1
|
Martin CL, Ghastine L, Wegienka G, Wise LA, Baird DD, Vines AI. Early Life Disadvantage and the Risk of Depressive Symptoms among Young Black Women. J Racial Ethn Health Disparities 2024; 11:1819-1828. [PMID: 37380937 DOI: 10.1007/s40615-023-01654-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2022] [Revised: 05/19/2023] [Accepted: 05/24/2023] [Indexed: 06/30/2023]
Abstract
OVERVIEW We examined the association between early-life socioeconomic disadvantage and depressive symptoms in adulthood and assessed whether social factors in adulthood modify the association. METHODS The 11-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D) assessed adult depressive symptoms among 1612 Black women and other participants with a uterus (hereafter participants) in the Study of Environment, Lifestyle and Fibroids. Baseline self-reported childhood factors (i.e., parents in the household, mother's educational attainment, food insecurity, neighborhood safety, childhood income, and quiet bedroom for sleep) were included in a latent class analysis to derive an early life disadvantage construct. Multivariable log-binomial models estimated the association between early life disadvantage and adult depressive symptoms. Potential effect modifiers included adult educational attainment, social support, and financial difficulty. RESULTS Participants classified as having high early life disadvantage had 1.34 times (95% CI: 1.20, 1.49) the risk of high depressive symptoms than those in the low early life disadvantage class after adjusting for age, first born status, and childhood health. Adult educational attainment and social support modified the association. CONCLUSION Early life disadvantage increased the risk of depressive symptoms in adulthood. Participants with at least some college education and with high social support had greater risk than those with less than college education and low social support, respectively. Thus, the mental health of Black women and other participants with a uterus exposed to early life disadvantage do not necessarily benefit from higher education or from social support.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Chantel L Martin
- Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
| | - Lea Ghastine
- Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
| | - Ganesa Wegienka
- Department of Public Health Sciences, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit, MI, USA
| | - Lauren A Wise
- Department of Epidemiology, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Donna D Baird
- Epidemiology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA
| | - Anissa I Vines
- Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Muhammad T, Kumar P, Srivastava S. How socioeconomic status, social capital and functional independence are associated with subjective wellbeing among older Indian adults? A structural equation modeling analysis. BMC Public Health 2022; 22:1836. [PMID: 36180950 PMCID: PMC9523926 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-022-14215-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2022] [Accepted: 09/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Subjective well-being (SWB) is of particular interest among gerontologists and health researchers with important implications for interventions especially in poor-resource settings. This study aimed to explore the possible pathways from socioeconomic status (SES), functional independence and social capital towards SWB among older adults in India. Methods Cross-sectional data from the “Building a Knowledge Base on Population Aging in India” (BKPAI) survey with a total sample of 9231 older adults aged 60 years and above were used. The outcome variable was low SWB (LSWB). The study used univariate and bivariate analysis for reporting the initial results. Further, the study employed the structural equation modeling (SEM) technique using maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) procedure to estimate the covariance matrix. Results Overall, about 27% of older adults reported LSWB. Reporting LSWB was more prevalent among older adults who had no income (30.8%) and those who had income but not sufficient to fulfil their basic needs (39.4%, p < 0.001). The prevalence of reporting LSWB was significantly higher among older adults who had no asset ownership (36.5%, p < 0.001) than those who had asset ownership. The path from the SEM shows that LSWB and SES are negatively related to each other. Moreover, LSWB had significant negative relationship with independence (β = -0.032, p < 0.001) and social capital (β = -0.020; p < 0.001). In addition, results found a positive relationship between SES and independence (β = 0.019; p < 0.001), SES and social capital (β = 0.016; p < 0.001), and independence and social capital (β = 0.033; p < 0.001). Conclusions The findings highlight that higher SES, good physical functioning as well as favorable social capital are interdependent factors of late-life wellbeing and a multidimensional approach in policymaking can ensure a successful and active ageing among older Indian adults. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-022-14215-4.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- T Muhammad
