Age and decline in role-specific feelings of control

A bridge too far? Social network structure as a determinant of depression in later life

Existing research has documented various determinants of mental health related to individuals' social connections, but less is known about the role of the structural features of interpersonal networks. This is especially true in the case of bridging, which refers to ties to people who are otherwise disconnected from each other. By intersecting theories of social networks and gerontology, this study employs within- and between-person analysis with data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP) to examine the association between social network bridging and depression in later life. The study finds that bridging, particularly between kin and non-kin members in the network, is associated with increased depressive symptoms in later life. This association is contingent on social support and strain respondents experienced, and it exhibits variations within individuals over time, especially among older adults in the youngest age cohort (57-64 years old included in NSHAP in 2005). In closing, the paper discusses the extent to which heterogeneous network structures may be one mechanism that shapes mental health trajectories in the context of later life-course experiences.

A Sense of Control and Wellbeing in Older People Living with Frailty: A Scoping Review

A sense of control is important for supporting older people living with frailty to develop adaptive functioning to optimize wellbeing. This scoping review examined the literature on the sense of control and wellbeing in older people living with frailty within their everyday life and care service use. Nine databases were searched using the timeframe 2000 to 2021 to identify key ideas regarding control and wellbeing in older people with frailty. The review highlighted three major themes: a) Control as conveyed in bodily expressions and daily activities, b) Sense of control and influence of place of residence, and c) Control within health and social care relationships. Maintaining a sense of control is not only an internal feeling but is impacted by physical and social environments. Greater focus is needed on the nature of relationships between older people living with frailty and those who work alongside them, which support control and wellbeing.

Chronic Illness and Social Network Bridging in Later Life

Chronic disease has profound impacts on the structural features of individuals' interpersonal connections such as bridging - ties to people who are otherwise poorly connected to each other. Prior research has documented competing arguments regarding the benefits of network bridging, but less is known about how chronic illness influences bridging and its underlying mechanisms. Using data on 1,555 older adults from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP), I find that older adults diagnosed with chronic illness tend to have lower bridging potential in their networks, particularly between kin and non-kin members. They also report more frequent interactions with close ties but fewer neighbors, friends, and colleagues in their networks, which mediates the association between chronic illness and social network bridging. These findings illuminate both direct and indirect pathways through which chronic illness affects network bridging and highlight the context-specific implications for social networks in later life.

The effect of roles prescribed by active ageing on quality of life across European regions

The active ageing approach supports a set of roles or activities that are supposed to be beneficial for older adults. This paper reassesses the benefits of activities for the quality of life by (a) analysing many activities at the same time to control each other, (b) using panel data to detect the effects of activities over time, and (c) performing separate analyses for four European regions to test the context-specificity of the effects. The effects of roles in later life are tested on panel data from three waves of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) project. The results of fixed-effects regression show that only some activities – volunteering, participating in a club and physical activity – increase the quality of life, and that care-giving within the household has the opposite effect. Moreover, the beneficial effects are much weaker and less stable than the other types of regression suggest; they are beneficial only in some regions, and their effect is much weaker than the effects of age, health and economic situation. Therefore, the active ageing approach and activity theory should reflect the diverse conditions and needs of older adults to formulate more-context-sensitive and less-normative policy recommendations.

Associations Between Control Beliefs and Response Time Inconsistency in Older Adults Vary as a Function of Attentional Task Demands

OBJECTIVE

Control beliefs are established correlates of cognitive aging. Despite recent demonstrations that response time inconsistency (RTI) represents a proxy for cognitive processing efficiency, few investigations have explored links between RTI and psychosocial correlates. We examined associations among RTI and control beliefs (perceived competence and locus of control) for two choice-response time (RT) tasks varying in their attentional demands.

METHOD

Control beliefs and RTI were measured weekly for 5 weeks in a sample of 304 community-dwelling older adults (Mage = 74.11 years, SD = 6.05, range = 64-92, 68.58% female).

RESULTS

Multilevel models revealed that for the attentionally demanding task, reporting higher perceived competence than usual was associated with lower RTI for relatively younger participants and greater RTI for relatively older participants. For the less attentionally demanding task, reporting higher perceived competence than usual was associated with lower RTI for relatively older participants. Links between locus of control and RTI were comparatively scant.

DISCUSSION

Our findings suggest that control beliefs may have adaptive and maladaptive influences on RTI, depending on dimension of control beliefs, individual differences in level of control beliefs and age, as well as attentional task demands. Both for whom and when control beliefs can be leveraged to optimize cognitive aging are discussed.

