scholarly journals Seasonal Variation and Homes: Understanding the Social Experiences of Older Adults

2014 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tam E. Perry
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Seasonal Variation ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Social Isolation ◽  
Social Experiences ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Seasonal Migration ◽  
Seasonal Fluctuations ◽  
Migration Patterns ◽  
The Social

There has been limited research on the importance of seasons in the lives of older adults. Previous research has highlighted seasonal fluctuations in physical functioning—including limb strength, range of motion, and cardiac death—the spread of influenza in seasonal migration patterns. In addition, older adults experience isolation for various reasons, such as decline of physical and cognitive ability, lack of transportation, and lack of opportunities for social interaction. There has been much attention paid to the social isolation of older adults, yet little analysis about how the isolation changes throughout the year. Based on findings from an ethnographic study of older adults (n = 81), their family members (n = 49), and supportive professionals (n = 46) as they embark on relocation from their homes, this study analyzes the processes of moving for older adults. It examines the seasonal fluctuations of social isolation because of the effect of the environment on the social experiences of older adults. Isolation occurs because of the difficulty inclement weather causes on social interactions and mobility. The article concludes with discussion of the ways that research and practice can be designed and implemented to account for seasonal variation.

How Relationship Satisfaction Influences Post-Pandemic COVID-19 Anxiety: A Four-Wave Study in China

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jingyi Ou ◽  
yunhanqi ◽  
Ke Zhang ◽  
Yuexiao Du ◽  
Yihang He ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Support ◽  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Relationship Satisfaction ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Social Isolation ◽  
Social Relationships ◽  
Crucial Role ◽  
Perceived Social Support ◽  
The Social

The social isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic exerts lasing impacts on people’s mental health. However, whether and how people’s pre-existing positive social relationships can serve as stable reserves to alleviate people psychological distress following the disaster remains unknown. To address the question, the current study examined whether pre-pandemic relationship satisfaction would predict post-pandemic COVID-19 anxiety through middle-pandemic perceived social support and/or gratitude using four-wave data in China (N = 222, 54.50% female, Mage = 31.53, SD = 8.17). Results showed that people’s COVID-19 anxiety decreased from the peak to the trough pandemic stage; perceived social support increased markedly from the pre-pandemic to the peak and remained stable afterwards, while relationship satisfaction remained unchanged throughout. Further, it was middle-pandemic perceived social support, but not gratitude, mediated the association between pre-pandemic relationship satisfaction and post-pandemic COVID-19 anxiety, indicating perceived social support played a more crucial role than gratitude in this process. Last, it is suggested to distinguish perceived social support from gratitude as two different components of social interactions.

scholarly journals “Because of the Christian Fellowship, I Decided to Stay”: How Participating in a Christian Community Shapes the Social Experiences of Chinese International Students

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (8) ◽  
pp. 234
Author(s):  
Anke Li ◽  
Chi Nguyen ◽  
Jinhee Choi
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Social Experiences ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Christian Community ◽  
American University ◽  
The Social ◽  
Christian Fellowship ◽  
The University

This ethnographic study examines how participation in a Christian church community shapes Chinese international undergraduate students’ social experiences in an American university. Our findings reveal that Chinese international undergraduate students identify the church and its fellowship as (1) a social support community and (2) an informal learning community, one which fills in the gap in counseling services and interpersonal activities that the university fails to offer. Recommendations are made for higher education institutions to provide stronger support for international students, regardless of their nationalities and religions.

Social Interaction in Walking Groups and Affective Responses Among Japanese Older Adults

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 287-293 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazuhiro Harada ◽  
Kouhei Masumoto ◽  
Ai Fukuzawa ◽  
Michiko Touyama ◽  
Koji Sato ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Interaction ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Multilevel Models ◽  
Affective Responses ◽  
Level Of Satisfaction ◽  
The Social ◽  
Japanese Older Adults ◽  
Positive Engagement ◽  
Walking Group

This study examined whether satisfaction with social interactions and the number of people interacted with during walking groups is associated with affective responses among older adults. Twenty-six older adults were asked to participate in five walking group sessions. The participants walked together for 40–50 min. In every session, the participants reported their affective responses to walking (positive engagement, tranquility, and negative affect), their level of satisfaction with the social interactions experienced, and the number of people interacted with during the walk. The available data were from 107 person-sessions. Multilevel models revealed that, although a higher number of people interacted with was not significantly associated with improvements in any affective responses, higher satisfaction with the interactions was significantly associated with improvements in positive engagement at both the within- and between-person levels. This study found that higher satisfaction with the interactions was associated with desirable affective responses among older adults.