- International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, 400088
| | - Pradeep Kumar
- International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, 400088
| | - Shobhit Srivastava
- International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, 400088.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
MuhammadJoy TM. Does childhood financial status relate to satisfaction in late life: Findings from the Longitudinal Aging Study in India. AGING AND HEALTH RESEARCH 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ahr.2022.100054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022] Open
|
4
|
Hansen S, Kaspar R, Wagner M, Woopen C, Zank S. The NRW80+ study: conceptual background and study groups. Z Gerontol Geriatr 2021; 54:76-84. [PMID: 34570267 PMCID: PMC8551117 DOI: 10.1007/s00391-021-01970-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2021] [Accepted: 08/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Background The study “Quality of life and well-being of the very old in North Rhine-Westphalia NRW80+” aims at giving a representative picture of the quality of life (QoL) in this population. Conceptually, QoL research has rarely considered the values of older individuals themselves and societal values, and their relevance for successful life conduct. Empirically, comparisons of different age groups over the age of 80 years are rare and hampered by quickly decreasing numbers of individuals in oldest age groups in the population of very old individuals. Study design and theoretical framework This paper describes the population of the NRW80+ study and different age groups of very old individuals with respect to biographical background. Furthermore, using the challenges and potentials model of QoL in very old age (CHAPO), key aspects of QoL in late life are discussed and the importance of normative stipulations of what constitutes a successful life conduct are highlighted. In the NRW80+ study older age groups (i.e., 85–89 years, 90+ years) were deliberately overrepresented in the survey sample to enable robust cross-group comparison. Individuals willing to participate in the study but unable to participate in the interview themselves for health reasons were included by means of proxy interviews. The total sample included 1863 individuals and 176 individuals were represented by proxy interviews. Pronounced differences were observed between age groups 80–84 years (born 1933–1937, N = 1012), 85–89 years (born 1928–1932, N = 573), and 90 years or older (*born before 1927, N = 278) with respect to education, employment and the timing of major life events (e.g., childbirth). Conclusion Different life courses and resulting living conditions should be considered when discussing QoL disparities in very old age.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sylvia Hansen
- Ceres-Cologne Center for Ethics, Rights, Economics, and Social Sciences of Health, University of Cologne, Albertus Magnus Platz, 50923, Cologne, Germany.
| | - Roman Kaspar
- Ceres-Cologne Center for Ethics, Rights, Economics, and Social Sciences of Health, University of Cologne, Albertus Magnus Platz, 50923, Cologne, Germany
| | - Michael Wagner
- University of Cologne, Institute of Sociology and Social Psychology, Cologne, Germany
| | - Christiane Woopen
- Ceres-Cologne Center for Ethics, Rights, Economics, and Social Sciences of Health, University of Cologne, Albertus Magnus Platz, 50923, Cologne, Germany
| | - Susanne Zank
- University of Cologne, Faculty of Humanities, Rehabilitative Gerontology, Cologne, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
The Effects of Religiosity and Socioeconomic Status on Social Distance towards Refugees and the Serial Mediating Role of Satisfaction with Life and Perceived Threat. RELIGIONS 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/rel12090737] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
In every society, refugees face social and economic exclusion. In particular, social distance towards refugees may be seen remarkably in cities where host people and refugees live together intensely. This study examined essential predictors of social distance towards refugees: religiosity, socioeconomic status (SES), satisfaction with life, and threat perception towards refugees. A quantitative research strategy was used to collect cross-sectional data from 1453 individuals via an online questionnaire in Turkey. Confirmatory factor, correlation, regression, and mediation analyses were conducted. In this study, the effect of religiosity and socioeconomic status on social distance towards refugees and the serial mediation effects of satisfaction with life and threat perception towards refugees on this relationship were analyzed. Questions related to age, gender, marital status, education level, and having refugee neighbors or not were used as control variables. It was found that religiosity and SES were associated with social distance towards refugees. Furthermore, in the effect of religiosity and SES on social distance towards refugees, the serial mediating roles of satisfaction with life and threat perception towards refugees, respectively, were identified.
