Search results for ‘Subject term:"older people"’ Sort:
Results 1 - 10 of 34
A pilot study on perceived stress and PTSD symptomatology in relation to four dimensions of older women’s physical health
- Authors:
- LAGANA Luciana, REGER Stacy L.
- Journal article citation:
- Aging and Mental Health, 13(6), November 2009, pp.885-893.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
This study examines the impact of posttraumatic stress disorder symptomatology and stress of a non-traumatic nature on the physical well-being of older women. The subjects, 53 community living ethnically diverse women aged 65-105, were interviewed using various instruments including the Medical Outcome Study 36-item Short Form Health Survey, the Brief Posttraumatic Stress Screening Scale, and the Older Women’s Perceived Stress beyond Health Status Scale. The results indicated that perceived stress was a significant predictor of lower levels of general health but not of role limitations or physical functioning. Posttraumatic stress disorder symptomatology predicted more limitations in role fulfilment and to a lesser extent impaired physical functioning, but not lower levels of general health. The authors conclude that posttraumatic stress disorder symptomatology and perceived stress might alter older women’s physical health dimensions differentially, and that further research is required.
Strategies used by older women with intellectual disability to create and maintain their social networks: an exploratory qualitative study
- Authors:
- WHITE Katharine, MACKENZIE Lynette
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 78(10), 2015, pp.630-639.
- Publisher:
- Sage
Introduction: Social networks are important to health and wellbeing, and enhancing social networks are key occupations for older people. This is relevant for older people with intellectual disability, particularly older women, who face challenges in building social networks, and their social networks are vulnerable to loss as they age. This study aimed to investigate how older women with intellectual disability create and maintain their social networks. Method: This exploratory qualitative study involved conducting in-depth interviews with five women with mild to moderate intellectual disability (as defined by their service organisation) aged over 50 years and living in the community, using the Support Interview Guide, that has previously been used with younger adults with intellectual disability. Participants could communicate in spoken English. Data were coded line by line and analysed using a thematic analysis. Results: Participants created social networks independently and through others. Strategies used included communicating, sharing activities, celebrating special occasions, organising activities, supporting each other, having a routine, being out and about and using formal assistance. Barriers and facilitators were also identified. Conclusion As older women with intellectual disability age, occupational therapists and support organisations need to focus on assisting this group to build and maintain their social networks. (Publisher abstract)
Intimate partner violence and its association with physical and mental health symptoms among older women in Germany
- Authors:
- STOCKL Heidi, PENHALE Bridget
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 30(17), 2015, pp.3089-3111.
- Publisher:
- Sage
Intimate partner violence is a commonly acknowledged health care issue. While numerous studies established the health implications of physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence among women of reproductive age, the evidence is scarce for older women and for other forms of intimate partner violence. This study, therefore, investigates the prevalence of intimate partner violence in its different forms and its association with physical and mental health symptoms of older women, using women of reproductive age as a reference group. This study is a cross-sectional study, utilising data from a national representative survey of 10,264 German women aged 16 to 86 years. Rates of physical and sexual intimate partner violence in the last year decreased from 8% to 3% and 1% among women aged 16 to 49 years, 50 to 65 years, and 66 to 86 years, respectively. The prevalence of emotional and economic abuse and controlling behaviour by partners remained nearly the same. All forms of intimate partner violence had significant associations with women’s health symptoms, such as gastrointestinal, psychosomatic and psychological symptoms, and pelvic problems. Controlling behaviour was most consistently associated with most health symptoms. Health and care professionals who screen women for intimate partner violence should, therefore, consider incorporating questions about controlling behaviour as well, because this form of violence is not only frequent but also has multiple health outcomes among women across all ages. (Edited publisher abstract)
Factors which enhance or inhibit social support: a mixed-methods analysis of social networks in older women
- Authors:
- MCLAUGHLIN Deirdre, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Ageing and Society, 31(1), January 2011, pp.18-33.
- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
Research indicates that older people with a strong perception of social support have lower mortality and morbidity and better self-rated health in later life. However, few studies have thoroughly examined the factors that inhibit or enhance social support. This study used both quantitative data and qualitative texts to explore older women's social networks. It used participants from the 1921-26 cohort of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health. The qualitative data was content analysed by the themes identified from the quantitative analyses. Findings revealed that larger social networks associated with better mental health, widowhood, illness or death of a family member, and no mobility problems. Women who were not Australian-born, had sight problems, or had moved house, were more likely to have smaller social networks. In conclusion, the authors suggest that the findings highlight the importance to older women of being able to access their social networks to gain both psychological and emotional benefits.
Hope, locus of control, and quality of health among elder Latina cancer survivors
- Authors:
- FARONE Diane W., FITZPATRICK Tanya R., BUSHFIELD Suzanne Y.
