Momentary loneliness and intrusive thoughts among older adults: the interactive roles of mild cognitive impairment and marital status.

Objectives: Loneliness is associated with maladaptive cognitions, yet little is known about the association between loneliness and intrusive thinking during older adulthood. Links between loneliness and intrusive thoughts may be particularly strong among individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), who may have greater difficulty regulating emotion and intrusive thoughts. In contrast, having close relationships (e.g. being married) may serve as a protective factor as marital status is associated with better overall well-being.

Method: Participants were 316 older adults (recruited from the Bronx, NY, as part of a larger study) without dementia at study intake (40% Black; 13% Hispanic, M_age = 77.45 years, 67% women) who completed ecological momentary assessments five times daily for 14 consecutive days (13,957 EMAs total). Multilevel modeling was used to examine the association between momentary loneliness and intrusive thoughts and whether MCI and marital status interacted to moderate this association.

Results: There was a significant three-way interaction (β = -0.17, p < 0.05), such that lagged momentary loneliness was positively associated with intrusive thoughts (3-4 h later) for those with MCI who were not married.

Conclusion: Findings suggest that among older adults with MCI, being married may be a protective factor and being unmarried may be a risk factor for experiencing loneliness and subsequent intrusive thoughts.