Collapse
|
6
|
Eimontas J, Bagdonas A, Kairys A, Zamalijeva O, Pakalniškienė V, Sadauskaitė R. The Links Between Childhood Life Circumstances, Family Persecution and Discrimination Experiences, and Well-Being in Later Life. PSICHOLOGIJA 2021. [DOI: 10.15388/psichol.2021.31] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
The life course perspective raised many discussions about continuity, types of threads linking different developmental stages, and ways to identify these links. The aim of this study was to evaluate the significance of childhood family circumstances and family repression / discrimination experiences in predicting psychological well-being in later life. The Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) wave 7 data was used; 1985 respondents aged 50+ (M = 66.23, SD = 10.52) living in Lithuania (63.8 % – female) provided retrospective information on their early life circumstances, including home environment, relationships with family / friends, family persecution. Psychological well-being was assessed with a 12-item Control, Autonomy, Self-Realization, and Pleasure (CASP) scale. Results of the hierarchical regression analysis showed that the inclusion of family persecution and other childhood factors increases the prognostic value of the model by 8 percent. Relationships with mother and friends, self-rated health, perceived abilities, number of books at home, and physical harm by others significantly predicted psychological well-being among older adults, even after controlling pivotal sociodemographic variables. These results suggest that creating a caring, safe, and cognitively stimulating childhood environment can promote better development in early stages and contribute to greater psychological well-being in later life.
Collapse
|
7
|
Wood N, Hardy R, Bann D, Gale C, Stafford M. Childhood correlates of adult positive mental well-being in three British longitudinal studies. J Epidemiol Community Health 2021; 75:177-184. [PMID: 32967893 DOI: 10.1136/jech-2019-213709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2020] [Revised: 09/01/2020] [Accepted: 09/08/2020] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Previous evidence has shown how experiences within childhood, such as parenting and socioeconomic conditions, are associated later on in life with adult mental well-being. However, these studies tend to focus on childhood experiences in isolation, and fewer studies have investigated how multiple aspects of the childhood environment, including both socioeconomic and psychosocial aspects, are associated with adult positive mental well-being. Using data from three British birth cohort studies, we investigated how prospective measures of the childhood environment up to the age of 16 years were associated with midlife adult mental well-being and whether similar associations were replicated across different generations. METHODS Childhood environment comprised socioeconomic circumstances, psychosocial factors (child-rearing and parenting, family instability) and parental health. The Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale, a validated instrument measuring both hedonic and eudaemonic aspects of well-being, was administered in mid-life. We modelled associations between childhood environment domains and well-being. RESULTS Despite changes in social context in all three studies, poorer quality parent-child relationships and poor parental mental health were strongly and independently associated with poorer adult mental well-being. Socioeconomic circumstances were also associated with adult mental well-being, but the association was weaker than for the measures of parenting or parental mental health. CONCLUSION These findings confirm that parenting and parental mental health, as well as socioeconomic circumstances, are important for adult mental well-being. Interventions in early childhood aimed at reducing socioeconomic adversity and offering support to parents might be warranted, to enhance adult mental well-being later on in the life course.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Natasha Wood
- Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | | | - David Bann
- Centre for Longitudinal Studies, UCL, London, UK
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
8
|
Kirkman M, Fisher J. Promoting older women's mental health: Insights from Baby Boomers. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0245186. [PMID: 33434229 PMCID: PMC7802969 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0245186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2020] [Accepted: 12/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Optimal mental health underpins full social participation. As people age, they confront personal and cultural challenges, the effects of which on mental health are not fully understood. The aim of this research was to learn from women of the Baby Boomer generation (born 1946–1964) what contributes to and hinders their mental health and wellbeing. Eighteen women participated in qualitative interviews (in English); data were analysed thematically. Participants were located across Australia in rural and urban areas; not all were born in Australia. They were diverse in education, employment status, and experiences of life and ageing. The women nominated as the main contributors to poor mental health in older women Illness and disability, Financial insecurity, Maltreatment, and Loss and grief. Contributors to good mental health were identified as Social interdependence, Feeling valued, Physical activity, Good nutrition, and Having faith or belief. Women’s accounts supplied other influences on mental health, both associated with the person (Personality and Intimate relationships and sex) and with society (Constructs of ageing, Gender, and Culture). Women also specified what they needed from others in order to improve their mental health as they aged: Public education about ageing, Purposeful roles for older women in society, Adequate services and resources, and Sensitive health care. In sum, older women wanted to be treated with respect and for their lives to have meaning. It is evident from these results that circumstances throughout life can have profound influences on women’s mental health in older age. Anti-discriminatory policies, informed and inclusive health care, and social structures that support and enhance the lives of girls and women at all ages will therefore benefit older women and increase the potential for their continuing contribution to society. These conclusions have implications for policy and practice in well-resourced countries.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maggie Kirkman
- Global and Women’s Health, Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- * E-mail:
| | - Jane Fisher
- Global and Women’s Health, Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Cachioni M, Delfino LL, Alonso V, Yassuda MS, Batistoni SST, Melo RC, Rodrigues MADDC. Predictors of Wellbeing Among Older Adults Participants of a U3A. PSICOLOGIA: TEORIA E PESQUISA 2021. [DOI: 10.1590/0102.3772e37102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract This study aimed to identify predictive factors for subjective and psychological well-being in a sample of 265 older adults enrolled in the University of the Third Age (U3A). The scales used were: General Satisfaction with Life Scale and referenced to the domains, Positive and Negative Affect Scale and Personal Development Scale. Multivariate logistic analysis indicated that being 70 or older and male was associated with the subjective well-being and having higher education level was associated with psychological well-being. It was concluded that sociodemographic characteristics of the interviewed elders enrolled in U3A can be important attributes that influence well-being.
