Ageing International最新文献

Older adults, as the most vulnerable group, are affected by decreased functional abilities and changes in physical status, such as cognitive, social, and psychological function. This study aims to investigate the validation of the Spiritual Well-being Scale (SWBS) and its role in predicting hope in Iranian older adults. 812 Iranian older adults—aged 60 years and older—participated in this study. Participants were asked to complete a demographic questionnaire, the Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS), the Resilience Scale, the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale -21 (DASS-21), and the Adult Hope Scale. The psychometric properties of the SWBS were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), while its reliability was tested using Cronbach's alpha. Discriminant validity was measured by examining the relationship with the DASS-21 subscales, and convergent validity was assessed using resilience. In addition, multiple regression analysis was used to predict hope by the SWBS subscales. The four-factor structure provided good agreement with the data. The SWBS had significant negative associations with the subscales of the DASS-21, and there was a significant positive correlation between SWBS and resilience. The results indicate that SWBS significantly predicts hope among older adults. The Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS) has good validity for older adults in Iran and can be used in psychological assessments in the Iranian context.

Sarcopenia is one of the several syndromes that affect older adults individuals, being a growing area in the number of scientific productions. To compare the presence of sarcopenia among sedentary and active older adults, practitioners of different models of physical training. 115 individuals, aged 60 years or older, were evaluated for the presence of sarcopenia, according to the recommendations of the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People. The subjects were divided into 3 groups: a group of 47 sedentary older adults (CON), a group with 30 older adults practicing physical training with emphasis on resistance (RES), and a group of 38 older adults practicing physical training with aerobic emphasis (AER). Individuals still responded to the Wide Geriatric Anamnesis. The prevalence of sarcopenia was lower in RES (p < 0.001). Of the sarcopenia indicators, the skeletal muscle mass was the only one that did not present significant difference. However, strength and performance showed a statistically significant difference in favor of the resistance group (p < 0.001 and p = 0.006, respectively). The total prevalence of sarcopenia was 37.4%, being 46.8% in CON, 6.6% in RES and 37.3% in AER. Resistance training is effective on the counterattack and control of sarcopenia among the subjects assessed, with no difference in the presence of sarcopenia among training practitioners with emphasis aerobic, or sedentary.

Physical frailty has been described as a complex geriatric syndrome. Independent of frailty, older people have been showing an increased health care services utilization. The objective is to assess an interaction effect between frailty and education on the association with the use of health services in community-dwelling older Brazilians. This is a cross-sectional study. The study was conducted with community-dwelling older Brazilian individuals. The sample had 5,473 older adults derived from the FIBRA Study. The definition of frailty was made using the physical frailty phenotype. The level of education was assessed by complete years of schooling. The use of health services was assessed by the occurrence of hospitalization, for individuals receiving home visits and having attended four or more medical consults in the past 12 months. The robust Poisson regression model with a robust error variance was used to estimate the prevalence ratio (PR) and its 95% confidence intervals to set the association between frailty and use of health services, considering the interaction between frailty and education in final model. Considering all sample, 16.4% were hospitalized, 14.1% received home visits, and 48.2% attended four or more medical consults. The interaction term between frailty and education was statistically significant only for hospitalization, showing a higher prevalence of health services utilization among pre-frail (PR1.68 95% CI 1.15–2.47) and frail (PR1.77 95% CI 1.08–2.90) older individuals with low education compared to non-frail highly educated peers. Low-educated and frail older people were more likely to be hospitalized and should be carefully looked after by health professionals.

This study aimed to analyze the effects of exergaming and resistance training on reaction time in older adults and to investigate intraindividual variability in reaction time. Thirty-six participants (62.1 ± 7.1 years), randomly assigned to exergaming (n = 17) or resistance training (n = 19) groups, underwent two protocols of physical training carried out three times a week for 13 weeks. The exergaming program was based on games from Kinect Sports and Kinect Adventures collections using a console Xbox 360 Kinect. In the resistance-training program, each session consisted of ten full-body exercises using free weights and weight machines. Outcomes were reaction time in simple (finger-press test) and complex (Stroop test) tasks and intraindividual variability. A mixed model analysis of variance was conducted, and effects sizes were calculated. Interactions effects revealed no significant differences between groups before and after 13 weeks of training. Regarding the main effects, only the exergaming group showed a significant (p = 0.041) and relevant decrease in reaction time in a complex task (neutral test) when compared to the pre- (1854 ± 732 ms) and post-tests (1530 ± 521 ms). The resistance-training group showed a trend (relevant effect size) of improvement in intraindividual variability in reaction time. These results suggest that both interventions could benefit the cognitive function of older adults. Exergaming improves the reaction time in a complex task, and resistance training improves the intraindividual variability. However, exergaming was not superior to resistance training in any of the outcomes. Trial Registration: Brazilian Clinical Trials Registry (RBR-7fh22d/) on 06/07/2019, retrospectively registered.

