social characteristics of the patients as well as their caregivers.

Catastrophe Theory Applied to Neuropsychological Data: Nonlinear Effects of Depression on Financial Capacity in Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment and Dementia.

Financial incapacity is one of the cognitive deficits observed in amnestic mild cognitive impairment and dementia, while the combined interference of depression remains unexplored. The objective of this research is to investigate and propose a nonlinear model that explains empirical data better than ordinary linear ones and elucidates the role of depression. Four hundred eighteen (418) participants with a diagnosis of amnestic MCI with varying levels of depression were examined with the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15), the Functional Rating Scale for Symptoms of Dementia (FRSSD), and the Legal Capacity for Property Law Transactions Assessment Scale (LCPLTAS). Cusp catastrophe analysis was applied to the data, which suggested that the nonlinear model was superior to the linear and logistic alternatives, demonstrating depression contributes to a bifurcation effect. Depressive symptomatology induces nonlinear effects, that is, beyond a threshold value sudden decline in financial capacity is observed. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.

Self-Awareness of Cognitive Efficiency, Cognitive Status, Insight, and Financial Capacity in Patients with Mild AD, aMCI, and Healthy Controls: An Intriguing Liaison with Clinical Implications?

OBJECTIVES: This study compares objective measures of cognitive performance with subjective perception of specific performance on neuropsychological tests examining basic cognitive domains, including, for the first time, financial capacity. Additionally, differences in assessment between single- and multiple-domain aMCI, mild AD, and healthy elderly regarding insight are examined. METHODS: Participants completed a number of neuropsychological tests and the Legal Capacity for Property Law Transactions Assessment Scale (LCPLTAS). After every test, participants were asked to complete the Clinical Insight Rating scale (CIR) and to self-evaluate their performance by comparing it to what they considered as average for people of their age and educational level. RESULTS: These preliminary findings show significant differences in the self-assessment patterns of the four groups in measures of verbal memory, visuospatial perception and memory, executive functions, tests of attention, and financial capacity. Mild AD expressed the highest overestimations, followed by single- and multiple-domain aMCI as well as controls. Accuracy of self-report is not uniform across groups and functional areas. CONCLUSIONS: Unawareness of memory deficits in both MCI subtypes is contradictory to subjective memory complaints as being an important component for clinical diagnosis. Financial capacity is overestimated in MCI and mild AD, a finding that has a plethora of clinical and legal implications.

ABLE to support patient financial capacity: A qualitative analysis of cost conversations in clinical encounters.

OBJECTIVE: To explore how costs of care are discussed in real clinical encounters and what humanistic elements support them. METHODS: A qualitative thematic analysis of 41 purposively selected transcripts of video-recorded clinical encounters from trials run between 2007 and 2015. Videos were obtained from a corpus of 220 randomly selected videos from 8 practice-based randomized trials and 1 pre-post prospective study comparing care with and without shared decision making (SDM) tools. RESULTS: Our qualitative analysis identified two major themes: the first, Space Needed for Cost Conversations, describes patients' needs regarding their financial capacity. The second, Caring Responses, describes humanistic elements that patients and clinicians can bring to clinical encounters to include good quality cost conversations. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that strengthening patient-clinician human connections, focusing on imbalances between patient resources and burdens, and providing space to allow potentially unexpected cost discussions to emerge may best support high quality cost conversations and tailored care plans. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: We recommend clinicians consider 4 aspects of communication, represented by the mnemonic ABLE: Ask questions, Be kind and acknowledge emotions, Listen for indirect signals and (discuss with) Every patient. Future research should evaluate the practicality of these recommendations, along with system-level improvements to support implementation of our recommendations.

Online monitoring of financial capacity in older adults: Feasibility and initial findings.

Introduction: Impairment in financial capacity places older adults at risk of fraud or abuse and can be a harbinger of loss of independence. Online automated monitoring of financial transactions offers an objective, unobtrusive, and continuous data collection strategy to minimize risk and to detect early changes in an important complex activity of daily living. Methods: Ninety-three participants used an online financial activity monitoring platform that extracted metrics related to use and potential departures from established patterns of financial behavior. Standard neuropsychological assessments and a performance-based measure of financial capacity at baseline were compared using continuous monitoring metrics. Results: Participants demonstrated a willingness to engage with an online financial activity monitoring system. Online metrics were not associated with performance in specific cognitive domains. Performance on an established test of financial capacity was negatively correlated with a ratio of alerts to transactions, that is, a higher likelihood of errors or deviations from previous activity. Discussion: To our knowledge, this is the first reported study using secure online technology to link ongoing unobtrusively collected financial activity monitoring data with other objective measures of function and cognition in a cohort of independent living older adults.

Liberating older adults from the bonds of vascular risk factors: What is their impact on financial capacity in amnestic mild cognitive impairment?

BACKGROUND: There is a pressing need to clarify whether vascular risk factors (VRFs) are related to the heterogeneous cognitive performance found in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and whether the number of VRFs relates to financial capacity impairment in patients with amnestic MCI (aMCI). METHODS: A total of 112 participants were divided into three groups: patients with single-domain aMCI, patients with multiple-domain aMCI, and healthy controls (HCs), while taking into consideration whether participants had a diagnosis of one VRF or disease, or more than one VRF or disease. Patients with aMCI with VRFs (one and more than one VRF) and HCs did not differ significantly in age, education, and sex. Mini-Mental State Examination, 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale, and Legal Capacity for Property Law Transactions Assessment Scale (LCPLTAS) were administered to all groups. RESULTS: Diagnosis (P <0.001) and VRFs (P = 0.006) showed significant main effects on LCPLTAS but no interaction (P = 0.654). Patients with aMCI with high vascular burden were more frequently of the multiple-domain subtype, whereas patients with no vascular burden were more frequently of the single-domain subtype. A larger vascular burden is correlated with lower LCPLTAS scores. DISCUSSION: Vascular burden plays an important role in the heterogeneity of aMCI by impairing financial capacity.

Altered Angular Gyrus Resting State Functional Connectivity Associated with Financial Capacity in Mild Cognitive Impairment.

BACKGROUND: Financial capacity (FC) is a complex ability commonly impaired in older individuals with cognitive impairment; however, the underlying neural mechanisms are not well understood. OBJECTIVE: To assess resting state functional connectivity using functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) in individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and impaired FC compared to cognitively normal older adults. METHODS: rs-fMRI scans were obtained from individuals with MCI (N = 17) and normal older adults (N = 15). All participants completed the Financial Capacity Instrument Short Form (FCI-SF) and neuropsychological assessments. Based on previous findings, the left angular gyrus (lAG) was used as the seed region. Connectivity correlation coefficients were calculated for each seed-based connection that showed significantly altered connectivity. A Pearson's correlation was calculated between the connectivity correlation values from relevant regions and FC and other cognitive measures. RESULTS: A total of 26 brain regions showed significantly increased functional connectivity with the lAG. Of these regions, 14 were identified as relevant to higher-level cognitive function for analysis. Pearson's correlations showed a significant negative correlation between the FCI-SF total score and increased connectivity between the IAG and the right temporal fusiform cortex (rTFC) (r = -0.455, p = 0.009). CONCLUSION: Results showed a significant correlation between FC and increased functional connectivity between the lAG and the rTFC in cognitively normal older adults compared to participants with MCI. These exploratory findings suggest that cognitive functions play important roles in FC as the functional connectivity between the lAG and rTFC was not associated with other tests of executive or visuospatial cognition.