Collapse
|
10
|
Domènech-Abella J, Mundó J, Miret M, Ayuso-Mateos JL, Sánchez-Niubò A, Abduljabbar AS, Haro JM, Olaya B. From childhood financial hardship to late-life depression: socioeconomic pathways. Aging Ment Health 2021; 25:86-93. [PMID: 31597461 DOI: 10.1080/13607863.2019.1671313] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Childhood financial hardship is associated with depression throughout the life course, including older adulthood. However, it is still unclear the extent to which occupation, education level and household income are mediators of this association. We aimed to examine the association between childhood financial hardship and late-life depression, and potential socioeconomic mediators using community-based data. METHODS A nationally representative sample of 3623 non-institutionalized older Spanish adults aged 50+ was used. The associations between childhood financial hardship and depression, socioeconomic mediator variables and confounding variables such as chronic physical conditions, number of close people, and loneliness, were assessed through logistic regression models. Mediation analyses of socioeconomic variables were carried out. RESULTS Older Spanish adults who experienced a poor childhood financial situation were nine times more likely to obtain a lower level of education than those with a good childhood financial situation, and about three times more likely to suffer from depression. Participants' education level mediated about 35-40% of the association between childhood financial hardship and late-life depression whereas we found no significant mediation effect of household income and occupation skill. CONCLUSION Improving access to the educational system during the life course might result in a reduction in the prevalence of depression in the general population of older adults and particularly among individuals with low socioeconomic status.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Joan Domènech-Abella
- Research, Innovation and Teaching Unit, Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Department of Sociology, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain
| | - Jordi Mundó
- Department of Sociology, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Marta Miret
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.,Department of Psychiatry, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain.,Department of Psychiatry, Hospital Universitario de La Princesa, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Princesa (IIS-Princesa), Madrid, Spain
| | - José Luis Ayuso-Mateos
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.,Department of Psychiatry, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain.,Department of Psychiatry, Hospital Universitario de La Princesa, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Princesa (IIS-Princesa), Madrid, Spain
| | - Albert Sánchez-Niubò
- Research, Innovation and Teaching Unit, Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain
| | | | - Josep Maria Haro
- Research, Innovation and Teaching Unit, Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain.,Department of Psychiatry, Hospital Universitario de La Princesa, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Princesa (IIS-Princesa), Madrid, Spain.,Kind Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Beatriz Olaya
- Research, Innovation and Teaching Unit, Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Duim E, Lima Passos V. Highways to Ageing - Linking life course SEP to multivariate trajectories of health outcomes in older adults. Arch Gerontol Geriatr 2020; 91:104193. [PMID: 32846291 DOI: 10.1016/j.archger.2020.104193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2019] [Revised: 07/19/2020] [Accepted: 07/20/2020] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Ageing is a temporal, multi-faceted process subject to interacting factors. In this study, we used life course and multidimensional approaches to elucidate the association between socioeconomic forces across a lifetime and the developmental origins in health and disease of the Mexican elderly. METHODS Data stemmed from the Mexican Health and Ageing Study, constituting a sample of older adults (N= 5169, ≥50 years). With retrospective information on early, intermediary and contemporaneous socioeconomic indicators, life course typologies of socioeconomic position were identified using Latent Class Analysis. Based on prospective data of functional mobility, number of chronic conditions and self-rated health, multivariate trajectories of health outcomes were uncovered with Group Based Trajectory Model. Links between the extracted SEP and multivariate health latent constructs were explored with multinomial logistic regression. RESULTS Life course SEP classes were heterogeneous, yet a large proportion of subjects was characterized by persistent socioeconomic adversity throughout life. The health outcomes' patterns of co-evolution were diverse too, shedding light on the nature of their developmental links, while revealing variable synchronicity in their temporal decline. A graded association was observed between the life course SEP classes and ageing trajectories. CONCLUSION The results primarily backed the cumulative advantage/disadvantage life course framework, while finding some indication for age as a leveller hypothesis. Variability in patterns of dynamic co-action among the health outcomes depicts ageing as a naturally variable process of interconnected changes. Life course evidence for the ways socio-economic forces are differentially linked to distinct developmental profiles of ageing is provided.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Etienne Duim
- Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Sao Paulo, Av Dr Arnaldo, 715, Pacaembu, 01246-904, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil; Department of Methodology and Statistics, Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Maastricht University. P. Debyeplein 1, 6229 HA, Maastricht, the Netherlands; CAPHRI - Care and Public Health Research Institute - Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Maastricht University. P. Debyeplein 1, 6229 HA, Maastricht, the Netherlands.
