Which Household Emergency Plans are More Helpful in Tornadoes? Through the Lens of Gerontology

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Zhen Cong ◽  
Daan Liang ◽  
Jianjun Luo
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Telephone Survey ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Emergency Plan ◽  
Emergency Plans ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Resilience Factors ◽  
One Year

ABSTRACT Objective: This study investigated how the effectiveness of household emergency plans during tornadoes was associated with family discussions, and the attributes of the plan for different age groups. Methods: A telephone survey was conducted in 2014, one year after two 2013 Enhanced Fujita 4/5 tornadoes. The working sample included 223 respondents who reported having a household emergency plan before the tornadoes. The latent class analysis was used to identify the patterns of the plans and develop a typology based on their content. Logistic regression was used to examine predictors for plan effectiveness. Results: Two classes of plans were identified: quality plans that were rich in content and limited plans that had lower levels of content richness. Older adults were less likely to have quality plans and less likely to have family discussions. Quality of the plan and discussions with family members increased plan effectiveness among older adults, but not younger adults. Conclusions: Better emergency planning could be more important for older than for younger adults. The findings were discussed from a gerontological perspective that focuses on older adults’ unique needs, vulnerabilities, and resilience factors.

The quality of self, social, and directive memories

2013 ◽  
Vol 37 (5) ◽  
pp. 395-406 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole Alea ◽  
Mary Jane Arneaud ◽  
Sideeka Ali
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Older Adult ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Social Function ◽  
Autobiographical Memories ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Directive Function ◽  
Middle Aged Adults

The quality of functional autobiographical memories was examined in young, middle-aged, and older adult Trinidadians ( N = 245). Participants wrote about an event that served a self, social, and directive function, and reported on the memory’s quality (e.g., significance, vividness, valence, etc.). Across age groups, directive memories were the most negative, and social function memories were the most positive. Social function memories were also talked about most. Compared to younger adults, older adults’ functional memories, regardless of the type of function, were positive and talked about often, and middle-aged adults’ memories were significant and vivid. The discussion encourages researchers to continue to simultaneously consider both why humans remember so much of their life, and what they remember when doing so.

The Definition and Categories of Positive Solitude: Older and Younger Adults’ Perspectives on Spending Time by Themselves

2020 ◽  
pp. 009141502095737
Author(s):  
Sharon Ost Mor ◽  
Yuval Palgi ◽  
Dikla Segel-Karpas
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Definition Of

This paper attempts to develop a better understanding of the positive solitude (PS) phenomenon and its meaning among age groups, as well as formulate a unanimous definition for PS. A qualitative study ( N = 124) was conducted. Participants were gerontology professionals and laypeople. Interviews were conducted and content was analyzed in order to understand the essence of PS, themes, and subthemes. Two major categories were found: the essence and the components of the PS experience. Seven PS content categories and three meta-themes were raised: (1) PS is a matter of choice; (2) PS is satisfying and enjoyable; and (3) PS is meaningful. Differences in PS categories between younger and older adults were found. The meta-themes served as the foundation of a new definition. PS has different attributes in old age. A unified definition of PS may help distinguishing between PS and other forms of being alone. Recognizing and facilitating the PS experience among older adults might be beneficial and contribute to their quality of life.

scholarly journals Gender Differences in Nutritional Quality of Life of Young and Old Adults.

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (S) ◽  
pp. 872-878
Author(s):  
Fatima Javed Saleem ◽  
Farhat Jamil ◽  
Ruhi Khalid
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Nutritional Quality ◽  
Nutritional Value ◽  
Social Impact ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Gender And Age ◽  
Age Range

Background: Healthy eating is essential for individuals’ physical as well as psychological wellbeing. Women’s focus on achieving thin ideal physique and men’s aspiration for muscular body is likely to impact their food intake and consequently Nutritional Quality of Life (NQoL). Moreover, NQoL varies across different age groups owing to the varying nutritional needs with increasing age. Investigating NQoL across gender and age has useful implications for health counseling and practice. Objectives| To investigate differences in nutritional quality of life among gender and different age groups. To investigate gender and age group differences in knowledge of nutritional value of food. Methodology| A descriptive cross-sectional research was conducted. The sample consisted of 200 participants i.e., 100 younger adults between age range of 18-23 years and 100 older adults between age range of 40-60 years. Gender of participants was equally represented in both age groups. Nutritional Quality of Life (NQoL) Instrument and a self-developed Nutritional Knowledge Questionnaire were administered on the sample to collect data. Results| Mean age of younger adults was 19.17 ± 1.18 and for older adults it was 48.17 ± 5.20. Findings showed that women scored significantly higher on psychological factor and social impact whereas men scored significantly higher on food impact and self-efficacy impact of NQoL. Moreover younger adults scored higher on self-efficacy than older adults and older adults scored higher on food impact, social impact, psychological factor and physical functioning than younger adults. Also interaction of gender and age was significant regarding knowledge of nutritional value of food; older women and younger men had more knowledge of nutritional value of food than younger women and older men. Conclusions| There were significant differences in nutritional quality of life. Also knowledge of nutritional value of food varied across gender and age groups.

