scholarly journals Marriage and Mortality: The Importance of Non-Spousal Support for Never-Married Older Adults

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 347-347
Author(s):  
Adam Roth ◽  
Siyun Peng
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Extended Family ◽  
Spousal Support ◽  
Social Needs ◽  
Never Married ◽  
Married Individuals ◽  
Low Levels ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Levels Of Support

Abstract Married individuals have been shown to consistently outlive their unmarried peers. Although numerous factors contribute to such mortality disparities, spousal support serves as one of the most central marital resources that reduces mortality risk for married older adults. Unmarried older adults, who lack access to such support, tend to rely more heavily on extended family and friends for their social needs. Yet it is unclear whether support from these non-spousal sources can be successfully substituted for spousal support to provide unmarried older adults with similar protection against mortality. In the present study, we use nationally representative data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project to assess whether support from family and friends reduces the mortality differences between married and unmarried older adults. Although we examine all forms of singlehood (i.e., divorce, widowhood, and never married), we pay primary attention to never married older adults in relatively to their married peers as they have been exposed to a lifetime without a spouse. We find that never married older adults are especially sensitive to non-spousal support. More specifically, never married respondents who reported low levels of support were far more likely to die than married respondents who had similar levels of non-spousal support. Yet when support was high, never married respondents were neither more nor less likely to die than their married peers.

Non-Spousal Support, Marital Status, and Mortality Risk

2021 ◽  
pp. 089826432110253
Author(s):  
Adam R. Roth ◽  
Siyun Peng
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Marital Status ◽  
Mortality Risk ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Spousal Support ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Never Married ◽  
Logistic Regression Models ◽  
Using Data

Objective To investigate whether the association between non-spousal support and mortality risk differs by marital status. Methods Using data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (N = 2460), we estimate a series of logistic regression models to assess how non-spousal support moderates the relationship between marital status and mortality across a 5-year period. Results Never married respondents who had minimal perceived access to non-spousal support had a greater probability of death compared to married respondents with similar levels of non-spousal support. The disparity in mortality risk between these two groups disappeared when non-spousal support was high. Discussion Although family and friends play an important role in mortality risk in later life, these findings suggest that never married older adults exhibit a heightened dependence on support from non-spousal sources. Future research and policies should explore ways in which never married older adults can be integrated into a supportive social environment.

scholarly journals Odor Sensitivity Versus Odor Identification in Older US Adults: Associations With Cognition, Age, Gender, and Race

2020 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
pp. 321-330
Author(s):  
Lucy Xu ◽  
Jia Liu ◽  
Kristen E Wroblewski ◽  
Martha K McClintock ◽  
Jayant M Pinto
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Odor Identification ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Gender And Race ◽  
Network Characteristics ◽  
Cognitive Component ◽  
Representative Study ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Odor Sensitivity

Abstract The ability to identify odors predicts morbidity, mortality, and quality of life. It varies by age, gender, and race and is used in the vast majority of survey and clinical literature. However, odor identification relies heavily on cognition. Other facets of olfaction, such as odor sensitivity, have a smaller cognitive component. Whether odor sensitivity also varies by these factors has not been definitively answered. We analyzed data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project, a nationally representative study of older US adults (n = 2081). Odor identification was measured using 5 validated odors presented with Sniffin’ Stick pens as was odor sensitivity in a 6-dilution n-butanol constant stimuli detection test. Multivariate ordinal logistic regression modeled relationships between olfaction and age, gender, race, cognition, education, socioeconomic status, social network characteristics, and physical and mental health. Odor sensitivity was worse in older adults (P < 0.01), without gender (P = 0.56) or race (P = 0.79) differences. Odor identification was also worse in older adults, particularly men (both P ≤ 0.01), without differences by race. Decreased cognitive function was associated with worse odor identification (P ≤ 0.01) but this relationship was weaker for odor sensitivity (P = 0.02) in analyses that adjusted for other covariates. Odor sensitivity was less strongly correlated with cognitive ability than odor identification, confirming that it may be a more specific measure of peripheral olfactory processing. Investigators interested in associations between olfaction and health should consider both odor sensitivity and identification when attempting to understand underlying neurosensory mechanisms.

scholarly journals Spousal Loss and Health in Late Life

2012 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 221-242 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aniruddha Das
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Gender Differences ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Late Life ◽  
Spousal Loss ◽  
Multiple Dimensions ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Multiple Health ◽  
Weathering Process

Objectives: This study queries the linkage of older adults’ spousal loss to multiple dimensions of their health. Methods: Data are from the 2005-2006 National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project, nationally representative of U.S. adults ages 57 to 85. Analyses examine associations of spousal loss and time since loss with multiple health dimensions. Results: Spousal loss is linked to a system of mental, social, behavioral, and biological issues, consistent with a stress-induced weathering process. Biological problems are more uniformly associated with women’s than men’s loss. While emotional sequelae may partially subside with time, a range of other outcomes remain worse even among individuals a decade or more past loss, than those with current partners. Discussion: Older adults’ spousal loss influences multiple dimensions of their health. Gender differences in biological linkages suggest women’s greater physiological vulnerability to this weathering event. Effects of loss are long term rather than transient, especially with biological conditions.