scholarly journals Sex- and context-dependent effects of acute isolation on vocal and non-vocal social behaviors in mice

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (9) ◽  
pp. e0255640
Author(s):  
Xin Zhao ◽  
Patryk Ziobro ◽  
Nicole M. Pranic ◽  
Samantha Chu ◽  
Samantha Rabinovich ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Behavior ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Social Isolation ◽  
Social Behaviors ◽  
Social Motivation ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Female Mice ◽  
The Social ◽  
Opposite Sex ◽  
Brain And Behavior

Humans are extraordinarily social, and social isolation has profound effects on our behavior, ranging from increased social motivation following short periods of social isolation to increased anti-social behaviors following long-term social isolation. Mice are frequently used as a model to understand how social isolation impacts the brain and behavior. While the effects of chronic social isolation on mouse social behavior have been well studied, much less is known about how acute isolation impacts mouse social behavior and whether these effects vary according to the sex of the mouse and the behavioral context of the social encounter. To address these questions, we characterized the effects of acute (3-day) social isolation on the vocal and non-vocal social behaviors of male and female mice during same-sex and opposite-sex social interactions. Our experiments uncovered pronounced effects of acute isolation on social interactions between female mice, while revealing more subtle effects on the social behaviors of male mice during same-sex and opposite-sex interactions. Our findings advance the study of same-sex interactions between female mice as an attractive paradigm to investigate neural mechanisms through which acute isolation enhances social motivation and promotes social behavior.

scholarly journals The Social Utility and Health Benefits for Older Adults of Amenity Buildings in China’s Urban Parks: A Nanjing Case Study

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (20) ◽  
pp. 7497
Author(s):  
Binyu Liu ◽  
Ye Chen ◽  
Meng Xiao
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Health Benefits ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Urban Parks ◽  
Social Utility ◽  
Social Activities ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Impact

As China’s population rapidly ages, research and discussion on how to better optimize public spaces for the elderly’s health and benefit continue to deepen. This study uses observational surveys and questionnaires to investigate the elderly visitors of Nanjing’s urban parks and explore the impact the parks’ amenity buildings (structures built to provide visitors with conveniences, e.g., shelters and pavilions) has on their health and associated socialization tendencies. Data were collected from ten amenity buildings in ten separate parks to compose a total dataset of 728 activity statistics and 270 valid questionnaires. The study’s results indicate that amenity buildings significantly increase opportunities for older adults to socialize and thereby can increase this demographic’s associated health benefits. The social activities formed around amenity buildings are found to improve social interactions and connectedness among older adults more compared to other age groups. Elderly participation in social activities is also found to positively correlate with environmental characteristics. High-quality landscapes ensure healthy development of social activities within amenity buildings and promote the occurrence and continuation of social interactions. In order of highest to lowest impact on elderly activities, the following factors were identified and scored: amenity building scale, lighting, comprehensive surrounding environment, surrounding amenities, water features, and vegetation. This research also reveals that among existing amenity buildings, there is insufficient support for certain activities and therefore, parks need to be improved to address this deficiency. Overall, this study indicates that under China’s current aging trends, amenity buildings have become an especially important infrastructure within urban public space, and their design trend is to incorporate the dual characteristics of “recreation + society”.

scholarly journals Could Practices of Remembrance Reduce Social Isolation in Late Life? Ethnographic Evidence From Poland and Detroit

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 668-668
Author(s):  
Jessica Robbins
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
African Americans ◽  
Social Isolation ◽  
Late Life ◽  
Cultural Analysis ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Social Connection ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
The Social ◽  
Ethnographic Data

Abstract Because social isolation can have negative effects on older adults’ wellbeing, programs that reduce social isolation have potential to improve older adults’ wellbeing. One presumed aspect of these programs’ significance is the social connection occurring through the programs themselves. However, drawing on ethnographic data collected in Poland and Detroit, this presentation argues that practices of remembrance, in which older adults connect with deceased kin and loved ones, may offer possibilities for reducing social isolation. In Poland, older adults engage in practices of storytelling in which they remember deceased kin and lost homes and homelands. In Detroit, Michigan, older African Americans who garden remember their deceased kin and friends through the practice of gardening itself. This presentation presents a cross-cultural analysis of how older adults’ practices of remembrance may offer opportunities to reduce social isolation—even for older adults who live alone—by connecting to meaningful relations, times, and places.

