scholarly journals Social Contact Prior to COVID-19 and Longitudinal Mental Health Trajectories During COVID-19 Among Adults Ages ≥55

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 317-317
Author(s):  
John Best ◽  
Jessica Finlay ◽  
Daniel R Y Gan
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Support ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Social Contact ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Social Organizations ◽  
Health Trajectories ◽  
Prior Contact

Abstract Social support protects mental health during a crisis. We examined whether prior contact with social organizations and friends/neighbors was associated with better trajectories of loneliness, depression and self-rated memory during the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted latent class analysis and regression analysis on longitudinal data from the COVID-19 Coping Study of US adults aged ≥55 from April-October 2020 (n=3105). Overall, prior contact with friends(B=-.075,p<.001), neighbors(B=-.048,p=.007), and social organizations(B=-.073,p<.001) predicted better mental health amid COVID-19. Three classes were identified: Class1 had the best outcomes, whereas Class3 had the worst outcomes and were most likely to live alone(B=.149,p<.001). For Class1, prior contact with social organizations(B=-.052,p=.044) predicted decreasing loneliness. For Class2, prior contact with friends(B=-.075,p<.001) predicted decreasing loneliness and better memory(B=-.130,p=.011). Conversely, prior contact with neighbors(B=-.165,p=.010) predicted worsening loneliness among Class3. Our findings pose new questions on the role of neighborhood networks to mitigate poor mental health outcomes among older adults during a crisis.

scholarly journals Prior Social Contact and Mental Health Trajectories during COVID-19: Neighborhood Friendship Protects Vulnerable Older Adults

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (19) ◽  
pp. 9999
Author(s):  
Daniel R. Y. Gan ◽  
John R. Best
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Latent Profile Analysis ◽  
Profile Analysis ◽  
Social Contact ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Subjective Memory ◽  
Social Organizations ◽  
Health Trajectories ◽  
Prior Contact

Social networking protects mental health during a crisis. Prior contact with social organizations, friends, and non-friend neighbors may be associated with better trajectories of loneliness, depression and subjective memory during COVID-19. Regression analysis was conducted using longitudinal data from a representative sample of n = 3105 US adults aged ≥55 in April–October 2020. Latent profile analysis was also conducted. Prior contact with friends (B = −0.075, p < 0.001), neighbors (B = −0.048, p = 0.007), and social organizations (B = −0.073, p < 0.001) predicted for better mental health during COVID-19. Three profiles were identified: Profile 1 had the best outcomes, with prior contact with social organizations (B = −0.052, p = 0.044) predicting decreasing loneliness. For Profile 2, prior ‘meeting’ contact with friends predicted decreasing loneliness (B = −0.075, p < 0.001) and better subjective memory (B = −0.130, p = 0.011). Conversely, prior contact with neighbors (B = −0.165, p = 0.010) predicted worsening loneliness among Profile 3. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a differential impact on the mental health trajectories of aging adults with social ties of different strengths. Stronger neighborhood networks are important to mitigate poor mental health outcomes among vulnerable older adults during a crisis. Older adults who are living alone and had relied on non-friend neighbors for social connectedness require additional community supports. Policy interventions are required to mitigate the mental health impact of future pandemics.

Refining the push and pull framework: identifying inequalities in residential relocation among older adults

2015 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 90-112 ◽  
Author(s):  
AN-SOFIE SMETCOREN ◽  
LIESBETH DE DONDER ◽  
SARAH DURY ◽  
NICO DE WITTE ◽  
TINIE KARDOL ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Older People ◽  
Social Contact ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Residential Relocation ◽  
Household Incomes ◽  
Push And Pull

ABSTRACTOlder people consider moving home when there is a discrepancy between actual and desired living conditions. This study builds on the classic push and pull framework described in the early work of Lee and Wiseman by identifying whether or not individual differences among older people can be predictive for certain push and pull reasons (such as housing, health, neighbourhood and social contact). On the basis of data from the Belgian Ageing Studies (N = 35,402), it was found that 13.9 per cent of older respondents had moved in the last ten years (N = 4,823). An analysis of the movers revealed inequalities in the reasons for moving in later life and raises the question of whether a relocation is voluntary (being able to move) or involuntary (being forced to move). Respondents with lower household incomes and poor mental health were significantly more likely to have moved because of stressors pushing them out of their previous dwelling, whereas older people with higher household incomes or home-owners were mainly pulled towards a more attractive environment.

The Role of Race in Relations of Social Support to Hippocampal Volumes Among Older Adults

2021 ◽  
pp. 016402752110172
Author(s):  
Desirée C. Bygrave ◽  
Constance S. Gerassimakis ◽  
Denée T. Mwendwa ◽  
Guray Erus ◽  
Christos Davatzikos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
African American ◽  
Disease Risk ◽  
Total Sample ◽  
Hippocampal Volume ◽  
Brain Pathology ◽  
Resonance Imaging ◽  
African American Older Adults

Evidence suggests social support may buffer brain pathology. However, neither its association with hippocampal volume, a marker of Alzheimer’s disease risk, nor the role of race in this association has been fully investigated. Multiple regression analyses examined relations of total social support to magnetic resonance imaging-assessed gray matter (GM) hippocampal volumes in the total sample ( n = 165; mean age = 68.48 year), and in race-stratified models of African American and White older adults, adjusting for select covariates. Results showed greater social support was associated with greater GM hippocampal volumes among African American older adults only ( p < .01). Our findings suggest greater total social support may play a role in supporting the hippocampus, particularly among African American older adults, who had lower hippocampal volumes than their White counterparts. Further research is needed to test these questions longitudinally and examine which aspects of social support may promote hippocampal integrity, specifically.