The Death of Confidants and Changes in Older Adults’ Social Lives

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 236-246
Author(s):  
James Iveniuk ◽  
Peter Donnelly ◽  
Louise Hawkley
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
Testing Hypotheses ◽  
Social Lives ◽  
The Social ◽  
Doubly Robust Estimation ◽  
Logistic Regressions ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Doubly Robust

This study examines the consequences of confidant death for the social lives of older adults, testing hypotheses from socio-emotional selectivity theory and the hierarchical compensatory model. We draw upon longitudinal data from the National Social Life Health and Aging Project—a nationally representative survey of older adults ( N = 2,261). We employ ordinary least squares (OLS) and ordinal logistic regressions in the context of multiple imputation with chained equations, checking our findings with doubly robust estimation. We find that the death of a spouse, but not the death of a family member or friend, was associated with increased support from friends and family, spending more time with family, and more frequent participation in religious services, but not volunteering. Death of other confidants also had little impact on older adults’ social lives, suggesting the robustness of their networks to nonspousal loss.

Appreciating the Predicament of Housebound Older Adults with Arthritis: Portrait of a Population

2005 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kareen Nour ◽  
Sophie Laforest ◽  
Monique Gignac ◽  
Lise Gauvin
Keyword(s):  
Rheumatoid Arthritis ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Health Behaviours ◽  
Population Data ◽  
Living Alone ◽  
Self Management ◽  
Home Based ◽  
Behavioural Profile ◽  
Low Levels

ABSTRACTThis paper draws a socio-demographic, physical, psychosocial, and behavioural profile of housebound older adults with arthritis and compares older adults with rheumatoid arthritis to those with osteoarthritis. Data from 125 housebound older adults with osteoarthritis (65%) or rheumatoid arthritis (35%) were compared to published samples and to population data using appropriate weighting. Respondents were mainly women, living alone, mean age 77 years (SD = 10.50). Symptoms of stiffness, fatigue, and pain intensity were moderate to severe, and a substantial proportion (51.4%) reported depression. Participants reported low levels of health behaviours such as exercise. Overall, older adults with rheumatoid arthritis were significantly younger, reported less pain and limitations, were more optimistic and satisfied with their social life, and had a higher self-efficacy than older adults with osteoarthritis. Home-based pain self-management programs should be constructed considering the unique profiles and needs of this population.

scholarly journals All in the Family? Age, Period, and Cohort Differences in Kinship Ties Among Older U.S. Adults

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 393-393
Author(s):  
Ellen Compernolle ◽  
Khoa Phan Howard ◽  
Eric Hedberg
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Networks ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Family Members ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Network Size ◽  
Network Ties ◽  
Cohort Differences ◽  
Technological Advances ◽  
Nationally Representative

Abstract In general, older adults’ social networks—characteristics of which (e.g., size, type, frequency) have been linked to important health and well-being outcomes--tend to be kin-centered, although this has changed over time. Disentangling these changes, however, is difficult given typical mobility decline and shrinking networks in old age (age), the rapid social and demographic changes that occurred during the 20th century (cohort), and, in recent decades, the 2008 Recession and technological advances (period). This study uses data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP), a nationally representative sample of older adults (ages 57-85; 2005-2016), to examine patterns in older adults’ social networks, with particular emphasis on the role that family plays. Specifically, we ask: 1) Have older adults’ social networks become less kin-centered over the past decade (2005-2016)? 2) Are they less kin-centered among younger cohorts? And 3) Does the recession explain part of these period effects? We find that, between 2005 and 2016, family still comprises the majority of older adults’ social networks, although their network size and range have grown larger and become less family-centric. They also report fewer close family members and friends, living with fewer family members, and less frequent interaction with network ties. Results from multi-level regression models suggest that age, and to a much lesser extent, cohort, plays a key role in many of these changes, although this varies between the first and second 5-year intervals of data collection, underscoring older adults’ adaptivity to current social and economic circumstances.