Rural areas are becoming more and more concerned about their aging population and perceived loss of youth. Analysts see the older members of communities as a burden, and focus their development strategies on attracting and retaining the young. In doing so, they may be missing the value that elders’ civic engagement can provide to rural community development. This qualitative study, based on interviews with 40 elders in mostly rural areas of Wisconsin, in the United States, shows the benefits that their civic engagement brings to rural areas. They have biographical availability, political and economic freedom, and life-long experience to offer. They do face some challenges, including occasional health issues, lack of technological agility, and change-resistant peers. The paper concludes by considering how communities can better access and honour elder civic engagement, including understanding elders’ motivations and skills for civic engagement.

This study measures care views towards older persons with disabilities using Trinidad as a case study. A questionnaire is first developed based on Daly and Lewis’ (2000) three-dimensional concept of care which is then administered to a representative sample of adults in Trinidad. Results from 868 respondents reveal six dimensions of care, with care as a duty having the same prevalence as four other views, namely, care as labour, a cost to the individual, a cost to other relatives, and a financial burden. Regression analysis is conducted to determine the significant factors for each dimension. Ethnicity, employment status, education, and experiences with persons with disabilities have varying and sometimes conflicting effects on the care dimensions. The explicit influence of gender on the care views is also investigated. Overall, the findings are discussed within the ethics of care framework to ensure various care needs are met.

Life in a community is marked by a social fabric that gives meaning to one’s life. Older adults shifting to institutional living face the problem of an abrupt change in their social environment, often paired with a loss of social identity that had been constructed within the social fabric. In many Asian countries, including India, a considerable number of older adults shift to institutions for reasons other than the need for medical support. Traditional research on older adults living in institutions focuses on the role loss and psychological discomforts of institutional living. The current study is a counter-narrative on how the social fabric of the institutions serve as a platform in which older adults form ties and relationships to construct a new meaningful identity. The research has employed a mixed methodology approach and a sequential exploratory design, sampling 62 older adults from two randomly selected institutions for seniors in Ernakulam, Kerala. The findings suggest that older adults experience a role loss and identity crisis during the initial transfer to institutions, which is gradually compensated to an extent through networking and identifying oneself as a member of the institutional family. In-degree centrality from fellow residents and out-degree centrality towards fellow residents and professionals in the institution significantly impact the ‘Satisfaction with Life’ of the respondents. The findings suggest that institutionalised older adults rely on reciprocal ties and relationships to rediscover their roles and identity, which in turn help them age successfully.

This study investigated associations among loneliness, social support, social participation, and well-being among the Japanese elderly. We predicted that the negative association between loneliness and well-being would be weaker in people with adequate social support and frequent social participation. We measured ikigai and life satisfaction as indices of well-being. Ikigai and life satisfaction both include satisfaction with a person’s current and past life, yet ikigai also includes unique concepts such as satisfaction with social interactions and positive expectations for the future. Data of 418 Japanese aged 75 and older were analyzed; findings demonstrated that loneliness was negatively related to ikigai but not life satisfaction. There was a significant interaction between loneliness and social support for life satisfaction and ikigai. The interaction between loneliness and the frequency of social participation was significant only for ikigai. Post-hoc analysis indicated that social support and social participation frequency were negatively related to the negative association between loneliness and well-being, especially ikigai. These results suggest that ikigai and life satisfaction have a differential relationship to loneliness and social interaction because the concept of ikigai uniquely included perceived social roles.

We investigated if cultural activities are associated with improved quality of life experiences of older people. In 2012, older people in five care units were invited to participate more cultural activities (study group) than usual. Each person in the study group had a tailored cultural plan integrated into the care plan. Older people in traditional care units (control group) did not have such cultural plans.

One hundred sixty-one persons from care units in two cities in Finland participated in 2012 and 161 persons in 2014 in a cross-sectional study. Their quality of life was assessed with the World Health Organization’s Quality of Life WHOQOL-BREF (Field Tríal Version) enquiry. The quality of life variable contained four domains: physical, psychosocial, social and environment. The values of these domains underwent multivariate analysis of variance of the following explanatory variables: intervention group, age (</= to 80 compared to >80 years old), education background, marital status, gender and comorbidities. The domains of the participants’ self-rated experience were also assessed.

The quality of life experience was similar at baseline in 2012 in both study groups. In 2014 the study group rated the quality of life (p<0.0001 respectively) and satisfaction with health (p=0.001 respectively) higher than the control group.

Older people in care units need cultural activities as a necessary part of their care. The care provided in the care units does not put enough emphasis on this need. With individually tailored cultural activities set down in a cultural plan, care providers can ensure a better quality of life for older people.