Associations among living alone, social support and social activity in older adults.
Associations among living alone, social support and social activity in older adults.
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DOI：
10.3934/publichealth.2020042
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发表时间：
2020
影响因子：
3.3
通讯作者：
Li W
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Chan E;Procter-Gray E;Churchill L;Cheng J;Siden R;Aguirre A;Li W
我们研究了美国马萨诸塞州伍斯特县社区老年人独居与社会隔离的横断面关联。400名65岁及以上的参与者在社区团体环境中或通过直接邮件招募。参与者被询问生活状况，社会支持，社会活动的频率，社会人口和生活方式因素，以及健康状况。社会孤立的评估缺乏社会支持和减少频率的社会活动。通过参与者佩戴的加速度计和全球定位系统（GPS）测量身体活动（PA），至少连续7天。独居者（N = 110）的社会支持比与他人同住者（N = 290）少（p < 0.001），但他们的社会活动频率没有显着差异。群体设置招募与更大的社会活动密切相关（p < 0.001）。较少的社会支持与高中以下教育（p = 0.001），较高的CES-D抑郁评分（p < 0.001）和较低的PA（p = 0.003）独立相关。较少的社交活动与高中以下教育（p = 0.007）和年收入低于50，000美元（p = 0.01）独立相关。在社会经济上处于不利地位、社会支持较少和独居的老年人更有可能在社会上被孤立，并可能受益于持续的低成本社会活动和增加家庭内的社会支持。识别社会孤立的相关因素可能会为未来的干预提供信息。
We examined cross-sectional associations of living alone with social isolation among community-dwelling older adults in Worcester County, Massachusetts, USA. Four hundred participants 65 years old and older were recruited in community group settings or by direct mail. Participants were queried for living status, social support, frequency of social activity, sociodemographic and lifestyle factors, and health conditions. Social isolation was assessed by lack of social support and decreased frequency of social activity. Physical activity (PA) was measured via an accelerometer and global positioning system (GPS), which was worn by the participant, for at least 7 consecutive days. Participants living alone (N = 110) had less social support than those living with others (N = 290) (p < 0.001) but did not differ significantly in the frequency of their social activities. Group-setting recruitment was strongly associated with greater social activity (p < 0.001). Less social support was independently associated with a less-than-high-school education (p = 0.001), higher CES-D depression score (p < 0.001) and lower PA (p = 0.003). Less social activity was independently associated with a less-than-high-school education (p = 0.007) and annual income less than $50,000 (p = 0.01). Older adults who are socioeconomically disadvantaged, have less social support, and who live alone are more likely to be socially isolated and may benefit from continuation of low-cost social activities and increased social support inside the home. Identifying correlates of social isolation may inform future interventions.