scholarly journals Race Differences in Trajectories of Hopelessness Among U.S. Older Adults: Do Social Conditions Matter?

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 257-258
Author(s):  
Uchechi Mitchell ◽  
Elena Graetz ◽  
Jing Wang

Abstract Despite being a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, suicidal ideation, and mortality among U.S. older adults, research on hopelessness and how it changes over time are lacking. Although hopelessness generally increases with age, levels of hopelessness may be influenced by race/ethnicity and social or economic factors. This study uses longitudinal data from 8,359 individuals from the Health and Retirement Study to examine race differences in trajectories of hopelessness from 2006 to 2018. We used linear mixed models to estimate trajectories of hopelessness for blacks, whites and Hispanics age 51 and older. The model was fit with a natural spline cubic function to model changes in time trends of hopelessness and the interaction between time and race. Models controlled for demographic characteristics, socioeconomic status, health status, and psychosocial factors that influence hopelessness. We found that older Hispanics have the highest levels of hopelessness, followed by non-Hispanic blacks and non-Hispanic whites. Trajectories of hopelessness were non-linear and differed by race. For older whites, hopelessness increased from 2006-2010 and then decreased until 2018. For older blacks, it decreased the entire time period but did so at a decreasing rate; and, for older Hispanics, hopelessness decreased from 2006-2012 and then increased thereafter. Our study shows that hopelessness generally decreased over time among older adults between 2006 and 2018 in race-specific ways, despite generally increasing with age. These findings suggest that race, age and period effects differentially influence trajectories of hopelessness. Factors contributing to these differences may be related to concurrent social and economic conditions.

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S194-S194
Author(s):  
Kexin Yu ◽  
Kexin Yu ◽  
Shinyi Wu ◽  
Iris Chi

Abstract Internet is increasingly popular among older adults and have changed interpersonal interactions. However, it remains controversial whether older people are more or less lonely with internet use. This paper tests the longitudinal association of internet use and loneliness among older people. One pathway that explains the association, the mediation effect of social contact, was examined. Data from the 2006, 2010 and 2014 waves of Health and Retirement Study was used. Hierarchical liner modeling results showed internet use was related to decreased loneliness over 12-year period of time (b=-0.044, p<.001). Internet use was associated with more social contact with family and friends overtime (b=0.261, p<.001), social contact was related to less perceived loneliness longitudinally (b=0.097, p<.001). The total effect of internet use on loneliness is -0.054 and the mediated effect is -0.025. The findings imply that online activities can be effective for reducing loneliness for older people through increased social contact.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S597-S597
Author(s):  
Jasmine R Marcelin ◽  
Rohan Khazanchi ◽  
Elizabeth Lyden ◽  
Kelly Cawcutt ◽  
Ravina Kullar ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Over the last decade, there have been sustained efforts to diversify the healthcare workforce. In 2016, the IDWeek Program Committee was charged to ensure gender equity in speaker sessions. Whether this intervention also resulted in more opportunities for underrepresented speakers has not been determined. Methods This project was supported by IDSA, who provided demographic information on IDWeek speakers (excluding poster sessions) from 2013-2019. Data were summarized using descriptive statistics, and chi-square analysis evaluated changes over time. Each speaker slot was considered an independent event. Data was combined for 2013-2016 (≤2016) and 2017-2019 (>2016). IDSA membership demographics were available from 2014 for gender, race/ethnicity, from 2016 for age, and from 2018 for professional degree. Results A total of 3640 speaker slots were filled by 2504 individuals from 2013-2019. A larger proportion of speaker slots were filled by women >2016 (51%) vs ≤ 2016 (43%), with a linear increase from 38.6% in 2013 to 52.1% in 2019 (p< 0.001). Averaged across 2013-2019, IDSA membership was 67.5% White, 20.6% Asian, 7.7% Latinx, 3.9% Black, and 0.4% Other. IDWeek Speakers during that timeframe were 77.7% White, 13.9% Asian, 4.7% Latinx, 2.7% Black, and 1.0% Other; a larger proportion of slots were filled by Asian speakers >2016 (16.3%) vs ≤ 2016 (12.8%) (p=0.005). The proportion of pharmacist speakers increased over time; 5.1% of speakers in 2019 reflected IDSA pharmacist membership (5.4%). The proportion of individuals invited to speak more than once differed by age (19% in < 40yo, 28% 40-49yo, 32% 50-59yo, and 22% >60yo; p< 0.001), and professional degree (28% physicians, 18% pharmacists, 9% other doctorates, and 7% non-doctorate speakers; p< 0.001). Figure 1: Trends in Gender Distribution of IDWeek Speakers and IDSA Members, 2013-2019 Figure 2: Trends in Race/Ethnicity Distribution of IDWeek Speakers and IDSA Members, 2013-2019 Conclusion Intentional consideration of gender equity by the Program Committee significantly improved equitable gender representation of invited speakers at IDWeek. This effort has not resulted in increased diversity of invited speakers from groups underrepresented in IDSA membership. To ensure that invited speakers represent the membership of IDSA/IDWeek partner organizations and more importantly, the communities we serve, we call for continued application of the principles of Inclusion, Diversity, Access, and Equity at IDWeek. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolas Barizien ◽  
Morgan Le Guen ◽  
Stéphanie Russel ◽  
Pauline Touche ◽  
Florent Huang ◽  
...  

