Older Adults’ Mental Health Through Leisure Activities During COVID-19: A Scoping Review

Abstract

Older adults are at high risk for mental health distress due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. This scoping review aimed to map emerging evidence on the types of leisure and recreation activities (LRA) adults, 60 years and older, are engaged in for their mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. We identified 10 studies on LRA for mental health by older adults with COVID-19 mitigation from a search of the following databases: Medline/PubMed, Excerpta Medica database (EMBASE), Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, JBI Evidence Synthesis, and Epistemonicos. A narrative synthesis of the data revealed age cohorts of young-old (60–69 years) and middle-old (70–79 years) engaging mainly in online LRA for mental health compared to the older-old adults (80 years and older). The middle-old (70–79 years) and older-old adults (80–89 years) engaged in more physical LRA for mental health compared to the younger-old adults. Across age cohorts, the older adults engaged in social connectedness LRA for mental health wellbeing. COVID-19–safe LRA mental health support interventions for older adults should be tailored to their age cohort predispositions for optimal benefit.

Longitudinal changes in mental health following the COVID-19 lockdown: Results from the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe

“…Among older people (aged 65+ years), loneliness, defined as a discrepancy between desired and real social relations [13] , is most pronounced among those who are less satisfied with their social relationships [14] . Moreover, as older and retired people participate in physical leisure activities and recreational activities to keep socially connected [15] , they may be more susceptible to adverse mental health outcomes such as loneliness when restrictions such as social distancing and isolation are imposed.…”

Longitudinal Changes in Mental Health Following the COVID-19 Lockdown: Results From the Survey of Health Ageing and Retirement in Europe

“…Amongst older people (aged 65 + years), loneliness, defined as a discrepancy between desired and real social relations [13] , is most pronounced amongst those who are less satisfied with their social relationships [14] . Moreover, as older and retired people participate in physical leisure activities and recreational activities to keep socially connected [15] , they may be more susceptible to adverse mental health outcomes, such as loneliness when restrictions such as social distancing and isolation are imposed.…”

Life Conditions as Mediators of Welfare State Effect on Mental Wellbeing among Oldest Old in Europe

“…Longitudinal benefits of economic wellbeing in younger age groups indicates that higher income and/or increases in income are associated with higher levels of certain aspects of psychological wellbeing, such as purpose in life, self-acceptance, personal grown and environmental mastery, paralleling findings from the current study [ 57 ]. Ensuring access to leisure activities in oldest old age may be done by ensuring adequate transport and mobility [ 58 ] and access to day centres [ 59 ] or leisure activities [ 60 ].…”