scholarly journals Profile Groups Based on Lifestyle and Differences in Mental Health and Cognition

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 404-404
Author(s):  
Joseph Kim ◽  
Kyuree Kim
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Mail Survey ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Self Rated Health ◽  
Final Sample ◽  
Group 2 ◽  
Mean Differences

Abstract The purpose of this study was to identify the profiles of older adults according to lifestyle. Data for the study were from the 2017 Consumption and Activities Mail Survey (CAMS). CAMS 2017 is a questionnaire mailed to a sub-sample of respondents from the Health and Retirement Study. Participants were limited to older adults 65 and older, and the final sample consisted of 1136 older adults. The sample included 443 men and 693 women. Caucasians comprised 82.0% of the participants. Lifestyle was measured through items assessing the amount of time spent on activities. Due to high skewness, the items were dichotomized, 0=no time spent on activity and 1=time spent on the activity. Latent class analysis (LCA) was performed to identify groups based on lifestyle. LCA is a person-centered approach for identifying unobserved subgroups based on similarity in responses to items. Three lifestyle groups were identified. Group 1 was “Outgoing” with 471 individuals. Group 2 was “Adequate” with 229 individuals. Group 3 was “Inactive” with 436 individuals. An ANOVA was then conducted to assess mean differences in self-rated health, cognition, depressive symptoms, and loneliness for the three lifestyle groups. The “Outgoing” and “Adequate” groups had significantly higher scores on self-rated health and cognition, and in addition, significantly lower scores on depressive symptoms and loneliness compared to the “Inactive” group. No significant differences were observed between the “Outgoing” and “Adequate” groups. An implication from this study is the importance of maintaining an active lifestyle in later life for better mental health and cognition.

scholarly journals Does School Racial Composition Explain Why High Income Black Youth Perceive More Discrimination? A Gender Analysis

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (8) ◽  
pp. 140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shervin Assari
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
African American ◽  
African American Males ◽  
Black Youth ◽  
Perceived Discrimination ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Racial Composition ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Ethnicity And Gender

Recent research has documented poor mental health among high socioeconomic status (SES) Blacks, particularly African American males. The literature has also shown a positive link between SES and perceived discrimination, suggesting that perceived discrimination may explain why high SES Black males report poor mental health. To better understand the role of contextual factors in explaining this pattern, we aimed to test whether school racial composition explains why high income Black youth perceive more discrimination. We explored these associations by ethnicity and gender. Using data from the National Survey of American Life-Adolescent supplement (NSAL-A), the current study included 810 African American and 360 Caribbean Black youth, with a mean age of 15. Ethnicity, age, gender, income-to-needs ratio (SES), skin color, school racial composition, and perceived (daily) discrimination were measured. Using Stata 15.0 (Stata Corp., College Station, TX, USA), we fitted seven structural equation models (SEMs) for data analysis in the pooled sample based on the intersection of ethnicity and gender. Considerable gender by ethnicity variations were found in the associations between SES, school racial composition, and perceived discrimination. For African American males but not African American females or Caribbean Black males or females, school racial composition fully mediated the effect of SES on perceived discrimination. The role of inter-racial contact as a mechanism for high discrimination and poor mental health of Black American adolescents may depend on their intersection of ethnicity and gender. School racial composition may be a mechanism for increased perceived discrimination among high SES African American males.

scholarly journals Military spouses with deployed partners are at greater risk of poor perinatal mental health: a scoping review

2019 ◽  
Vol 165 (5) ◽  
pp. 363-370 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren Rose Godier-McBard ◽  
L Ibbitson ◽  
C Hooks ◽  
M Fossey
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Support ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Perinatal Period ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Adverse Outcomes ◽  
Military Spouses ◽  
Perinatal Mental Health

BackgroundPoor mental health in the perinatal period is associated with a number of adverse outcomes for the individual and the wider family. The unique circumstances in which military spouses/partners live may leave them particularly vulnerable to developing perinatal mental health (PMH) problems.MethodsA scoping review was carried out to review the literature pertaining to PMH in military spouses/partners using the methodology outlined by Arksey and O’Malley (2005). Databases searched included EBSCO, Gale Cengage Academic OneFile, ProQuest and SAGE.ResultsThirteen papers fulfilled the inclusion criteria, all from the USA, which looked a PMH or well-being in military spouses. There was a strong focus on spousal deployment as a risk factor for depressive symptoms and psychological stress during the perinatal period. Other risk factors included a lack of social/emotional support and increased family-related stressors. Interventions for pregnant military spouses included those that help them develop internal coping strategies and external social support.ConclusionsUS literature suggests that military spouses are particularly at risk of PMH problems during deployment of their serving partner and highlights the protective nature of social support during this time. Further consideration needs to be made to apply the findings to UK military spouses/partners due to differences in the structure and nature of the UK and US military and healthcare models. Further UK research is needed, which would provide military and healthcare providers with an understanding of the needs of this population allowing effective planning and strategies to be commissioned and implemented.

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