The Impact of Perceived Control and Future-Self Views on Preparing for the Old Age: Moderating Influences of Age, Culture, and Context

OBJECTIVES

Preparation for age-related changes has been shown to be beneficial to adjustment in later life. However, an understanding of the factors that influence such preparations is rather limited. This study examines whether perceived control and future-self views (FSV) influence preparations for old age, and if this influence varies across ages, domains of functioning, and cultures.

METHODS

Assessments of perceived control, FSV, and preparations for old age in each of four different life domains (social relationships, finances, work, and health) were obtained from 1,813 adults (ages 35-85) from Germany, Hong Kong, and the United States.

RESULTS

Future-self views partially mediated the relationship between perceived control and preparation for old age across both domains of functioning and cultures. With one exception, the association between perceived control and preparations increased with advancing age across contexts. Evidence for similar age-related moderation of the indirect effect of control through FSV was more limited.

DISCUSSION

These results suggest that perceived control that is not necessarily related to aging affect FSV, which in turn influence preparing for old age. Further, our results indicate that such relationships are context- and age-specific, highlighting the importance of considering the salience and diversity of life domains and cultures.

Control diversity: How across-domain control beliefs are associated with daily negative affect and differ with age

Domain-specific control beliefs typically buffer the influence stressors have on people's negative affect (affective stressor reactivity). However, little is known about the extent to which individuals' control beliefs vary across stressor types and whether such stressor-related control diversity is adaptive for affective well-being. We thus introduce a control diversity construct (a person-level summary of across-domain control beliefs) and examine how control diversity differs with age and relates to negative affect and affective stressor reactivity. We apply a multilevel model to daily diary data from the National Study of Daily Experiences (NSDE; N = 2,022; mean age = 56 years; 33-84; 57% women). Our findings indicate that above and beyond average control beliefs, people whose control is spread over fewer stressor domains (less control diversity) have lower negative affect and less affective stressor reactivity. Older adults are more likely than younger adults to have their control beliefs concentrated in one domain. Additionally, associations between control diversity and negative affect and affective stressor reactivity were age invariant. Moderation effects indicated that when people with low average control beliefs are faced with stressors, having control beliefs focused on fewer domains rather than spread broadly across many domains is associated with less negative affect. Our findings suggest that control diversity provides unique insights into how control beliefs differ across adulthood and contribute to affective well-being. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

The Impact of Leisure and Social Activities on Activities of Daily Living of Middle-Aged Adults: Evidence from a National Longitudinal Survey in Japan

This study investigated the effects of leisure and social activities on the ability of middle-aged adults to maintain activities of daily living (ADL), and whether performing these activities alone or with others contributed to the ability to perform ADL. The study used nationally representative longitudinal data of 22,770 adults in Japan, aged 50–59 years, who did not have limitations in performing ADL at the beginning of the 5-year survey period. The study considered six activity categories: two leisure activities (“hobbies or cultural activities” and “exercise or sports”) and four social activities (“community events,” “support for children,” “support for elderly individuals,” and “other social activities”). Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to examine the relation between participation in these categories at baseline and difficulties in ADL at the 5-year follow-up. The association between the extent of social interaction during these activities (“by oneself,” “with others,” or “both”) and difficulties in ADL was also investigated. The analysis yielded significant negative correlations between “exercise or sports” and difficulties in ADL for both men and women, and between “hobbies or cultural activities” and difficulties in ADL for women. However, these significant relationships occurred only when activities were conducted “with others.” The present findings might help prevent deterioration in middle-aged adults’ performance of ADL in Japan.

Is more customer control of services always better?

Purpose

– Research on empowerment and service co-production assumed that customers want more control and that more control is better. An empirical test of this assumption, however, is lacking. The purpose of this paper is to test this assumption by not only focussing on the customer’s capacity and opportunity for control, but also taking into account the customer’s desire for control.

Design/methodology/approach

– This study uses an experiment employing video clips depicting a service encounter in a banking context in which control beliefs are manipulated.

Findings

– This study shows that more control in services is not always better because individuals vary in their desire for control; that state measures of control are effective predictors of relevant attitudinal and behavioral effects like satisfaction and loyalty, and that the mechanism which produces these effects is the consistency between control beliefs.

Research limitations/implications

– Future research on customer empowerment and service co-production should acknowledge the pivotal role of variations in desire for control, focus on inconsistencies in control beliefs to predict effects and measure control beliefs as varying states rather than as stable personality traits.

Practical implications

– Enhancing customer control of a service may primarily mean: giving the customer the option to control or not to control the service.

