scholarly journals Grandparenthood, grandchild care and depression among older people in 18 countries

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (2-2019) ◽  
pp. 216-239
Author(s):  
Valeria Bordone ◽  
Bruno Arpino
Keyword(s):  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Older People ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Clear Pattern ◽  
Longitudinal Structure ◽  
Fixed Effects Models ◽  
Grandchild Care ◽  
The Impact

Due to the increasing central role of grandparenthood in later life, sound knowledge about its effects on older people’s health is more and more important. This paper examines the impact of becoming a grandparent, having more grandchildren, and engaging in grandchild care on depressive symptoms. Moreover, based on the structural ambivalence theory, we expect that such effects differ across contexts as (grand)childcare is differently organised across Europe. Taking advantage of the longitudinal structure of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), we estimate fixed-effects models. Our results show that women face a decline in depressive symptoms when becoming grandmothers, but neither an increase in the number of grandchildren nor changes in grandchild care are associated with changes in depressive symptoms. The analyses by country highlight differences across Europe, without, however, drawing a clear pattern. Our results show that depression consequences of grandparenthood also vary between countries characterised by similar roles of grandparents. This suggests the need to make available more refined questions about grandparenthood in surveys on older people.

scholarly journals Subjective mental health, incidence of depressive symptoms in later life, and the role of epigenetics: results from two longitudinal cohort studies

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Perna ◽  
Yan Zhang ◽  
Pamela R. Matias-Garcia ◽  
Karl-Heinz Ladwig ◽  
Tobias Wiechmann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Older People ◽  
Predictive Value ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Mental Hrqol ◽  
Subjective Mental Health

Abstract The role of self-perceived general health in predicting morbidity and mortality among older people is established. The predictive value of self-perceived mental health and of its possible biological underpinnings for future depressive symptoms is unexplored. This study aimed to assess the role of mental health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and of its epigenetic markers in predicting depressive symptoms among older people without lifetime history of depression. Data were based on a subgroup (n = 1 492) of participants of the longitudinal ESTHER study. An epigenome-wide association study (EWAS) of mental HRQOL was conducted using DNA from baseline whole blood samples and logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the predictive value of methylation beta values of EWAS identified CpGs for incidence of depressive symptoms in later life. The methylation analyses were replicated in the independent KORA cohort (n = 890) and a meta-analysis of the two studies was conducted. Results of the meta-analysis showed that participants with beta values of cg27115863 within quartile 1 (Q1) had nearly a two-fold increased risk of developing depressive symptoms compared to participants with beta values within Q4 (ORQ1vsQ4 = 1.80; CI 1.25–2.61). In the ESTHER study the predictive value of subjective mental health for future depressive symptoms was also assessed and for 10-unit increase in mental HRQOL scores the odds for incident depressive symptoms were reduced by 54% (OR 0.46; CI 0.40–0.54). These findings suggest that subjective mental health and hypomethylation at cg27115863 are predictive of depressive symptoms, possibly through the activation of inflammatory signaling pathway.

Housing: the unacknowledged key to our ageing challenge?

2015 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 32-36
Author(s):  
Clare Tickell ◽  
Gillian Connor
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Political Agenda ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Strategic Role ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Housing Options

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to highlight the strategic role of housing for older people and how it can address some of the key challenges facing politicians. The paper aims to encourage decision-makers and service providers to collaborate in new ways locally. Design/methodology/approach – The paper seeks to highlight the strategic role of housing for older people and how it can address some of the key challenges facing politicians. It aims to encourage decision makers and service providers to collaborate in new ways locally. Findings – The paper argues that: Housing for older people is rising up the political agenda, but as a niche issue rather than one of strategic and economic importance. A multi-agency and outcomes-based approach to the wellbeing of older people, based on place-shaping principles, needs to be mainstreamed locally. Older people have not escaped the impact of austerity measures and this has heightened the need for a range of high quality housing options, in supportive communities, in later life. Good housing options for older people could address the key issues vexing politicians, but there are obstacles to older people accessing such options. Originality/value – The paper suggests a radical, systemic approach is required to ensure better outcomes for older people and, in turn, to generate savings for the public purse.

Is there a rejuvenating effect of (grand)childcare? A longitudinal study on German data

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valeria Bordone ◽  
Bruno Arpino
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Subjective Age ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Grandchild Care ◽  
Grandparental Childcare ◽  
Fixed Effects Regression ◽  
New Research ◽  
Number Of Individuals

Abstract Objectives Provision of grandchild care has been found to be associated with a youthful subjective age. Yet, previous studies on this topic were cross-sectional and ignored the increasing proportions of older people growing old without the opportunity to become a grandparent. This study investigates the effects of childcare to grandchildren and to other children on subjective age using panel data. Methods We exploit the longitudinal nature of data from the German Ageing Survey (DEAS) to examine the association between grandparental childcare and care to other children with subjective age, using fixed-effects regression analyses on a sample of 50-85 years old individuals (men: N=11,151; n=3,984; women: N=10,687; n=3,746, where N is the number of observations and n is the number of individuals). Results The results from cross-sectional analyses show a “rejuvenating effect” of provision of both types of childcare in later life, especially for women. However, longitudinal analyses find very small and statistically insignificant effects. Discussion We show for the first time that both grandchild care and childcare outside the grandparent-grandchild relationship are associated with a youthful subjective age for older people. However, these associations are likely due to selection effects, i.e. unobserved characteristics of people that make them more likely to engage in childcare and are also associated with subjective age. Our results warn against causal interpretation of associations found in previous studies, but also open up new research questions on the role played by childcare other than to grandchildren.