AbstractIncreasing numbers of COVID-19 patients, continue to experience symptoms months after recovering from mild cases of COVID-19. Amongst these symptoms, several are related to neurological manifestations, including fatigue, anosmia, hypogeusia, headaches and hypoxia. However, the involvement of the autonomic nervous system, expressed by a dysautonomia, which can aggregate all these neurological symptoms has not been prominently reported. Here, we hypothesize that dysautonomia, could occur in secondary COVID-19 infection, also referred to as “long COVID” infection. 39 participants were included from December 2020 to January 2021 for assessment by the Department of physical medicine to enhance their physical capabilities: 12 participants with COVID-19 diagnosis and fatigue, 15 participants with COVID-19 diagnosis without fatigue and 12 control participants without COVID-19 diagnosis and without fatigue. Heart rate variability (HRV) during a change in position is commonly measured to diagnose autonomic dysregulation. In this cohort, to reflect HRV, parasympathetic/sympathetic balance was estimated using the NOL index, a multiparameter artificial intelligence-driven index calculated from extracted physiological signals by the PMD-200 pain monitoring system. Repeated-measures mixed-models testing group effect were performed to analyze NOL index changes over time between groups. A significant NOL index dissociation over time between long COVID-19 participants with fatigue and control participants was observed (p = 0.046). A trend towards significant NOL index dissociation over time was observed between long COVID-19 participants without fatigue and control participants (p = 0.109). No difference over time was observed between the two groups of long COVID-19 participants (p = 0.904). Long COVID-19 participants with fatigue may exhibit a dysautonomia characterized by dysregulation of the HRV, that is reflected by the NOL index measurements, compared to control participants. Dysautonomia may explain the persistent symptoms observed in long COVID-19 patients, such as fatigue and hypoxia. Trial registration: The study was approved by the Foch IRB: IRB00012437 (Approval Number: 20-12-02) on December 16, 2020.


2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 189-198
Author(s):  
Rebecca Bendayan ◽  
Amanda Kelly ◽  
Scott M. Hofer ◽  
Andrea M. Piccinin ◽  
Graciela Muniz-Terrera

Objectives: We explore the association between different patterns of change in depressive symptoms and memory trajectories in US and European Mediterranean (Spain, France, Italy, and Israel) and non-Mediterranean (Sweden, Denmark, Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, and Austria) older adults. Methods: Samples consisted of 3,466 participants from the Health Retirement Study (HRS) and 3,940 participants from the Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement (SHARE). Individuals were grouped as follows: non-case depression (NO DEP), persistent depression (DEP), depression onset (ONSET), depression recovery (RECOV), and fluctuating (FLUCT). Memory was measured using immediate and delayed recall tests. Linear mixed models were used. Results: DEP and RECOV had significantly lower baseline memory scores compared to NO DEP, at intercept level. At slope level, ONSET had a significantly faster decline in both tasks compared to NO DEP. Discussion: Cross-cohort robust and consistent new empirical evidence on the association between depression onset and faster decline in memory scores is provided.