| | - Valéria Lima Passos
- Department of Methodology and Statistics, Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Maastricht University. P. Debyeplein 1, 6229 HA, Maastricht, the Netherlands; CAPHRI - Care and Public Health Research Institute - Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Maastricht University. P. Debyeplein 1, 6229 HA, Maastricht, the Netherlands.
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Exploring underexposed stories: the experienced lifecourse of financially excluded older adults. AGEING & SOCIETY 2019. [DOI: 10.1017/s0144686x19001235] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
AbstractTo gain insights into vulnerable lifecourses and give a voice to those often underrepresented in quantitative research, this study examines the life stories (past, present and future) of 19 financially excluded older adults using an adapted version of McAdams’ life-story interview scheme. Although these life stories demonstrate an accumulation of many disadvantages and an uncertain future because of current financial situations, the stories also reflect the generativity, resilience, coping strategies and agency of financially excluded older adults. We demonstrate how the experienced lifecourse is built around both negative and positive turning points and transitions which go beyond the classical education–work–retirement triumvirate, and how socio-cultural life scripts are used as a framework to build one's own life story in order to achieve continuity. The discussion highlights the potential for deploying the life-story method as a qualitative resource for providing individualised care.
Collapse
|
13
|
Börnhorst C, Heger D, Mensen A. Associations of childhood health and financial situation with quality of life after retirement - regional variation across Europe. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0214383. [PMID: 30958819 PMCID: PMC6453524 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0214383] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2018] [Accepted: 03/12/2019] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Many studies have shown that childhood circumstances can have long term consequences that persist until old age. To better understand the transmission of early life circumstances, this paper analyses the effects of health and financial situation during childhood on quality of life after retirement as well as the mediating role of later life health, educational level, and income in this association. Moreover, this study is the first to compare these pathways across European regions. The analyses are based on data of 13,092 retirees aged ≥ 60 and ≤ 85 years from the fifth wave of the Survey of Health, Aging, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) with full information on childhood and later life measures of health, educational level, financial situation, and quality of life as well as relevant covariates. Five European regions are studied: Central-Western Europe (Austria, Germany), Central-Eastern Europe (Czech Republic, Estonia, Slovenia), Northern Europe (Denmark, Sweden), Southern Europe (Italy, Spain), and Western Europe (Belgium, France, The Netherlands). Path analysis is used to identify the direct and indirect effects of childhood measures on quality of life. We find retirees' quality of life to be associated with childhood finances and health in all five European regions. While both the direct and indirect effects of childhood health are rather moderate and homogeneous across regions, especially the direct effects of childhood finances on quality of life after retirement display a distinct North-South gradient being strongest in Southern Europe. Potential explanations for the regional variations are differences in the countries' welfare systems.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Börnhorst
- Leibniz Institute for Prevention Research and Epidemiology–BIPS, Bremen, Germany
| | - Dörte Heger
- Leibniz Science Campus Ruhr and RWI–Leibniz Institute for Economic Research, Essen, Germany
| | - Anne Mensen
- Leibniz Science Campus Ruhr and RWI–Leibniz Institute for Economic Research, Essen, Germany
- Ruhr-University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Wildman JM, Moffatt S, Pearce M. Quality of life at the retirement transition: Life course pathways in an early 'baby boom' birth cohort. Soc Sci Med 2018; 207:11-18. [PMID: 29723829 DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2018.04.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2017] [Revised: 03/01/2018] [Accepted: 04/12/2018] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Abstract