The Influence of Family and Friend Confidants on Marital Quality in Older Couples

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruixue Zhaoyang ◽  
Lynn M Martire
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Marital Quality ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Older Couples ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Over Time

Abstract Objectives Relationships with confidants play an important role in older adults’ health and well-being. Particularly, family and friend confidants could significantly support or interfere with older adults’ marital relationships. This study used a dyadic approach to examine the influence of the structural features of both spouses’ family and friend confidant networks on older couples’ marital quality over 5 years. Methods Analyses used dyadic data from Wave 2 (2010–2011) and Wave 3 (2015–2016) interviews of the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP), a nationally representative sample of community-dwelling older adults. Longitudinal actor–partner interdependence models were used to examine the influence of spouses’ family and friend confidant networks on couples’ marital quality. Results Having a larger friend confidant network or closer connections with friend confidants predicted greater marital quality for wives and husbands 5 years later. Larger family confidant networks of both spouses predicted greater marital quality for wives over time. However, husbands reported worse marital quality over time if wives reported having closer connections with their own family confidants at baseline. Discussion This study demonstrates the importance of family and friend confidant networks for older couples’ marital quality and highlights the benefits of having a larger or closer friend confidant network. Future research should examine mechanisms that account for the effects of spouses’ family and friend confidant networks on older couples’ marital quality.

Spontaneous self-affirmation before and during COVID-19: Associations with information-seeking, worry and adherence

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tracy Epton ◽  
Chris Keyworth ◽  
Chris Armitage
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Opposite Direction ◽  
Information Seeking ◽  
Demographic Characteristics ◽  
Brief Interventions ◽  
Adaptive Behaviors ◽  
Uk Government ◽  
Nationally Representative

Objective: To assess the extent of spontaneous self-affirmation pre COVID-19 and during COVID-19 pandemic to identify for whom self-affirmation interventions might be helpful; and the extent to which spontaneous self-affirmation is associated with increased information-seeking, worry and adherence to UK government instructions. Methods: Two large nationally-representative surveys of UK adults were conducted via YouGov in March 2019 (pre COVID-19; N = 10421) and April 2020 (during COVID-19; N = 2252); both surveys measured demographic characteristics and spontaneous self-affirmation. The latter survey included measures of time spent accessing COVID-19 related news, worry about COVID-19 related news and degree of adherence to UK government instructions. Results: Spontaneous self-affirmation was lower before COVID-19 (44%) than it was during the pandemic (57%), although the pattern was in the opposite direction among older adults. Older adults were more likely to spontaneously self-affirm during COVID-19 than pre COVID-19. Greater spontaneous self-affirmation was associated with more time spent accessing news, and greater adherence to UK government instructions, but not media-related worry. Conclusions: The threat of COVID-19 may have triggered greater levels of spontaneous self-affirmation, which could give people the resources they needed to allow them to seek COVID-19-related news and adhere to UK government instructions. Groups lower in spontaneous self-affirmation, such as younger people could be targeted with brief interventions to promote self-affirmation and encourage performance of adaptive behaviors.

scholarly journals Longitudinal relationship of diabetes and depressive symptoms in older adults from Mexico: a secondary data analysis

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. e001789
Author(s):  
Teresa Alvarez-Cisneros ◽  
Paloma Roa-Rojas ◽  
Carmen Garcia-Peña
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Random Effects Models ◽  
Health Factors ◽  
Longitudinal Association ◽  
Common Risk Factors ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Relationship Of

IntroductionSeveral studies have argued a causal relationship between diabetes and depression, while others have highlighted that their association is a result of common risk factors. Because Mexico is a country with a high prevalence of diabetes, and diabetes and depression are a frequent comorbidity, we chose this country to investigate the longitudinal relationship of these two conditions, focusing on the influence of demographic, health, and socioeconomic factors which could act as common risk factors for both conditions.Research design and methodsUsing the harmonized Mexican Health and Aging Study, a nationally representative sample of adults older than 50 with a response rate of 93%, we analyzed the longitudinal relationship of diabetes and depressive symptoms using ‘between-within’ random-effects models, focusing on the effect of demographic, socioeconomic and health factors.ResultsWhile older adults with diabetes reported a higher prevalence of depressive symptoms in the four waves of the study, there was no causal longitudinal association between them once controlling for demographic, socioeconomic and health factors (between-effect OR=0.88, 95% CI 0.77 to 1.01; within-effect OR=0.87, 95% CI 0.69 to 1.11).ConclusionsThere is no causal longitudinal association between diabetes and depression; the higher prevalence of depression among older adults with diabetes seems a result of socioeconomic and health factors that are not exclusive to respondents with diabetes but are more frequent in this group. Our results highlight the importance of prevention and control of chronic conditions as well as the role of socioeconomic inequalities in mental health.

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