scholarly journals DEVELOPMENT AND REVISION OF THE FAMILY EMERGENCY PREPARATION PLAN AMONG OLDER ADULTS

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S542-S542
Author(s):  
Zhen Cong ◽  
Zhen Cong ◽  
James Craig Keaton ◽  
Daan Liang
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Logistic Regression ◽  
Telephone Survey ◽  
Multinomial Logistic Regression ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
The Family ◽  
One Year

Abstract This study examines factors related to holding, revising, and developing an individual emergency preparation plan among older adults who experienced violent tornadoes. A telephone survey was conducted with 543 respondents approximately one year after two violent tornadoes in 2013 with 276 respondents aged 65 or above. Logistic and multinomial logistic regression showed that education was positively associated with a higher likelihood of having a plan among younger but not older adults. Among those who had a plan before the tornado, older, but not younger, adults who experienced more stress were more likely to report the plan as helpful. More stress and having someone in the household with disability increased the likelihood of revising plans afterward among older adults but not among younger adults. Older adults were less likely to develop a new plan and older, but not younger, adults who reported more stress were more likely to develop a plan.

Cognitive Load Affects Speech Motor Performance Differently in Older and Younger Adults

2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (5) ◽  
pp. 1258-1277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Megan K. MacPherson
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Motor Performance ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Incongruent Condition ◽  
Sentence Production ◽  
Movement Duration ◽  
Production Task ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Speech Motor

PurposeThe aim of this study was to determine the impact of cognitive load imposed by a speech production task on the speech motor performance of healthy older and younger adults. Response inhibition, selective attention, and working memory were the primary cognitive processes of interest.MethodTwelve healthy older and 12 healthy younger adults produced multiple repetitions of 4 sentences containing an embedded Stroop task in 2 cognitive load conditions: congruent and incongruent. The incongruent condition, which required participants to suppress orthographic information to say the font colors in which color words were written, represented an increase in cognitive load relative to the congruent condition in which word text and font color matched. Kinematic measures of articulatory coordination variability and movement duration as well as a behavioral measure of sentence production accuracy were compared between groups and conditions and across 3 sentence segments (pre-, during-, and post-Stroop).ResultsIncreased cognitive load in the incongruent condition was associated with increased articulatory coordination variability and movement duration, compared to the congruent Stroop condition, for both age groups. Overall, the effect of increased cognitive load was greater for older adults than younger adults and was greatest in the portion of the sentence in which cognitive load was manipulated (during-Stroop), followed by the pre-Stroop segment. Sentence production accuracy was reduced for older adults in the incongruent condition.ConclusionsIncreased cognitive load involving response inhibition, selective attention, and working memory processes within a speech production task disrupted both the stability and timing with which speech was produced by both age groups. Older adults' speech motor performance may have been more affected due to age-related changes in cognitive and motoric functions that result in altered motor cognition.

Video Games and Emotion Regulation

GeroPsych ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 205-213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn L. Ossenfort ◽  
Derek M. Isaacowitz
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Age Differences ◽  
Interactive Media ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Media Usage ◽  
The Everyday ◽  
Media Preferences

Abstract. Research on age differences in media usage has shown that older adults are more likely than younger adults to select positive emotional content. Research on emotional aging has examined whether older adults also seek out positivity in the everyday situations they choose, resulting so far in mixed results. We investigated the emotional choices of different age groups using video games as a more interactive type of affect-laden stimuli. Participants made multiple selections from a group of positive and negative games. Results showed that older adults selected the more positive games, but also reported feeling worse after playing them. Results supplement the literature on positivity in situation selection as well as on older adults’ interactive media preferences.

scholarly journals Are the Acute Effects of THC Different in Aging Adults?

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 590
Author(s):  
Raeghan L. Mueller ◽  
Jarrod M. Ellingson ◽  
L. Cinnamon Bidwell ◽  
Angela D. Bryan ◽  
Kent E. Hutchison
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Young Adults ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Young Group ◽  
Self Administration ◽  
Behavioral Measures ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Aging Adults

In recent years of expanding legalization, older adults have reported the largest increase in cannabis use of any age group. While its use has been studied extensively in young adults, little is known about the effects of THC in older adults and whether the risks of cannabis might be different, particularly concerning intoxication and cognition. The current study investigated whether age is associated with the deleterious effects of THC on cognitive performance and other behavioral measures before and after ad libitum self-administration of three different types of cannabis flower (THC dominant, THC + CBD, and CBD dominant). Age groups consisted of young adults (ages 21–25) and older adults (ages 55–70). Controlling for pre-use scores on all measures, the THC dominant chemovar produced a greater deleterious effect in younger adults compared with older adults in tests of learning and processing speed, whereas there were no differences between old and young in the effects of the other chemovars. In addition, the young group reported greater cannabis craving than the older group after using the THC chemovar. Consistent with some reports in the preclinical literature, the findings suggest that older adults may be less sensitive to the effects of THC on cognitive and affective measures.

scholarly journals Empowerment among adult patients with type 2 diabetes: age differentials in relation to person-centred primary care, community resources, social support and other life-contextual circumstances

