Goal adjustment capacities: Implications for older adults' physical health and emotional well-being

ABSTRACTObjectives:Optimism and pessimism are distinct constructs that have demonstrated independent relationships with aspects of health and well-being. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether optimism or pessimism is more closely linked with physical and mental health among older adults.Design:Cross-sectional survey.Participants:Community-dwelling older adults (N = 272) ages 59–95 in the southern United States.Measurements:The Life Orientation Test—Revised and the Short Form 8.Results:At the bivariate level, optimism was associated with higher physical health and mental health, while pessimism was associated with lower physical health and mental health. Multiple-regression analyses as well as comparison of correlation coefficients found that pessimism was more closely associated with physical health and mental health than optimism.Conclusions:These results add to the literature suggesting that, in terms of older adults’ health and well-being, avoiding pessimism may be more important than being optimistic.

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Dialogical and Integrated Self in Late Adulthood: Examining Two Adaptive Ways of Growing Old

The International Journal of Aging and Human Development ◽

10.1177/0091415019831445 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 90 (4) ◽

pp. 337-362 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Miroslav Filip ◽

Kateřina Lukavská ◽

Iva Poláčková Šolcová

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Physical Health ◽

Meaning In Life ◽

Life Experiences ◽

Psychological Adaptation ◽

Well Being ◽

The Other ◽

Ego Integrity ◽

Process View ◽

Better Than

We examined two contradictory views of Erikson’s concept of ego integrity: as an outcome of the tension between integrity and despair, or as a dialogical process of balancing positive and negative life experiences. One hundred sixty-seven Czech older adults participated in the study. Dialogically integrated, outcome-integrated, and outcome-despairing participants were selected based on the Ego Integrity Scale and based on methods mapping life-reviewing dialogue. The three subsamples were compared in their psychological adaptation. The results showed that the dialogically integrated participants scored similarly in well-being and meaningfulness of life as outcome-integrated participants and better than outcome-despairing participants. However, the dialogically integrated participants were also prone to experiencing negative emotions. As they were older than the other two subsamples and reported worse physical health, we concluded that the life-reviewing dialogue helps them maintain a sense of meaning in life and a certain level of well-being. Hence, the results support relevance of the dialogical-process view.

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The Benefits of Savoring Life

The International Journal of Aging and Human Development ◽

10.1177/0091415016669146 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 84 (1) ◽

pp. 3-23 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Jennifer L. Smith ◽

Fred B. Bryant

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Life Satisfaction ◽

Physical Health ◽

Social Functioning ◽

Well Being ◽

Psychological Well Being ◽

Positive Interventions ◽

Reported Health ◽

The Relationship ◽

Lower Life Satisfaction

We investigated the protective impact of savoring capacity on the relationship between physical health and psychological well-being among older adults. A total of 266 adults over 55 years old ( Mean = 73.4 years) completed measures of savoring ability, self-reported health, and life satisfaction. Savoring ability moderated the relationship between health and life satisfaction in older adults. Among people with less savoring ability, poor health was associated with lower life satisfaction. In contrast, people with greater savoring ability maintained higher life satisfaction, regardless of their level of health. These effects were consistent across a variety of different aspects of health, including general health, pain, limitations due to physical health, energy, and social functioning. These findings have direct implications for developing positive interventions to support the psychological well-being of older adults.

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To be or not to be: Relationship between grandparent status and health and wellbeing

10.21203/rs.3.rs-36720/v3 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Daniel W.L. Lai ◽