Originality/value

– This study contributes to literature and marketing practice by demonstrating that more control may have negative effects and by demonstrating the mechanism by which these effects occur.

Educational Attainment and Women's Environmental Mastery in Midlife: Findings From a British Birth Cohort Study

Using data from 1,184 women in the MRC National Survey of Health and Development, we estimated associations between education and Ryff’s environmental mastery scale scores at age 52. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated two subscales, here termed mastery skills and mastery accomplishments. Low education was associated with higher mastery skills. This was partly explained by childhood socioeconomic position, as mastery was lower among those with fathers in the most and least advantaged occupational classes. Education was not associated with mastery accomplishments in unadjusted models. Lower ambitions for family/home were associated with higher mastery accomplishments and may have partly suppressed as an association between education and mastery accomplishments. This study highlights childhood as well as adult correlates of mastery and adds to mounting evidence that higher mastery is not universally found among those who are more educated.

Perceived control as a longitudinal moderator of late-life stressors on depressive symptoms

OBJECTIVES

This study examined perceived control as a moderator of the relationship between late-life stressors and depressive symptoms among a sample of older New Zealanders.

METHOD

Data were drawn from a longitudinal study with two data collection periods, one year apart. The Time 1 sample consisted of 1489 participants ranging in age from 65 to 94 years and 72% percent participated at Time 2. Correlational and multiple regression procedures were used to examine study hypotheses.

RESULTS

Results showed that Time 1 perceived control beliefs were a unique predictor of depressive symptoms at Time 2 after controlling for Time 1 depressives symptoms and other relevant variables. Further, perceived control beliefs at Time 1 moderated the relationship between late-life stressors and depressive symptoms at Time 2. Those with low perceived control demonstrated a stronger relationship between late-life stressors and depressive symptoms than those with high perceived control.

CONCLUSION

This study provides evidence that perceived control influences levels of depressive symptoms over time among older adults. Results also support the hypothesis that control beliefs moderate the relationship between late-life stressors and depressive symptoms among older adults. Implications include attributional retraining to promote perceived control and subsequent well-being in older adults.

Assessing the impact of cancer among Dutch non-Hodgkin lymphoma survivors compared with their American counterparts: a cross-national study

PURPOSE

To understand cultural differences in the impact of cancer (IOC) by (i) performing an independent psychometric evaluation of the Dutch version of the Impact of Cancer Scale version 2 (IOCv2) in a non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) sample and (ii) examining differences between Dutch and American NHL survivors in perceived IOC and identifying associations with socio-demographic and clinical characteristics.

METHODS

Data collected from 491 Dutch and 738 American NHL survivors were used in this study. IOCv2 responses were obtained from all survivors; the Dutch survivors also completed the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Core questionnaire, which measures quality of life.

RESULTS

Exploratory factor analysis of the Dutch version yielded a factor solution similar to the American structure but with some subscales merging into single factors. Internal consistency was good; Cronbach's alpha was 0.88 for the Positive and 0.94 for the Negative summary scales. Large differences were observed between survivors, whereby Dutch survivors reported fewer Positive (Δ -0.4, p < 0.001, effect size: 0.27) and more Negative (Δ 0.2, p ≤ 0.001, effect size: 0.13) impacts of cancer independent of socio-demographic and clinical characteristics.

CONCLUSION

Similar impact domains of the IOCv2 were observed in the Dutch sample, providing evidence that IOCv2 scales measure common and important survivor concerns across two different Western nations. Higher positive impacts for US survivors might be explained by more personal control and availability of supportive services. Future research should focus on determinants of the IOC in both Dutch and American survivors to gain better understanding of the factors that might improve it and suggest how health care may be modified toward that end.

Low perceived control as a risk factor for episodic memory: the mediational role of anxiety and task interference

Low perceived control is considered a risk factor for poor cognitive functioning, but the mechanisms are unclear. The goal of the present study was to analyze anxiety and task interference as sequential mediators of the association between control beliefs and episodic memory. Cognitive-specific control beliefs were assessed prior to the lab session. State anxiety was assessed in the lab, followed by a word list recall task. The frequency of intrusive thoughts during the memory task was reported by the participants as a measure of task interference after the completion of the cognitive testing. The results for 152 participants from the ages of 22 to 84 years supported the predicted three-path mediation model. Lower levels of control beliefs were associated with higher state anxiety, which in turn affected episodic memory performance by increasing the likelihood of task interference, with age, sex, and verbal abilities as covariates. The implications of the results for developing interventions to improve memory performance are considered.

