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Coping with loneliness: what do older adults suggest?
- Authors:
- SCHOENMAKERS Eric C., TILBURG Theo G. van, FOKKEMA Tineke
- Journal article citation:
- Aging and Mental Health, 16(3), April 2012, pp.353-360.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
Loneliness is common among old people. High levels of loneliness in old age are generally linked to widowhood, shrinking social networks, and health problems. Ways of coping with loneliness can be categorised into 2 types: active coping by improving relationships; and regulative coping by lowering expectations about relationships. This study explored how often older adults suggest these options to their lonely peers in various situations, and to what extent individual resources influence their suggestions. The participants were 1187 respondents aged 62–100 years from the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam. The participants were presented with 4 written vignettes of lonely individuals, discriminated with regard to age, partner status, and health, were asked whether this loneliness can be alleviated by using various ways of coping. In general, the respondents suggested both ways of coping. However, active coping was suggested less often to people who are older, in poor health, or lonely and by older adults who were employed in midlife and have high self-esteem. Regulative coping was suggested more often to people who are older and by older adults with a low educational level and with low mastery. The problems of developing interventions to combat loneliness are discussed.
God image and mood in old age: results from a community-based pilot study in the Netherlands
- Authors:
- BRAAM Arjan W., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Mental Health Religion and Culture, 11(2), March 2008, pp.221-237.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
Religious involvement is frequently found to be associated with less depression in later life. As part of a pilot study of the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam, a small sample of 60 older church-members, aged 68-93, filled out a questionnaire, including the Questionnaire God Image on feelings to God and perceptions of God, two of the God Image Scales designed by Lawrence on perceptions of God, the brief positive and negative religious coping scale designed by Pargament, and items on hopelessness, depressive symptoms, and feelings of guilt. Feelings of discontent towards God correlated positively with hopelessness, depressive symptoms, feelings of guilt, and also with depressive symptoms assessed 13 years earlier; these findings pertained to Protestant participants in particular. Most facets of God image, positive, critical, and about punishment reappraisals, were associated with more feelings of guilt. A possible explanation for the most pervasive finding, that feelings of discontent towards God are related to depressive symptoms, is that both, throughout life, remain rooted in insecure attachment styles.
Predictors of response to the ‘Coping with Depression’ course for older adults: a field study
- Authors:
- HARINGSMA R., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Aging and Mental Health, 10(4), July 2006, pp.424-434.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
This field study explored the prognostic factors of the immediate and long-term effects of the Coping with Depression course for older adults (CWD). With the aim of both indicated as well as secondary prevention, the course is provided by the prevention departments of the community mental health care system in the Netherlands. A total of 317 course participants (age 55–85 years; 69% female) took part in this study; 41% had a major depressive disorder (MDD). A variety of demographic, clinical, psychosocial and treatment factors of possible relevance for indicated and secondary prevention were investigated. Random coefficient regression models and logistic regression models were used to examine their contribution to the immediate and maintenance effect. The course was beneficial for all participants, and the level of depression reached at the end of the course was maintained over the next 14-months. Current MDD, high levels of anxiety, less previous depressive episodes and more education predicted a larger benefit. However, the clinical significance of these predictors was too small to justify further triage. Further treatment should be considered for the participants with a post-treatment score ≥16. Group-membership was not a significant predictor of the variation in effect.
Effects of an intervention promoting proactive coping competencies in middle and late adulthood
- Authors:
- BODE Christina, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Gerontologist, 47(1), February 2007, pp.42-51.
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
The authors tested the effectiveness of a brief educational program that is based on proactive coping theory. The program entails a four-session group intervention for people aged between 50 and 75 years and was intended to improve proactive coping competencies. The positive as well as negative side effects and differential effectiveness of the program were also investigated. A total of 158 middle aged and older men and women participated in the study. In a prospective randomized control trial with an experimental group and a waiting control group, questionnaire data at three points (baseline, after completion of the program, and 3 months post intervention) were collected. The sessions involved: identifying the advantages of preparing oneself for the future; the recognition and handling of early warning signals in the process of ageing and proactive ways of handling these signals; helping participants specify strategies for reaching their personal goal; in the last session participants evaluated the attempts to reach the individual goal. The program improved proactive coping competencies significantly. Three months after completion of the intervention, these results remained stable. Nearly all effect sizes in the experimental group were medium or higher. The program did not have negative side effects in terms of worrying or negative mood, and it did not change levels of self-efficacy. Demographic characteristics of participants did not predict changes in proactive competencies. Differential effectiveness could only be shown for a few psychological characteristics: Lower levels of well-being, higher levels of proactive orientation, and lower levels in the consideration of future consequences of one's own behaviour predicted an increase in proactive coping competencies. Participants who formulated personal goals in concrete terms also profited more from the intervention. Conceptualizing proactive coping as a set of competencies allows the translation of this approach into interventions. Competencies that facilitate future-oriented self-regulation can be improved by a brief educational program in middle and late adulthood.
How older persons explain why they became victims of abuse
- Authors:
- MYSYUK Yuliya, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Age and Ageing, 45(5), 2016, pp.96-702.
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
Background: Elder abuse greatly impacts the quality of life of older individuals. Prevalence rates range from 3 to 30% depending on the definition used. Only about a dozen studies have explored how older victims themselves experience and explain abuse. It is essential that healthcare professionals understand the perceptions of older victims as they are among the most important groups to handle and report abuse. Design: A qualitative study on the perceptions and experiences of victims of elder abuse was conducted using in-depth semi-structured interviews. Setting: Abused individuals living independently, in residential care facilities and nursing homes. Subjects: six males and 11 females aged 63–90 years. Results: The main causes of abuse identified by older victims themselves were mutual dependency between victim and perpetrator, power and control imbalances, loneliness and a marginalised social position of older persons. Effects of abuse included negative feelings, physical and psychological distress, a change of personal norms and values, changed perspectives on money and low self-efficacy. These differential effects depended upon the types of abuse experienced and the relationship with the perpetrator. Coping strategies mentioned by victims were seeking informal or professional help and using self-help strategies. Conclusion: Older victims perceive abuse differently depending on the expected acceptability of the type(s) of abuse experienced and the anticipated stigma associated with the perpetrator involved. The effects and chosen coping strategies are influenced by these considerations and therewith also influence their help-seeking behaviour. Healthcare professionals are encouraged to use these findings in practice to prevent, detect and intervene in elder abuse. (Publisher abstract)