Jia Li ◽

Xue Bai

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Older Adults ◽

Hong Kong ◽

Older People ◽

Physical Health ◽

Marital Status ◽

Well Being ◽

Chinese Society ◽

The Relationship ◽

Health And Well Being

Abstract BackgroundIt is common for older people to become grandparents in later life. However, the impacts of grandparenting on their health and well-being remain ambiguous, especially in Chinese society, where the family is in the core of culture. The current study explored the relationship between grandparenthood and Chinese older people’s health and psychological well-being in Hong Kong. MethodsCross-sectional data were collected from a sample of 1,208 Hong Kong Chinese older people aged 55 and above through a telephone survey conducted in 2019. Participants were grouped into three categories: current grandparents (n = 507), grandparents-to-be (n = 275), and grandparents-not-to-be (n = 426). Multivariate linear regressions were performed to examine the relationship between grandparenting status and health and well-being outcomes, including self-rated physical health, mental health, resilience, and happiness. The potential moderating roles of older adults’ demographic characteristics, including age, sex, education, marital status, financial status, were also examined. ResultsBivariate analyses suggested statistically significant differences between health and well-being across the three groups of participants. Regression models showed that, compared with grandparents-not-to-be, being a current grandparent was associated with a significantly higher happiness level. Being a future grandparent was associated with significantly higher levels of happiness, resilience, and self-rated physical health. Moderating analyses showed that age, marital status, and educational level could moderate the relationship between grandparent status and resilience and self-rated mental health. ConclusionsThe current study offers preliminary insights into the significant relationship between grandparenthood and older adults’ health and well-being. It calls for future studies to further explore the mechanisms between grandparenthood and the healthy ageing of different subgroups of older adults.

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Effects of Late-Life Health Transitions on Spouses’ Psychological Well-Being

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igab046.1149 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 297-298

Author(s):

Ruixue Zhaoyang ◽

Christina Marini ◽

Lynn Martire

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Physical Health ◽

Social Life ◽

Later Life ◽

Well Being ◽

Psychological Well Being ◽

Actor Partner Interdependence Model ◽

Spousal Health ◽

Health Transitions

Abstract Declining physical health likely affects not only older adults’ own well-being, but also that of their spouse. Using two waves of data from 610 couples in the National Social Life, Health and Aging Project, we examined effects of health declines over five years on change in self and spousal psychological well-being. Actor-Partner Interdependence Model findings showed that declines in spouses’ physical health (i.e., increased pain and decreased physical and cognitive function) predicted increases in older adults’ anxiety. Given the increasing importance of later-life social ties outside of marriage, we further considered the role of non-spousal health confidants. Preliminary findings suggest that effects of health declines on both partners’ well-being depend on the availability of these confidants. When older adults have people in addition to their spouse with whom they can talk about their health, detrimental effects of spouses’ declining health on older adults’ well-being are weakened for some health outcomes

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THE EFFECTS OF IMMIGRANT STATUS ON WELL-BEING AMONG OLDER ADULTS BY RACE-ETHNICITY: A MULTI-GROUP ANALYSIS

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igz038.2621 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. S714-S714

Author(s):

Heehyul Moon ◽

Hyesook Kim ◽

Sunshine Rote ◽

William E Haley

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Physical Health ◽

Group Analysis ◽

Well Being ◽

Stress Coping ◽

Depression And Anxiety ◽

Immigrant Status ◽

Coping Process ◽

Race Ethnicity ◽

Racial Ethnic

Abstract Although prior researchers have decried the lack of research on racial/ethnic minority older adults, they have been less vocal about the gaps in research concerning the ways in which immigrant status and race/ethnicity affect their well-being. Thus, we examined the role of immigrant status on the stress coping process by race/ethnicity using the Transactional Model of Stress and Coping. The multi-group analysis function in structural equation modeling was used to determine whether the stress coping process was equivalent across three racial/ethnic groups (Non-Hispanic White (NHW), Non-Hispanic Black(NHB), and Hispanic) by immigrant status using the Round 1 of the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS, (U.S.-born= 4,799, foreign-born=612)). We found that immigrant status and race/ethnicity may have complex effects on the stress coping process. For example, the total effects of being an immigrant were significantly associated with more stressors, less resources, and worse physical health. Except NHW, the total effects of being immigrant were associated with higher levels of depression and anxiety. With respect to the direct and indirect effect of immigrant status in the three groups, the Hispanic group has a larger effect of immigrant status on stressors, resources, depression/anxiety and physical health than their NHW and NHB counterparts. The results indicated that immigrant racial/ethnic minority older adults were more likely to have higher levels of depression and anxiety than the U.S.-born except for NHW. Immigrant status will require special attention in both assessment and management of depression/anxiety among racial/ethnicity minority older adults.