Long-term antecedents and outcomes of perceived control

Perceived control plays an important role in shaping development throughout adulthood and old age. Using data from the adult lifespan sample of the national German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP; N > 10,000, covering 25 years of measurement), we explored long-term antecedents, correlates, and outcomes of perceived control and examined if associations differ with age. Targeting correlates and antecedents of control, findings indicated that higher concurrent levels of social participation, life satisfaction, and self-rated health as well as more positive changes in social participation over the preceding 11 years were each predictive of between-person differences in perceived control. Targeting health outcomes of control, survival analyses revealed that perceived control predicted 14-year hazard ratio for disability (n = 996 became disabled) and mortality (n = 1,382 died). The effect for mortality, but not for disability, was independent of sociodemographic and psychosocial factors. Overall, we found very limited support for age-differential associations. Our results provide further impetus to thoroughly examine processes involved in antecedent-consequent relations among perceived control, facets of social life, well-being, and health.

Earlier joint trajectories of cigarette smoking and low perceived self-control as predictors of later poor health for women in their mid-60s

INTRODUCTION

The current study was designed to assess the prospective relationship between the earlier joint trajectories of cigarette smoking and low perceived self-control (X age = 40-48) and later health problems (X age = 65.2) within a community sample of understudied females.

METHODS

The participants were given self-administered questionnaires.

RESULTS

The results of the growth mixture model suggested 5 joint trajectories of cigarette smoking and perceived self-control, which consisted of 1 at-risk group (chronic smoking and low perceived self-control), 1 low-risk group (infrequent or nonsmoking and high perceived self-control), and 3 intermediate groups (i.e., high on one factor and low on the other). The results from logistic regression analyses supported a model by which (a) women in the at-risk group, in comparison with the low-risk group, were more likely to report 5 or more diseases (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 4.81; p < .001) and poor or very poor general health (AOR = 5.98; p < .001); (b) women in the at-risk group as compared with women in the intermediate groups were also more likely to report 5 or more diseases (AOR = 2.36; p < .05) and poor or very poor general health (AOR = 2.86; p < .01); and (c) women in the intermediate group were more likely to report 5 or more diseases (AOR = 2.04; p < .05) and poor or very poor general health (AOR = 2.09; p < .05) than women in the low-risk group.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings highlight the significance of targeting dispositional factors (e.g., perceived self-control) in conjunction with smoking in designing programs for promoting the health of women in midlife.

Network position and sexual dysfunction: implications of partner betweenness for men

This article combines relational perspectives on gender identity with social network structural perspectives on health to understand men's sexual functioning. The authors argue that network positions that afford independence and control over social resources are consistent with traditional masculine roles and may therefore affect men's sexual performance. For example, when a heterosexual man's female partner has more frequent contact with his confidants than he does--which the authors refer to as partner betweenness--his relational autonomy, privacy, and control are constrained. Analyses of data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP) show that about a quarter of men experience partner betweennessa and that these men are 92% more likely to report erectile dysfunction. Partner betweenness is strongest among the youngest men in the sample, which may reflect changing conceptions of masculinity in later life. The authors consider several explanations for these findings and urge additional research on the links between health, gender, and network structure.

Examining dynamic links between perceived control and health: longitudinal evidence for differential effects in midlife and old age

Perceived control and health are often closely linked in adulthood and old age. Little is known, however, about their time-ordered interplay at various phases of adult life. By applying dynamic models to four waves of data over 15.5 years from the Americans' Changing Lives Study, we examined time-ordered relations between perceived control and health in midlife and old age. Results revealed that levels of perceived control predict subsequent changes in health over time in old age (65+ years of age; n = 1,238) but not in midlife (25-64 years of age; n = 2,364). No evidence was found for predictive effects of health for changes in perceived control in either age group. These age-differential findings were corroborated with nested-model comparisons. Predictive effects of perceived control for health were attenuated to the null in models covarying for sociodemographic and psychosocial factors (physical activity, memory, emotional support, and depressive symptoms), suggesting that these variables play an important role in control-health relations. Our discussion focuses on the importance of perceived control for healthy living in old age and the differential implications of perceived control for health in midlife and old age.

Aging in a cultural context: cross-national differences in disability and the moderating role of personal control among older adults in the United States and England

OBJECTIVES

We investigate cross-national differences in late-life health outcomes and focus on an intriguing difference in beliefs about personal control found between older adult populations in the U.K. and United States. We examine the moderating role of control beliefs in the relationship between physical function and self-reported difficulty with daily activities.