Promoting quality of life (QoL) in later life is an important policy goal. However, studies using prospective data to explore the mechanisms by which earlier events influence QoL in older age are lacking. This study is the first to use prospective data to investigate pathways by which a range of measures of life-course socioeconomic status contribute to later-life QoL. The study uses data from the Newcastle Thousand Families Study cohort (N = 1142), an early 'baby-boom' birth cohort born in 1947 in Newcastle upon Tyne, an industrial city in north-east England. Using prospective survey data collected between birth and later adulthood (N = 393), a path analysis investigated the effects and relative contributions of a range of life-course socioeconomic factors to QoL at age 62-64 measured using the CASP-19 scale. Strong positive effects on later-life QoL were found for advantaged occupational status in mid-life and better self-reported health, employment and mortgage-freedom in later adulthood. Significant positive indirect effects on QoL were found from social class at birth and achieved education level, mediated through later-life socioeconomic advantage. Experiencing no adverse events by age five had a large total positive effect on QoL at age 62-64, comprising a direct effect and indirect effects, mediated through education, mid-life social class and later-life self-reported health. Results support a pathway model with the effects of factors in earlier life acting via later-life factors, and an accumulation model with earlier-life factors having large total, cumulative effects on later-life QoL. The presence of a direct effect of adverse childhood events by age five on QoL suggests a 'critical period' and indicates that policies across the life-course are needed to promote later-life QoL, with policies directed towards older adults perhaps too late to 'undo the damage' of earlier adverse events.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Mark Pearce
- Institute of Health & Society, Newcastle University, UK
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Wood N, Bann D, Hardy R, Gale C, Goodman A, Crawford C, Stafford M. Childhood socioeconomic position and adult mental wellbeing: Evidence from four British birth cohort studies. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0185798. [PMID: 29069091 PMCID: PMC5656308 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0185798] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2017] [Accepted: 09/19/2017] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND There is much evidence showing that childhood socioeconomic position is associated with physical health in adulthood; however existing evidence on how early life disadvantage is associated with adult mental wellbeing is inconsistent. This paper investigated whether childhood socioeconomic position (SEP) is associated with adult mental wellbeing and to what extent any association is explained by adult SEP using harmonised data from four British birth cohort studies. METHODS The sample comprised 20,717 participants with mental wellbeing data in the Hertfordshire Cohort Study (HCS), the MRC National Survey of Health and Development (NSHD), the National Child Development Study (NCDS), and the British Cohort Study (BCS70). Warwick Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (WEMWBS) scores at age 73 (HCS), 60-64 (NSHD), 50 (NCDS), or 42 (BCS70) were used. Harmonised socioeconomic position (Registrar General's Social Classification) was ascertained in childhood (age 10/11) and adulthood (age 42/43). Associations between childhood SEP, adult SEP, and wellbeing were tested using linear regression and multi-group structural equation models. RESULTS More advantaged father's social class was associated with better adult mental wellbeing in the BCS70 and the NCDS. This association was independent of adult SEP in the BCS70 but fully mediated by adult SEP in the NCDS. There was no evidence of an association between father's social class and adult mental wellbeing in the HCS or the NSHD. CONCLUSIONS Socioeconomic conditions in childhood are directly and indirectly, through adult socioeconomic pathways, associated with adult mental wellbeing, but findings from these harmonised data suggest this association may depend on cohort or age.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Natasha Wood
- MRC Unit for Lifelong Health and Ageing at UCL, London, United Kingdom
| | - David Bann
- UCL Institute of Education, London, United Kingdom
| | - Rebecca Hardy
- MRC Unit for Lifelong Health and Ageing at UCL, London, United Kingdom
| | - Catharine Gale
- MRC Life Course Epidemiology Unit, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom
| | | | - Claire Crawford
- The Institute for Fiscal Studies, London, United Kingdom & University of Warwick, Coventry, United Kingdom
| | - Mai Stafford
- MRC Unit for Lifelong Health and Ageing at UCL, London, United Kingdom
| |
Collapse
|