scholarly journals Decade Review of Social Support in Family Gerontology: Methods, Theories, and Directions for Future Research

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 563-563
Author(s):  
Amber Seidel ◽  
Jeremy Yorgason ◽  
Áine Humble ◽  
Roxanne Humphris
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Support ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Network ◽  
Social Isolation ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Socioemotional Selectivity ◽  
The Social ◽  
Dyadic Analyses

Abstract Social support has a rich foundation in family gerontology benefiting older adults, such as bolstering mental health, decreasing social isolation, and connecting them in families and communities. This study draws from a decade review of 995 empirical articles focusing on family gerontology from 13 of the top journals in gerontology, family, and relationships. Of the 995 articles, 86 were coded as social support or social network. Of these 86 articles, less than 3% included dyadic analyses, 95% were quantitative with just over 30% longitudinal. Over 30 different theories were identified with many building their work off multiple theories. Two key theories appear in over 30% of the articles, social support and socioemotional selectivity. Only 4% did not cite any theoretical framework. Overall, this presentation will review the methods, theories, and key findings of the social network/social support subtheme of a decade review of family gerontology and identify related gaps.

scholarly journals Exploring the relationship between loneliness and social cognition in older age

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heather Jane Ferguson ◽  
Martina De Lillo ◽  
Andrew Martin
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Cognition ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Social Functioning ◽  
Social Isolation ◽  
Perspective Taking ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Older Age ◽  
Social Abilities ◽  
The Relationship

Understanding others is a key component of successful social interactions, and declines in social abilities during later life can lead to social isolation and loneliness. We investigated the relationship between different sub-components of social cognition and loneliness in a large sample of older adults. We tested perspective-taking and mentalizing skills, alongside self-reported loneliness and social functioning. Results revealed a significant effect of loneliness on older adults’ ability to resist egocentric interference when taking others’ perspectives. However, this effect was eliminated when age was added to models, which suggests that egocentric tendencies increase with age, and people experience increasing levels of loneliness and feelings of social isolation with increasing age. Mentalizing and interference from others’ perspectives were not influenced by loneliness or age.

scholarly journals Understanding Social Network and Support for Older Immigrants in Ontario, Canada: Protocol for a Mixed-Methods Study (Preprint)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sepali Guruge ◽  
Souraya Sidani ◽  
Lu Wang ◽  
Bharati Sethi ◽  
Denise Spitzer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Social Isolation ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Older Men ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Older Immigrants ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
The Social

BACKGROUND Older adults are the fastest growing age group worldwide and in Canada. Immigrants represent a significant proportion of older Canadians. Social isolation is common among older adults and has many negative consequences, including limited community and civic participation, increased income insecurity, and increased risk of elder abuse. Additional factors such as the social, cultural, and economic changes that accompany migration, language differences, racism, and ageism heighten older immigrants’ vulnerability to social isolation. OBJECTIVE This mixed-methods sequential (qualitative-quantitative) study seeks to clarify older immigrants’ social needs, networks, and support and how these shape their capacity, resilience, and independence in aging well in Ontario. METHODS Theoretically, our research is informed by an intersectionality perspective and an ecological model, allowing us to critically examine the complexity surrounding multiple dimensions of social identity (eg, gender and immigration) and how these interrelate at the micro (individual and family), meso (community), and macro (societal) levels in diverse geographical settings. Methodologically, the project is guided by a collaborative, community-based, mixed-methods approach to engaging a range of stakeholders in Toronto, Ottawa, Waterloo, and London in generating knowledge. The 4 settings were strategically chosen for their diversity in the level of urbanization, size of community, and the number of immigrants and immigrant-serving organizations. Interviews will be conducted in Arabic, Mandarin, and Spanish with older women, older men, family members, community leaders, and service providers. The study protocol has received ethics approval from the 4 participating universities. RESULTS Quantitative and qualitative data collection is ongoing. The project is funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Council of Canada. CONCLUSIONS Comparative analyses of qualitative and quantitative data within and across sites will provide insights about common and unique factors that contribute to the well-being of older immigrants in different regions of Ontario. Given the comprehensive approach to incorporating local knowledge and expert contributions from multilevel stakeholders, the empirical and theoretical findings will be highly relevant to our community partners, help facilitate practice change, and improve the well-being of older men and women in immigrant communities. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPOR DERR1-10.2196/12616

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