scholarly journals Loving Others: The Impact of Compassionate Love on Later-Life Psychological Well-Being

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 480-481
Author(s):  
Eva Kahana ◽  
Tirth Bhatta ◽  
Boaz Kahana ◽  
Nirmala Lekhak
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Negative Affect ◽  
Positive Affect ◽  
Emotional Support ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Psychological Well Being ◽  
Compassionate Love ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Existing scholarship in social gerontology has surprisingly paid little attention to broader loving emotions, such as compassionate and altruistic love, as potentially meaningful mechanisms for improving later life psychological well-being. This study examined the influence of feeling love toward other persons and experiencing love from others on later life psychological well-being. We conducted a 3-wave longitudinal study of a representative sample of 340 ethnically heterogeneous community dwelling older residents of Miami, Florida. The increase in feeling of being loved (β=-1.53, p<0.001) and love for others (β=-1.43, p<0.001) led to decline in odds of reporting greater level of depressive symptoms over time. The odds of reporting higher level of positive affect were significantly greater for older adults who reported feeling loved by others (β=1.16, p<0.001) and expressed love for other people (β=1.18, p<0.01). Older adults who felt loved had 0.92-point lower ordered log odds of reporting higher negative affect than those who reported lower level of love. The impact of compassionate love on depressive symptoms and negative affect remained statistically significant even after adjustment for altruistic attitudes and emotional support. The influence of loving emotions on positive affect was, however, explained by altruistic attitudes and emotional support. Our findings underscore the powerful influence of both receiving and giving love for the maintenance of later life psychological well-being. We offer support for the expectation that love is a significant force in the lives of older adults that transcends intimate relationships.

scholarly journals Fourth Ageism: Real and Imaginary Old Age

Societies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 12
Author(s):  
Paul Higgs ◽  
Chris Gilleard
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Long Term Care ◽  
Social Representations ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Chronological Age ◽  
Biological Parameters ◽  
Term Care ◽  
The Impact ◽  
State Responses

This paper is concerned with the issue of ageism and its salience in current debates about the COVID-19 pandemic. In it, we address the question of how best to interpret the impact that the pandemic has had on the older population. While many feel angry at what they see as discriminatory lock-down practices confining older people to their homes, others are equally concerned by the failure of state responses to protect and preserve the health of older people, especially those receiving long-term care. This contrast in framing ageist responses to the pandemic, we suggest, arises from differing social representations of later life, reflecting the selective foregrounding of third versus fourth age imaginaries. Recognising the tension between social and biological parameters of ageing and its social categorisations, we suggest, may offer a more measured, as well as a less discriminatory, approach to addressing the selective use of chronological age as a line of demarcation within society.

Supporting creative ageing through the arts: the impacts and implementation of a creative arts programme for older people

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon Chester Evans ◽  
Jennifer Bray ◽  
Claire Garabedian
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Older People ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Care Staff ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Creative Arts ◽  
Standard Format ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to report on an independent evaluation of a three-year “Creative Ageing” programme, focussing on the impacts for participants and factors promoting successful delivery of sessions. Design/methodology/approach Artists provided feedback through reflective journals and questionnaires, while the views of care staff and participants were also captured in a standard format at the end of each arts session. Thematic analysis of the qualitative data identified common themes. Findings Twenty-three arts projects were delivered across a range of settings and through diverse art forms including dance, drama, music, visual arts and poetry. They reached nearly 2,200 participants who recorded over 8,100 session attendances in total. Participation in high quality creative experiences improved well-being for older people, as well as increasing social interaction and reducing isolation. Several factors facilitated successful implementation and delivery of the activities, particularly the need to hold planning meetings with staff to provide guidance around participant numbers and suitability, minimising disruption of the sessions and the supportive role of staff during the sessions. Opportunities for reflection enabled artists to address potential challenges and adapt their practice to meet the needs and preferences of participants and to the complexities of diverse settings. Originality/value Previous research has largely focussed on the impact of activities in a single setting. This study supports the role of creative arts in increasing social interaction as an attempt to tackle isolation and loneliness, both for older people living in the community and for those living in a communal setting such as care homes and supported living schemes.

Wage Dispersion and Team Performance: The Moderation Role of Club Size

2021 ◽  
pp. 152700252110677
Author(s):  
Thadeu Gasparetto ◽  
Angel Barajas
Keyword(s):  
Team Performance ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
Wage Dispersion ◽  
Financial Strength ◽  
Football Clubs ◽  
And Performance ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Robustness Check

Previous research on professional football offer conflicting results regarding the impact of wage dispersion on team performance. However, the existing intra-league heterogeneity among clubs is overlooked and could be the reason for the diverging outcomes. The aim of this paper is to reanalyze this relationship having the clubs’ size as moderator. Payroll – which captures the financial strength – is used as proxy of club size. Ordinary Least Squares regressions with season and league fixed effects are employed. Dispersion is measured by three indexes for robustness check. The outputs confirm the quadratic relationship between wage dispersion and performance, but adding that identical levels of dispersion have different impact on football clubs according to their financial strength.