- Journal article citation:
- Social Work in Health Care, 46(2), 2008, pp.51-70.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
This study uses data from Wave 2 of the Hispanic Established Populations for the Epidemiological Study for the Elderly (H-EPESE), a survey of 3,050 Mexican American older people living in five southwestern states. To examine the effects of locus of control and hope on self-reported health, somatisation, negative affect and restriction of activity, multiple regression analysis was applied to a sub-set of 109 women who reported a diagnosis of cancer. The results show that locus of control was significantly associated with three of these dependent variables, and that hope was significantly associated with more favourable outcomes for all the variables. The implications for social work practice and future research are briefly discussed. (Copies of this article are available from: Haworth Document Delivery Centre, Haworth Press Inc., 10 Alice Street, Binghamton, NY 13904-1580).
Dynamics of health and ageing in Switzerland from a gender perspective
- Authors:
- STUCKELBURGER Astrid, HOPFLINGER Francois
- Journal article citation:
- Ageing International, 24(4), Spring 1998, pp.62-84.
- Publisher:
- Springer
- Place of publication:
- New York
At all ages throughout most social groups, women exhibit a longer life expectancy than men, and therefore are much more affected by all aspects of ageing. However, the 'feminisation of ageing' has, for a long time, been neglected in much of the gerontological or geriatric research. Only in recent decades has research focused more on the way women and men differ in facing changes during their life course. This article examines the issues.
A longitudinal study of well-being in widowed women
- Author:
- BENNETT Kate
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 12(1), January 1997, pp.61-66.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Assesses changes in mental and physical health, morale and social functioning in a random sample of elderly women widowed during the course of an 8-year study, compared with never-married and still-married controls. The sample as a whole showed age-related declines in mental and physical health. As a function of ageing there were increases in personal disturbance and in physical health problems and declines in both morale and social engagement. However, over and above these age-related changes the widows showed significant changes in mental health. There were decreases in morale after widowhood, followed by slight increases in morale in the longer term. Similarly, there were increases in personal disturbance following widowhood, with slight decreases later. The results confirm that, even after several years, widowhood has differential effects on well-being and morale.
Gender differences in the effect of social resources and social status on the retirement satisfaction and health of retirees
- Authors:
- WANG Yihan, MATZ-COSTA Christina
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 62(1), 2019, pp.86-107.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
This study explores the effect of positive and negative social support, social reciprocity, and subjective social status on the retirement satisfaction and health of retirees and gender differences therein. Using cross-sectional data from the 2010 and 2012 waves of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), the authors found that social support seems to matter more for the retirement satisfaction and health of women, while social reciprocity matters more for the health of men and subjective social status for the retirement satisfaction of men. Implications for the development of social programmes and policies over the life course are discussed. (Publisher abstract)
Gender specific standards to improve health and wellbeing for women in prison in England
- Authors:
- PEDEN Jo, et al
- Publisher:
- Public Health England
- Publication year:
- 2018
- Pagination:
- 205
- Place of publication:
- London
These standards set out evidence-based good practice in addressing the health and wellbeing needs of women in prison. The document contains six key principles and 122 standards covering 10 topic areas. The ten topic areas are: general, health and wellbeing; mental health, self-harm and suicide; substance misuse; violence and abuse; sexual and reproductive health; pregnancy and families; older women; nutrition and diet; physical activity; and weight management. The standards have been developed from a literature review of current evidence and reviewed through consultation with national and international experts. They are designed to complement existing national and international health standards and guidance for women in prison. The document will be useful for commissioners of services, service providers and all employees who work in the female prisons. It is also relevant for local authorities and community providers who may provide services to women on leaving prison. (Edited publisher abstract)
Hazardous drinking in people aged 50 years or older: a cross-sectional picture of Europe, 2011–2013
- Authors:
- BOSQUE-Prous Marina, et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 32(8), 2017, pp.817-828.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Objective: To assess gender and age differences in hazardous drinking and to analyse and compare the factors associated with it in men versus women, and in 50 to 64-year-old versus ≥65-year-old people in Europe. Methods: Cross-sectional study with data from 65,955 people aged ≥50 years from 18 countries (SHARE project, 2011–2013). The outcome variable, hazardous drinking, was calculated using an adaptation of the AUDIT-C test. Several individual (sociodemographic, life-style and health factors) and contextual variables (country socioeconomic indicators and alcohol policies) were analysed. The prevalence of hazardous drinking was estimated by each exposure variable. To estimate associations, multilevel Poisson regression models with robust variance were fit, yielding prevalence ratios and their 95% confidence intervals (95%CI). Results: Overall, the prevalence of hazardous drinking was 21.5% (95%CI = 21.1–22.0), with substantial differences between countries. The proportion of hazardous drinking was higher in men than in women [26.3%(95%CI = 25.6–27.1); 17.5%(95%CI = 17.0–18.0), respectively], as well as in middle-aged people than in older people [23.6%(95%CI = 23.0–24.3); 19.2%(95%CI = 18.6–19.8), respectively]. At the individual level, associations were found for migrant background, marital status, educational level, tobacco smoking, depression and self-perceived health. At the contextual level, hazardous drinking was associated with gender inequalities in society (only in women) and alcohol advertising regulations (both genders). Conclusions: One in five people aged ≥50 years in the countries studied is a hazardous drinker, with large differences by countries, gender and age group. Interventions and policies aimed at preventing or reducing alcohol use in this population should account for country, gender and age differences, as well as individual characteristics. (Publisher abstract)