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Spirituality, health and well-being in the elderly

International Psychogeriatrics ◽

10.1017/s1041610218001874 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 30 (12) ◽

pp. 1741-1742 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Orestes V. Forlenza ◽

Homero Vallada

Keyword(s):

Social Support ◽

Older Adults ◽

Well Being ◽

The Elderly ◽

Theories Of Aging ◽

Goal Adjustment ◽

Flexible Goal Adjustment ◽

Health And Well Being ◽

Daily Spiritual Experience Scale

Bailly et al. (2018) examined the trajectory of spirituality in a cohort of 567 non-institutionalized older adults living in Tours, France, during a period of five years. The measurements for spirituality (Daily Spiritual Experience Scale, DES), social support (Satisfaction with Social Support subscale of the Duke Social Support Index), and accommodative tendencies (Flexible Goal Adjustment) were longitudinally collected at three time points (2007, 2009, and 2012). The results of the study confirmed some expected observations, such as higher levels of spirituality among religious older adults when compared with the ones without religion, and older women reporting higher levels of spirituality than older men. But the most interesting finding was the observation that the measured levels of spirituality among older adults remained stable during this five-year period. Based on a growing number of studies and theories of aging suggesting that the levels of spirituality increases during a person's lifetime, one would expect an increase in the levels of spirituality along the study follow-up. The authors, however, interpreted the stable level of spirituality informed by the participants as having already reached a relatively high mean rating score of spirituality at baseline. From the beginning of the trail, many participants expressed self-contentment and reported having found meaning in their lives. Moreover, the responders had, in general, more years of education than expected for people in their age group, lived at home independently with a good self-health evaluation, had relatively fewer diseases, and a good perception of financial satisfaction; these characteristics perhaps make this group not representative of the French general population in the same age bracket.

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Subjective Well-being of Older Adults in Sub-Saharan Africa Is Most Associated with Food Security, Physical Health and Emotional Support (P04-090-19)

Current Developments in Nutrition ◽

10.1093/cdn/nzz051.p04-090-19 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽

Author(s):

Edwina Wambogo ◽

Nadine Sahyoun

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Logistic Regression ◽

Food Security ◽

Physical Health ◽

Emotional Support ◽

Well Being ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Subjective Well Being ◽

Country Level ◽

Sub Saharan

Abstract Objectives Using the social ecological model, the objectives of this study were to examine (1) the associations between proximate factors (food security and physical health) and measures of subjective well-being (SWB), and (2) the associations of distal community and country level risk factors with SWB, independent of food security and physical health. Methods Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) data of 5585 respondents aged 60 years or older included in Gallup World Poll (GWP) 2014 and 2015 were included in these analyses. GWP collected data on several indicators SWB (eudaimonic, hedonic and evaluative), together with data on food security, physical health, social support and social participation, and country level factors such as quality of roads and public transport. We estimated three hierarchical logistic regression models for each index controlling for country and GWP survey year as a fixed effects. Results In bivariate logistic regression analysis, food security was most associated with higher evaluative well-being (OR 2.80, 95% CI 2.05–3.83) and physical health was most associated with higher eudaimonic well-being (OR 3.30, 95% CI 2.64–4.14). Physical health was also most associated with higher positive experiences (OR 1.83, 95% CI 1.59–2.10), and most inversely associated with negative experiences (OR 0.47, 95% CI 0.41–0.55), in bivariate analysis. In the multivariate models, emotional support explained eudaimonic well-being (OR 3.66, 95% CI 2.41–5.58), and evaluative well-being (OR 1.87, 95% CI 1.26–2.79), followed by physical health and food security, respectively. Conclusions Food security, physical health and emotional support were strongly associated with SWB among older adults in this study. Food security is particularly important for QOL, and has a bi-directional relationship with these other predictors of SWB. Therefore, continued monitoring the food security of older adults in the region remains important. Funding Sources N/A.

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