Research trials in the older stroke patient

2020 ◽  
pp. 437-450
Author(s):  
Kailash Krishnan ◽  
Nikola Sprigg
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Trials ◽  
Older People ◽  
Stroke Patient ◽  
Oral Anticoagulants ◽  
Intravenous Thrombolysis ◽  
Lipid Lowering ◽  
Good Communication ◽  
Decompressive Hemicraniectomy ◽  
The Impact

‘Research trials in the older stroke patient’ examines the challenges of research in older people, the phenomenon of ageism, the impact of frailty, trials of acute treatments like intravenous thrombolysis and endovascular therapy, acute lowering of blood pressure, and decompressive hemicraniectomy. Trials looking at secondary prevention, including cardioembolism, role of the newer oral anticoagulants (DOACs), carotid endarterectomy, lipid lowering, antihypertensive therapy, are examined. The broader issue of difficulties in recruiting older people to stroke trials and the potential solutions are discussed. Until recently most participants in clinical trials of stroke have been relatively young with little or no comorbidity. With a group growing more than any other, it becomes a priority to understand the challenges in recruiting and retaining older patients into clinical trials. Barriers to recruitment relate to both researchers and participants; solutions include good communication, logistical support, and innovative study design and sampling. Further research will hopefully narrow the gap to those seen in real-world clinical practice.

scholarly journals ‘A lonely old man’: empirical investigations of older men and loneliness, and the ramifications for policy and practice

2019 ◽  
pp. 1-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Ratcliffe ◽  
Andrea Wigfield ◽  
Sarah Alden
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Social Role ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Older Men ◽  
Implicit Assumption ◽  
Masculine Identity ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Way

Abstract Loneliness has become an issue of significant academic, public and policy focus. There has been much research on experiences of loneliness in later life and many accompanying interventions targeting lonely older people. However, there has been a dearth of research on the impact that loneliness can have on older men and the resulting implications for policy and practice. This paper aims to redress this by developing a theoretical framework to improve understanding of older men's constructions and experiences of loneliness. It draws on two qualitative empirical studies: the first explores older men's perceptions of masculinity and loneliness; and the second looks at the effectiveness of a service for older men which was designed to alleviate loneliness among older people more generally. The paper outlines the way in which older men often construct masculinity as an oppressive (hegemonic) requirement, but which can be reformed into ‘positive’ traits of ‘strength of mind’, ‘responsibility’, ‘caring’, ‘helping out’, ‘doing a favour’ and ‘giving something back’, with a consistent yet implicit assumption that enactment of these denotes a ‘proud’ masculine identity. Loneliness, on the other hand, is represented as a subordinate social role, both non-masculine and related to marginalising stereotypes of age. This results in the identification of two important implications for the way in which services can assist in the alleviation of loneliness in older men: that men are more likely to engage with a service that can facilitate the construction of a ‘proud’ masculine identity; and that services which deconstruct hegemonic masculinities, particularly by providing a space where men feel comfortable being emotionally tactile, are likely to be most effective at both alleviating loneliness and promoting overall wellbeing.

scholarly journals The Impact of Late-Life Disability Spectrum on Depressive Symptoms: A Fixed-Effects Analysis of Panel Data

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoling Xiang ◽  
Yong Yang ◽  
Jianjia Cheng ◽  
Ruopeng An
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Self Care ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Late Life ◽  
Compensatory Strategies ◽  
Household Activities ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Reduced Activity

Abstract Objectives This study examines the impact of a previously validated disability spectrum that accounts for compensatory strategies on depressive symptoms in older adults. Methods This study was a secondary data analysis of 2011 through 2018 surveys from the National Health and Aging Trends Study (N = 7,609). The disability spectrum was categorized using a 5-level hierarchical scheme: fully able, successful accommodation, reduced activity, difficulty, and assistance for 12 mobility, self-care, and household activities. The individual fixed-effects panel model was used to examine the impact of this disability spectrum on depressive symptoms. Results Depressive symptoms rose progressively with each successive category on the disability spectrum in descriptive analyses. In fixed-effects models, moving from “fully able” to “successful accommodation” was not associated with significant changes in depressive symptoms; this result held for all self-care and mobility activities. Moving from “fully able” to “reduced activity” was associated with a significant increase in depressive symptoms for 3 household activities (doing laundry, making hot meals, and shopping for groceries) but not for paying bills/banking or keeping track of medications. Going up 2 or more stages above “fully able” on the disability spectrum was associated with a significant increase in depressive symptoms across all 12 activities. Discussion While limitations in a range of daily activities have harmful effects on mental health, using compensatory strategies that do not erode one’s perception of autonomy can help older adults cope with the psychological detriments of late-life disability.

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