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Social contact is known to be vital for older adults' mental and physical health, but few studies of social interactions have taken place in long-term care settings. The current study investigated whether the psychological well-being of assisted living residents was influenced by factors associated with residents' social interactions involving humor. living settings are guaranteed their own private rooms and bathrooms, thus eliminating one potential source of variability from the present study. Research has established that positive social interactions are related to older adults' mental health and well-being (Billings & Moos, 1981; Cohen & Wills, 1985). Such interactions, or exchanges, help older adults to maintain a sense of meaning in life (Krause, 2004), feel understood and appreciated (Rook, 1987), and experience a sense of self-worth (Krause, 2003). Conversely, the absence of social ties has been shown to put older adults at greater risk for depression (Oxman, Berkman, Kasl, Freeman, & Barrett, 1992;) and cognitive decline (Bassuk, Glass, & Berkman, 1999; Fratiglioni, Wang, Ericsson, Maytan, & Winblad, 2000). In fact, loneliness has been associated with an increased risk of late-life dementia (Wilson, Krueger, Arnold, Schneider, Kelly et al, 2007). Recent work has also begun to consider the detrimental effects of negative exchanges (see Rook, 1992). Negative exchanges can range in severity from major transgressions, such as physical or financial abuse, to minor annoyances, such as a thoughtless act by an acquaintance. Not surprisingly, negative interactions and social strain are potent factors in creating psychological distress (Antonucci, Akiyama, &

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Objectives Age-associated accelerated declines in physical health vary across individuals, and researchers have suggested that individual differences in decline may vary as a function of stressors. The relation of one such stressor, negative social exchanges, to accelerated declines in self-rated health is investigated. Method Participants are from a 2-year, 5-wave, national, longitudinal study of social relationships among older adults. Growth curve analyses are used to examine the relation of negative and positive social exchanges to accelerated changes in self-rated health, controlling for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, and depressive symptoms. Results: Individuals reporting more frequent negative social exchanges showed significantly accelerated declines in physical health. Positive social exchanges were not related to linear or accelerated declines in self-rated health over time. Discussion: The association between negative social exchanges and accelerated deterioration in self-rated health provides general support for hypotheses that interpersonal stressors play an important role age-related physical health decline.

Oregon legislation requires assisted living (AL) communities to report selected quality measures to the state licensing agency. The Quality Measurement Program (QMP) includes five metrics that assess different areas of resident safety and wellbeing: falls, antipsychotic medication use, staff training, staff retention, and resident satisfaction. This paper describes findings based on our 2019 survey of AL communities and offers suggestions for stakeholders interested in public reporting and quality metrics. Assisted living providers reported 28% of AL residents and 38% of memory care (MC) residents fell at least once in the prior 90 days, with 39% and 45% reporting an injury, respectively. Antipsychotic medication use was 20% among AL and 44% among MC residents. These findings and the survey methods used to collect them, combined with stakeholder and state agency staff participation, informed the current QMP approach. We describe how to collect meaningful quality metrics within the AL context.