Dataset Information

Types of social participation and psychological distress in Japanese older adults: A five-year cohort study.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

The most effective type of social participation against psychological distress in older adults is not well documented. The aim of this study was to examine whether different types of social participation are associated with changes in psychological distress level in older men and women in Japan.

Methods

Two thousand seven hundred community-dwelling older adults (aged 65-74 years, 50% women) were randomly selected from the resident registry of three cities. Of these, participants who reported social participation and psychological distress level in the baseline survey in 2010 were followed up. Psychological distress was evaluated based on K6 scales at baseline and follow-up (in 2015). Social participation level was examined using question items from the National Health and Nutrition Survey in Japan. Exploratory factor analysis was used to derive the underlying factor structure. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to examine the association between social participation and changes in psychological distress level after adjusting for covariates stratified by both gender and age group or living arrangement.

Results

Data from 825 community-dwelling older adults (45.3% women) were analyzed. Social participation was categorized into two types using factor analysis: community involvement (volunteer activities, community events, clubs for the elderly) and individual relationship (friendship, communication with family and friends, hobbies). During the 5-year follow-up, 29.5% of participants reported a deterioration in psychological distress. Higher community involvement was independently associated with lower risk of psychological distress for older women (? = 0.099, p = 0.047), whereas there were no associations with individual relationship for either gender. Furthermore, in older women living with others, higher community involvement was also associated with lower risk of psychological distress (? = 0.110, p = 0.048).

Conclusion

Community involvement provides older women with mental health benefits regardless of individual relationship level. Promoting community involvement may be an effective strategy for healthy mental aging.

SUBMITTER: Amagasa S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5384679 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Types of social participation and psychological distress in Japanese older adults: A five-year cohort study.

Amagasa Shiho S Fukushima Noritoshi N Kikuchi Hiroyuki H Oka Koichiro K Takamiya Tomoko T Odagiri Yuko Y Inoue Shigeru S

PloS one 20170407 4

<h4>Introduction</h4>The most effective type of social participation against psychological distress in older adults is not well documented. The aim of this study was to examine whether different types of social participation are associated with changes in psychological distress level in older men and women in Japan.<h4>Methods</h4>Two thousand seven hundred community-dwelling older adults (aged 65-74 years, 50% women) were randomly selected from the resident registry of three cities. Of these, p ...[more]

PMID: 28388661

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Project description:OBJECTIVES:Social isolation is a particular problem among older people and social participation may reduce future isolation. However, it is unclear which types of activities and which level of participation are effective. This study examines the relationship between social participation and isolation among Japanese older people by employing a 3-year longitudinal study. METHODS:A mail survey was sent to 3,518 community-dwelling older people in an urban area in 2014 (baseline: BL). We then conducted follow-up mail survey on respondents who were non-isolated at BL in 2017 (follow-up: FL), with isolation being defined as being in contact with others less than once a week. An analysis was carried out on 1,070 subjects (398 men and 672 women). Social participation is defined by participation in group activities (community, senior club, hobbies, sports, volunteering, politics, industry, and religion). A logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine the association between the types of social participation and the number of organization types at BL, and isolation at FL. RESULTS:At FL, 75 men (18.8%) and 59 women (8.8%) were considered to be isolated. Among the men, participation in a hobby group and sports group both significantly reduced the degree of isolation. Moreover, participation in two organizations and three or more organizations significantly lowered the risk of isolation when compared to non-participants. Among women, there were no significant associations among particular types of social activities and isolation. On the other hand, participation in one organization and three or more organizations significantly reduced their isolation when compared to non-participants. There was a significant linear trend between the number of types of organizations and isolation, regardless of gender. CONCLUSIONS:Participation in social activities reduces future isolation in older people. Encouraging participation in social activities could help reduce negative health outcomes associated with social isolation later in life.

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Dataset Information

Types of social participation and psychological distress in Japanese older adults: A five-year cohort study.

Introduction

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Publications

Types of social participation and psychological distress in Japanese older adults: A five-year cohort study.

Similar Datasets

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