results help to define successful aging as a multidimensional construct having both objective and subjective dimensions, provide greater clarity regarding its correlates, and increase understanding of its modifiable aspects.
Results add rigor to the measurement of a construct that has intrigued philosophers and scientists for hundreds of years, providing the empirical foundation on which to build research about successful aging.
Background and Objectives The Coronavirus-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has created unique stressors for older people to manage. Informed by the Stress Process Model and the Transactional Model of Stress and Coping, we examined the extent to which older people are adhering to physical distancing mandates and the pandemic-related experiences that older people find most challenging. Research Design and Methods From May 4 to May 17, 2020, a web-based questionnaire focused on the COVID-19 pandemic was completed by 1,272 people (aged 64+) who were part of an on-going research panel in New Jersey recruited in 2006. Frequencies for endorsement of physical distancing behaviors were tabulated and open-ended responses to the biggest challenge of the pandemic were systematically coded and classified using content analysis. Results More than 70% of participants reported adhering to physical distancing behaviors. Experiences appraised as most difficult by participants fell into eight domains: Social Relationships, Activity Restrictions, Psychological, Health, Financial, Global Environment, Death, and Home Care. The most frequently appraised challenges were constraints on social interactions (42.4%) and restrictions on activity (30.9%). Discussion and Implications In the initial weeks of the pandemic, the majority of older adults reported adhering to COVID-19 physical distancing mandates and identified a range of challenging experiences. Results highlight the factors having the greatest impact on older adults, informing quantitative modeling for testing the impact of the pandemic on health and well-being outcomes and identifying how intervention efforts may be targeted to maximize the quality of life of older adults.
These analyses examine the longitudinal relationships between depressive symptoms and marital satisfaction over a two year period of time as they are experienced by 315 patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD) and their spouses. Using multilevel modeling we examine both individual and cross-partner effects of depressive symptoms and marital satisfaction on patients and spouses, testing bidirectional causality. Results indicate that mean and time varying depressive symptoms of both patients and spouses are associated with their own marital satisfaction. Although mean marital satisfaction is associated with own depressive symptoms for both patients and spouses, time varying marital satisfaction does not affect depressive symptoms for either patients or spouses. Significant cross-partner effects reveal that both mean enduring and time varying depressive symptoms of the spouse affect marital satisfaction of the patients. Findings highlight the complex nature of the relationship between depressive symptoms and marital satisfaction in late life couples. Keywords marital satisfaction; depressive symptoms; multilevel modeling; marital dyad; late-life marriagesThe robust cross-sectional associations between marital satisfaction and both diagnosed depression and depressive symptomatology (Davila, Karney, Hall, & Bradbury, 2003;Proulx, Helms, & Buehler, 2007; Whisman, 2001) has led investigators to develop longitudinal studies examining the extent and direction of causality between these constructs. However, research has been limited by an almost exclusive emphasis on samples of young, healthy newlyweds, and by analytic methods that treat the individual as the unit of analysis. (Beach, Davey, & Fincham, 1999;Davila et al., 2003;Fincham, Beach, Harold, & Osborne, 1997;Kurdek, 1998). Our analyses build on this literature, extending knowledge to the ways in which depressive symptoms relate to marital satisfaction among couples in late life marriages who are coping with the exigencies of chronic disease. The prevalence of these couples, at high risk for both depressive symptoms and marital dissatisfaction, will continue to increase as advances in medicine keep both members of couples functioning well into their later years. We examine depressive symptoms and marital satisfaction over a two year period of time as they are experienced by patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD) and their spouses, analyzing both individual and cross-partner effects and testing directionality from depressive symptoms to marital satisfaction and from marital satisfaction to depressive symptoms. Publisher's Disclaimer:The following manuscript is the final accepted manuscript. It has not been subjected to the final copyediting, fact-checking, and proofreading required for formal publication. It is not the definitive, publisher-authenticated version. The American Psychological Association and its Council of Editors disclaim any responsibility or liabilities for errors or omissions of this manuscript version, any version derived from th...
Researchers should use convenience samples cautiously, as they may have limited generalizability.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.