2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 30-40
Author(s):  
Nirmala Lekhak ◽  
Tirth R. Bhatta ◽  
Jaclene A. Zauszniewski

Purpose: To examine the effects of prayer and meditation on the episodic memory of older adults. Design: Secondary analysis of Health and Retirement Study (HRS). Method: Drawing from a subsample of HRS ( n = 1,135), this study utilized generalized estimating equation regression models to examine the effects of meditation and prayer on changes in episodic memory of older adults over time. Findings: Findings show a statistically significant positive effect of the use of prayer (0.50, p < .05) on episodic memory score at baseline. We also observed a slight gain in episodic memory over time for older adults who used prayer (0.04, p = .05). Meditation was not found to have a statistically significant effect on changes in memory in later life. Conclusion: This study illustrates the benefits of prayer in preserving memory and provides much needed empirical basis for community-level interventions to enhance memory in later life.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S77-S77
Author(s):  
Jessica S West ◽  
Scott Lynch

Abstract As the number of older adults increases, increased prevalence of cognitive and sensory impairments pose growing public health challenges. Research on the relationship between hearing impairment and cognition, however, is minimal and has yielded mixed results, with some studies finding that hearing impairment is associated with cognitive decline, and others reporting that the association is weak or non-existent. Most of this research has been conducted outside of the U.S., and the few U.S.-based longitudinal studies have relied mostly on small, non-representative samples involving short follow-up periods. Further, despite known gendered patterns in cognitive and hearing impairments, no studies to date have examined whether the relationship between the two varies by gender. Our study addresses these weaknesses in the literature by utilizing nine waves of the Health and Retirement Study (1998-2014; n=14,169), a large, nationally representative, longitudinal study that facilitates examination of long-term interrelationships between hearing and cognitive impairments. In this study, we use autoregressive latent trajectory (ALT) methods to model: 1) the relationship between hearing impairment and cognitive decline, and 2) sex differences in the relationship. ALT models enable us to determine whether hearing impairment and cognitive impairment are associated, net of their common tendency simply to co-trend with age. Results indicate that hearing and cognitive impairments are strongly interrelated processes that trend together over time. Moreover, hearing impairment has an increasing impact on cognitive impairment across age while the effect of cognitive impairment on hearing impairment levels out over time. Sex differences in these patterns are discussed.


2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ayla Ogus Binatli

This paper investigates whether the relationship between income inequality and growth changes over time. Two time periods, covering 1970–1985 and 1985–1999, are analyzed and compared. A statistically significant relationship between inequality and growth in either time period fails to emerge. However, there are indications that effect of inequality on growth may be different in the nineties when compared to the seventies. In the literature, a consistent negative effect of inequality on growth is documented although the significance of the effect is open to debate. This paper also finds a negative effect of income inequality on growth in the seventies but, although statistically insignificant, a consistently positive effect in the nineties.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 756-757
Author(s):  
Briana Sprague ◽  
Andrea Rosso ◽  
Xiaonan Zhu ◽  
Caterina Rosano

Abstract The capacity to increase one’s gait speed is critical for maintaining safe community ambulation. There is limited work on the longitudinal changes in this capacity and its predictors. Because lower dopamine is associated with lower task adaptation and motivation, we hypothesized that lower dopamine would predict more decline in rapid gait speed. Catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) polymorphism and at least 3 repeated rapid and usual pace gait speed assessments were obtained over 10 years in 1,261 older adults (mean age=75.2, 867 White, 659 women). Linear mixed models computed person-specific rapid and usual pace gait speed trajectories. Regression models adjusted for usual gait trajectory tested whether COMT predicted rapid gait trajectory; covariates included, demographic, psychological, cognitive, and physical factors. Val/Val carriers (lower dopamine) declined more in rapid gait compared to Met/Met carriers (higher dopamine; adjusted b=-.002, SE=.001, p=.042). Modifying dopamine may positively influence the ability to maintain rapid gait over time.


