Participation in formal learning activities of older Europeans in poor and good health

The well-being equation: How inner fulfilment drives the impact of older persons on the Ghanaian society

BACKGROUND

Understanding and managing the complex processes of ageing is a critical function of gerontological nursing, especially when it comes to older people's well-being and their contributions to society. Globally, older persons contribute in many ways to families and communities. However, the relationship between older person's overall well-being and their propensity to contribute to society remains an important gap in research.

OBJECTIVE

The study examined the association between well-being and the impact of older persons on Ghanaian society.

METHODS

A secondary analysis of longitudinal survey data of the 2014/15 Study on Global Ageing and Adult Health (SAGE Wave 2) conducted by the World Health Organization was used. The multilevel logistic regression technique was used to examine four dimensions of well-being and their associations with high social contribution among older persons. The output was reported as odds ratios (OR).

RESULTS

The results show that older persons who had high physical and psychological well-being were more likely to contribute to society (OR = 1.25, 95% CI = 0.93, 1.68), (OR = 1.75, 95% CI = 1.32, 2.33). However, those with high levels of emotional and spiritual well-being were less likely to make social contributions (OR = 0.66, 95% CI = 0.49, 0.88), (OR = 0.88, 95% CI = 0.66, 1.18).

CONCLUSION

This study shows a positive association between well-being and older persons' societal impact. Good mental and physical health encourage societal involvement among older persons, while high emotional and spiritual well-being may lead to less societal contribution.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

These findings are important for nursing policies promoting social contribution and well-being among older persons 60 years and over in Ghana.

Active ageing profiles among older adults in Spain: A Multivariate analysis based on SHARE study

BACKGROUND

Following the active ageing model based on the Health, Lifelong Learning, Participation and Security pillars, this research has a twofold objective: i) to classify older adults according to active ageing profiles, taking into account the four pillars, and ii) to ascertain the relationship between the profiles and personal and contextual factors, as well as well-being and quality of life in old age.

METHODS

A study sample of 5,566 Spanish older adults who participated in wave 6 of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) was included. Data were analysed in different steps applying several statistical analyses (Principal Component, Cluster, Discriminant, Multiple Correspondence and bivariate analysis with Pearson chi-square and ANOVA).

RESULTS

Five older adult profiles were obtained (I: with moderate activity; II: quasi-dependents; III: with active ageing-limiting conditions; IV: with diverse and balanced activity; V: with excellent active ageing conditions). The first three profiles were characterised by subjects with a high average age, low educational level, who were retired or housewives, and who perceived a moderate level of loneliness, satisfaction with the social network and quality of life, as well as having a larger family network, but living in small households or alone. In contrast, the latter two profiles showed better personal and contextual conditions, well-being and quality of life.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS

The multidimensional approach to active ageing followed in this article has revealed the presence of several older adult profiles, which are confined to groups with better or worse active ageing conditions. In this context, if ageing is a process that reflects the previous way of life, intervention priorities will have to consider actions that promote better conditions during the life cycle.

Analyzing the Effect of Badminton on Physical Health and Emotion Recognition on the account of Smart Sensors

Emotional ability is an important symbol of human intelligence. Human's understanding of emotions, from subjective consciousness to continuous or discrete emotional dimensions, and then to physiological separability, has shown a trend of gradually diverging from psychological research to the field of intelligent human-computer interaction. This article is aimed at studying the effects of smart sensor-based emotion recognition technology and badminton on physical health. It proposes a method of using smart sensor technology to recognize badminton movements and emotions during the movement. And the impact of emotion recognition based on smart sensors and badminton sports on physical health is carried out in this article. Experimental results show that the emotion recognition technology based on smart sensors can well recognize the changes in people's emotions during badminton sports, and the accuracy of emotion recognition is higher than 70%. At the same time, experiments show that badminton can greatly improve people's physical fitness and strengthen people's physique.

Multimorbidity and Social Participation Is Moderated by Purpose in Life and Life Satisfaction

OBJECTIVES

We examined the association between multimorbidity and social participation and whether purpose in life and life satisfaction moderate this relationship.

METHODS

Participants were 12,825 Health and Retirement Study adults. We used multiple linear regression to examine the association between a cumulative-updated multimorbidity-weighted index (MWI) and social participation.

RESULTS

Among adults with average purpose in life or life satisfaction, MWI was associated with lower social participation. For those with above average purpose in life, each 1-point increase in MWI was associated with a 0.11-point (95% confidence interval [CI]: [0.07, 0.14]) better social participation score. Participants with above average life satisfaction experienced a 0.04-point (95% CI: [0.02, 0.07]) better social participation score with each 1-point increase in MWI.

DISCUSSION

Multimorbidity was associated with worse social participation, but this was reversed by above average purpose in life and life satisfaction. Interventions that improve well-being should be assessed to enhance social participation among older adults with any degree of multimorbidity.

The Role of Self-Esteem in the Relationship Between Loneliness and Life Satisfaction in Late Adulthood: Evidence from Poland

Background

The life satisfaction of elderly persons has been extensively investigated and discussed. However, a literature review shows that relatively few studies have focused on the effect of loneliness on the life satisfaction of older adults. Some researchers have acknowledged that the character of the relationship between loneliness and life satisfaction is still unclear, and this association is much more complex that it appears to be. Therefore, the main purpose of the current study was to understand how loneliness is associated with satisfaction, and whether self-esteem and educational involvement in the University of the Third Age (U3A) courses can affect this relationship among elderly people.

Methods

The research was conducted on a group of 179 elderly adults (65% women). We measured loneliness, satisfaction, and self-esteem. The data were collected via the paper-and-pencil format through convenience sampling, just before the COVID-19 pandemic began.

Results

The results obtained show that loneliness correlated negatively with self-esteem and life satisfaction. Self-esteem was associated positively with life satisfaction. Self-esteem acted as a suppressor between loneliness and life satisfaction. The participation of older adults in U3A moderated the strength of the relationship between loneliness and life satisfaction (direct effect) and between loneliness and life satisfaction mediated by self-esteem (indirect effect).

Conclusion

The mediatory role of self-esteem and the moderating role of educational activities in the relationship between loneliness and life satisfaction in late adulthood have important developmental and social implications. It appears that although feelings of loneliness and social isolation have a negative association on the life satisfaction of older adults, this relationship may be altered by empowering seniors’ self-esteem through their involvement in lifelong learning. Such a solution supports the functioning of older people also at the social level.

The association of mobility limitation and social networks in relation to late-life activity

The current study examines the interaction between mobility limitations and social networks in relation to activity in later life. Although the importance of activity participation to successful ageing has been well established, it is still unclear what contributes to higher levels of activity. This research addresses this issue, using data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe. The analysis focuses on a sub-sample of respondents aged 60 and older, from 13 countries, who participated in two specific waves, in 2011 and 2013. Multivariate analysis of the longitudinal data was conducted using hierarchical generalised Poisson regression and incorporating a new comprehensive social network scale. The inquiry found that having multiple mobility limitations is associated with less activity and that having a resourceful social network contributes to more activity. The research further revealed that social network is particularly beneficial to those with multiple mobility limitations because it mitigates the negative association with activity. This conclusion furthers the understanding of the relationship between different key dimensions in the successful ageing paradigm. Specifically, the findings imply the significance of having a social network among those who are functionally challenged. This finding has important implications for active ageing policies.