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nina Simonsen ◽  
Anne M. Koponen ◽  
Sakari Suominen
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Community Health ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Community Support ◽  
Community Resources ◽  
Age Group ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Younger Adults

Abstract Background Rising prevalence of type 2 diabetes (T2D), also among younger adults, constitutes a growing public health challenge. According to the person-centred Chronic Care Model, proactive care and self-management support in combination with community resources enhance quality of healthcare and health outcomes for patients with T2D. However, research is scarce concerning the importance of person-centred care and community resources for such outcomes as empowerment, and the relative impact of various patient support sources for empowerment is not known. Moreover, little is known about the association of age with these variables in this patient-group. This study, carried out among patients with T2D, examined in three age-groups (27–54, 55–64 and 65–75 years) whether person-centred care and diabetes-related social support, including community support and possibilities to influence community health issues, are associated with patient empowerment, when considering possible confounding factors, such as other quality of care indicators and psychosocial wellbeing. We also explored age differentials in empowerment and in the proposed correlates of empowerment. Method Individuals from a register-based sample with T2D participated in a cross-sectional survey (participation 56%, n = 2866). Data were analysed by descriptive statistics and multivariate logistic regression analyses. Results Respondents in the youngest age-group were more likely to have low empowerment scores, less continuity of care, and lower wellbeing than the other age-groups, and to perceive less social support, but a higher level of person-centred care than the oldest group. Community support, including possibilities to influence community health issues, was independently and consistently associated with high empowerment in all three age-groups, as was person-centred care in the two older age-groups. Community support was the social support variable with the strongest association with empowerment across age-groups. Moreover, vitality was positively and diabetes-related distress negatively associated with high empowerment in all age-groups, whereas continuity of care, i.e. having a family/regular nurse, was independently associated in the youngest age-group only. Conclusion Person-centred care and community support, including possibilities to influence community health issues, supports empowerment among adults with T2D. Findings suggest that age is related to most correlates of empowerment, and that younger adults with T2D have specific healthcare needs.

scholarly journals Quality of Life in European Older Adults of SHARE Wave 7: Comparing the Old and the Oldest-Old

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (13) ◽  
pp. 2850
Author(s):  
Amparo Oliver ◽  
Trinidad Sentandreu-Mañó ◽  
José M. Tomás ◽  
Irene Fernández ◽  
Patricia Sancho
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Measurement Invariance ◽  
Factor Structure ◽  
External Validity ◽  
Oldest Old ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Depression Scale ◽  
Scalar Invariant

CASP-12 (Control, Autonomy, Self-realization, and Pleasure scale) is one of the most common internationally used measures for quality of life in older adults, although its structure is not clearly established. Current research aims to test the factor structure of the CASP-12, so as to provide evidence on reliability and external validity, and to test for measurement invariance across age groups. Data from 61,355 Europeans (≥60 years old) from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe wave 7 were used. CASP-12, EURO-D (European depression scale), self-perceived health, and life satisfaction measurements were included. Reliability and validity coefficients, competing confirmatory factor models, and standard measurement invariance routine were estimated. A second-order factor model with the original factor structure was retained. The scale showed adequate reliability coefficients except for the autonomy dimension. The correlation coefficients for external validity were all statistically significant. Finally, CASP-12 is scalar invariant across age. We conclude that the best-fitting factor structure retained allows using CASP-12 either by factors, or as an overall score, depending on the research interests. Findings related to CASP-12 measurement invariance encourage its use in the oldest-old too. When comparing the dimensions across age groups, as people age, autonomy slightly increases and the rest of the dimensions decline.

scholarly journals Housing Transitions and Recovery of Older Adults Following Hurricane Sandy

2018 ◽  
Vol 74 (6) ◽  
pp. 1041-1052 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexis A Merdjanoff ◽  
Rachael Piltch-Loeb ◽  
Sarah Friedman ◽  
David M Abramson
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Family Health ◽  
Hurricane Sandy ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Younger Age ◽  
Observational Cohort ◽  
Emergency Housing ◽  
Young Old ◽  
Post Disaster

Abstract Objectives This study explores the effects of social and environmental disruption on emergency housing transitions among older adults following Hurricane Sandy. It is based upon the Sandy Child and Family Health (S-CAFH) Study, an observational cohort of 1,000 randomly sampled New Jersey residents living in the nine counties most affected by Sandy. Methods This analysis examines the post-Sandy housing transitions and recovery of the young-old (55–64), mid-old (65–74), and old-old (75+) compared with younger adults (19–54). We consider length of displacement, number of places stayed after Sandy, the housing host (i.e., family only, friends only, or multi-host), and self-reported recovery. Results Among all age groups, the old-old (75+) reported the highest rates of housing damage and were more likely to stay in one place besides their home, as well as stay with family rather than by themselves after the storm. Despite this disruption, the old-old were most likely to have recovered from Hurricane Sandy. Discussion Findings suggest that the old-old were more resilient to Hurricane Sandy than younger age groups. Understanding the unique post-disaster housing needs of older adults can help identify critical points of intervention for their post-disaster recovery.

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