2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 125-139
Author(s):  
Syed Muhammad Adib Termizi Ahmad Al Jafari

Masjids symbolise purity with which it is a requirement for a mosque to be free from being owned by anyone and the sole beneficiary is for Allah the Al Mighty. However, Singapore’s needs for land and space to ensure its growth and progress as well as maintaining economy that changes over time made every mosque in Singapore to undergo a change in the lease period or dependant on the legal notice that allows the government to takeover control of the mosque at any point in time. These two issues clearly trespass the basis of beneficiary (wakaf) in Islam in which it is stated that properties that are classified as wakaf, have to be sustainable and are not bound to any conditions. As such, this paper is written to discuss on how a building, that is limited to a specific time period, can be regarded as a mosque, according to the views by scholars of Islamic law. A descriptive and inductive approach is being used in this research’s methodology to gather the scholar’s opinions, as well as their arguments. Analytical and critical approach is used to discuss their views and their arguments to find the opinion that is the closest match with the truth and suffice the needs of the Muslim community in Singapore and their interests. The result of this research shows that there is no consensus among the Islamic jurists that mosques must be built on land that is on wakaf property, which therefore validate the status of mosques in Singapore. This is achieved by using the opinions of scholars that allow mosques to be built on land that is on lease or rent as well as opinions of scholars that allow the use of mats or carpet to be used as a mosque. Keywords: Wakaf, mosque, Islamic law, wakaf property Abstrak Masjid adalah sebuah bangunan yang mempunyai kesucian, sehingga mana disyaratkan bagi sesebuah masjid hendaklah ia terlepas dari hak milik sesiapa dengan di wakafkannya hanya untuk Allah Taala. Akan tetapi keperluan Singapura terhadap tempat dan tanah untuk memastikan ia terus membangun dan maju serta dapat melaksanakan dasar ekonomi yang berasaskan perubahan dari masa ke semasa menjadikan setiap masjid yang berada di dalam pulau ini dihadkan dengan waktu atau tergantung dengan undang-undang yang membolehkan kerajaan mengambil alih masjid tersebut pada bila-bila masa. Kedua-dua pekara itu dengan jelas melanggar asas hukum wakaf yang mensyaratkan agar mana wakaf itu mestilah berkekalan dan tiada tergantung dengan sebarang syarat. Oleh yang demikian kertas kerja ini bertujuan membincangkan sejauh manakah sesebuah bangunan yang terhad dengan waktu tertentu, harus dianggap sebagai masjid pada pandangan fiqh Islami. Pendekatan deskriptif dan induktif telah diguna pakai dalam metodologi kajian ini untuk mengumpul pendapat ulama’, serta hujah-hujah mereka. Manakala pendekatan analitikal dan kritikal pula digunakan bagi membincangkan pandangan para ulama’ serta hujah-hujah mereka untuk mencari pendapat yang paling dekat dengan kebenaran serta menjaga kepentingan dan maslahat masyarakat Islam Singapura. Dapatan kajian menunjukkan bahawa tiada kesepakatan di antara fuqaha bahawa masjid itu mesti didirikan di atas tanah yang diwakafkan, yang mana ini menjadikan masjid di Singapura sah dianggap sebagai masjid dengan menggunakan pendapat yang mengharuskan ia dibina di atas tanah yang disewa di samping pendapat yang mengharuskan hamparan atau tikar dijadikan sebagai masjid. Kata Kunci: Wakaf, tanah wakaf, masjid, Undang-undang Islam


Paleobiology ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 186-196 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sang-Hee Lee ◽  
Milford H. Wolpoff

With a sample of 94 Pleistocene cranial capacities between the time period of 1.8 Ma and 50 Ka now known, we consider the evolution of cranial capacity in Homo, with the null hypothesis that the changes over time are a result of one process. We employ a new method that uses a resampling approach to address the limitations imposed on the methods of previous studies. To test the null hypothesis, we examine the distribution of changes in adjacent temporal samples and ask whether there are differences between earlier and later samples. Our analyses do not reject the hypothesis of a single process of brain size change, but they are incompatible with an interpretation of punctuated equilibrium during this period. The results of this paper are difficult to reconcile with the case for cladogenesis in the Homo lineage during the Pleistocene.


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