METHOD

Using national data from the United States (Health and Retirement Study) and England (English Longitudinal Study on Ageing), we examine the prevalence in disability across the two countries and show how it varies according to the sense of control. Poisson regression was used to examine the relationship between objective measures of physical function (gait speed) and disability and the modifying effects of control.

RESULTS

Older Americans have a higher sense of personal control than the British, which operates as a psychological resource to reduce disability among older Americans. However, the benefits of control are attenuated as physical impairments become more severe.

DISCUSSION

These results emphasize the importance of carefully considering cross-national differences in the disablement process as a result of cultural variation in underlying psychosocial resources. This paper highlights the role of culture in shaping health across adults aging in different sociopolitical contexts.

Antecedent-consequent relations of perceived control to health and social support: longitudinal evidence for between-domain associations across adulthood

OBJECTIVES

To examine antecedent-consequent relations of perceived control to health and social support across adulthood and old age.

METHODS

We applied (multigroup) change score models to two waves of data collected 9 years apart from 6,210 participants of the Midlife in the United States survey (MIDUS, 24-75 years at baseline). We used composite measures of perceived control (personal mastery and constraints), health (chronic conditions, acute conditions, and functional limitations), and social support (support and strain associated with spouse/partner, family, and friends).

RESULTS

Analyses revealed evidence for direct and independent multidirectional accounts. Greater initial control predicted weaker declines in health and stronger increases in support. In turn, increases in control were predicted by better initial health and more support. Changes in control were also accompanied by concurrent changes in the other two domains, and relations involving control were larger in size than those between health and support. We found only small sociodemographic differences across age, gender, and education group.

DISCUSSION

We conclude that perceiving control may serve as both a precursor and an outcome of health and social support across the adult age range and suggest routes for further inquiry.

Optimism and well-being in older adults: the mediating role of social support and perceived control

To investigate how psychosocial resources may improve well-being for older adults, this study explored the relationship among questionnaire measures of optimism, social support and perceptions of control in predicting subjective well-being (measured with the positive affect subscale of the Affect Balance Scale) (Bradburn, 1969) and psychological well-being (measured with the purpose in life scale of the Ryff Psychological Well-being scales) (Ryff, Lee, Essex, & Schmutte, 1994) among older adults. The potential mediating roles of perceived social support and perception of control were also explored. Participants were 225 adults aged from 65 to 94 years. Optimism was found to be a predictor of both subjective and psychological well-being, and perceived social support was found to mediate the relationship between optimism and subjective well-being, but not psychological well-being. In contrast, perception of control was found to mediate the relationship between optimism and psychological well-being, but not subjective wellbeing. Longitudinal research is needed to confirm these pathways.

Subjective control and health among Mexican-origin elders in Mexico and the United States: structural considerations in comparative research

OBJECTIVES

This study examines the joint impact of psychological and structural factors on Mexican and Mexican American elders' sense of personal control over important aspects of their lives and health in Mexico and the United States.

METHODS

We employ the Mexican Health and Aging Study (MHAS) and the Hispanic Established Populations for Epidemiologic Studies of the Elderly (H-EPESE) to explore patterns of association among structural factors, personal characteristics, indicators of material and physical vulnerability, and expressed locus of control.

RESULTS

The results suggest that an older individual's sense of personal control over important aspects of his or her life, including health, reflects real material and social resources in addition to individual predispositions. In Mexico, only the most privileged segment of the population has health insurance, and coverage increases one's sense of personal control. In the United States, on the other hand, Medicare guarantees basic coverage to the vast majority of Mexican Americans over 65, reducing its impact on one's sense of control.

DISCUSSION

Psychological characteristics affect older individuals' sense of personal control over aspects of their health, but the effects are mediated by the economic and health services context in which they are expressed.

Network bridging potential in later life: life-course experiences and social network position

Objective. Much work in social gerontology has examined older adults' social connectedness, but we know little about the extent to which older adults occupy positions of power and independence in their networks. The author uses health and life-course frameworks to understand older adults' prospects of occupying bridging positions between otherwise unconnected individuals. Methods. Egocentric social network data were collected from a nationally representative sample of 3,005 older adults between the ages of 57 and 85 in 2005-2006. A series of multivariate regression analyses was used to examine how health and life-course factors relate to bridging. Results. Age is not significantly associated with bridging. However, retirees and people with poor health are less likely to have bridging potential. At the same time, widows are more likely to serve as bridges. Discussion. The discusses the need for more dialogue between social network researchers and social gerontologists to help explain older adults' bridging prospects.