Older adults’ mental health information preferences: a call for more balanced information to empower older adults’ mental health help-seeking

A small minority of older adults seek psychological help when they need it. Barriers to mental health service use among older adults include low mental health literacy and reduced opportunities for shared decision-making in health care. There is a gap in the literature examining the mental health information preferences of older adults. The objectives of this study were to describe the information preferences and predictors of preferences among older adults. In total, 229 adults aged 50 years and older in central Canada responded to a questionnaire investigating socio-demographic, psycho-social and health-related characteristics, as well as mental health information preferences. Descriptive analysis quantified participants’ ratings of information preferences and hierarchical linear regression analysis determined predictors of their preferences. Older adults rated all mental health content items as very important. Most participants preferred detailed information (two to six pages) on all treatment options (psychological, pharmacological, combined and self-help). Older adults significantly preferred discussion with a heath-care provider and written information, in comparison to other formats. Older adults also significantly preferred to consult family, friends and heath-care professionals over other sources. Socio-demographic and psycho-social characteristics accounted for some of the variance in predicting older adults’ information preferences. Findings highlight older adults’ desire to be involved in decisions concerning mental health supports. Providing balanced information concerning mental health treatment may increase empowerment in mental health help-seeking.

How well do older adults recognise mental illness? A literature review

Older adults tend to underutilise mental health services. Mental health literacy plays a critical role in identifying and overcoming barriers to accessing mental health care. The ability to recognise mental illness is an essential component of mental health literacy, with important implications to whether the person will seek professional help. We conducted a review of the literature on older adults' abilities to recognise mental illness. Of the 421 papers that were retrieved in the comprehensive search in PubMed, 32 studies met inclusion criteria. Studies were heterogeneous in terms of target population and methodology, yet findings show that older adults are less likely to correctly recognise mental disorders. Cueing older participants with mental labels improved their recognition abilities. Recognition was particularly poor among immigrant and ethnic/racial older adults, likely due to linguistic and cultural barriers. Our findings demonstrate that older adults show low levels of mental illness recognition and tend to view some illnesses as normal parts of aging. Findings emphasise the need for developing educational programs tailored by the specific phenomenology, conceptualisations and cultural meanings of mental illness among older adults, with attention to informal sources of information and social networks.

Social Capital and Health Among Older Chinese Immigrants: a Cross-Sectional Analysis of a Sample in a Canadian Prairie City

The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between social capital and health among Chinese immigrants. The sample included 101 older Chinese immigrants aged 60 to 96 who were recruited in 2013 in a city on the Canadian prairies. Participant completed a questionnaire assessing their structural and cognitive social capital (views on community, trust and reciprocity, civic participation, social networks and support, and social participation), physical and mental health status (SF-36), and sociodemographic characteristics. Findings indicate that Chinese seniors overall obtained low levels of social capital on all social capital dimensions. Social networks and support (a structural social capital indicator) was significantly positively associated with mental health (β = .31, p < .01), particularly among older Chinese immigrants and among Chinese women (both β = .51, p < .01). Civic participation was also associated with mental health, albeit negatively, among female participants (β = .35, p < .05). These findings suggest that ensuring structural social capital is potentially more promising than ensuring cognitive social capital in terms of providing physical and mental health benefits to older adults from Chinese background.

Strengthening Social Capital Through Residential Environment Development for Older Chinese in a Canadian Context

Among Canada's visible-minority population 65 years of age or older, nearly four out of ten are Chinese. However, little research has been devoted to the examination of the role of the housing environment in building social capital for older Chinese despite the increase in this population and related social issues. The purpose of this paper is to examine Chinese elders' experience of social capital and how it is affected by their residential environment in a Canadian context. In this qualitative study, forty-three Chinese elders in a Canadian context were interviewed with a focus group approach. Findings indicate that the environments in which these older adults lived either hindered or assisted them in building or increasing their social capital. A culturally and linguistically homogeneous residential environment does not necessarily provide positive support to older Chinese for their acquisition of social capital. Adversities in the environment, such as maltreatment or lack of support from their immediate micro environment (family), tended to motivate older adults to improve their social capital for problem-solving. The study offers implications from research findings to social work practice and concludes with an analysis of limitations.

Attitudes towards seeking mental health services among older adults: personal and contextual correlates

OBJECTIVES

Especially older adults underutilize professional mental health services. However, little is known about the factors associated with older adults' attitudes towards seeking mental health services (ATSMHS). We therefore investigated a wide range of contextual (e.g. physical access, residence) and personal (e.g. perceived social support, life satisfaction, openness to experience) predictors of ATSMHS in a sample of older community-dwelling adults in Germany. We predicted that representations of old age as well as perceptions of (younger) psychotherapists would be uniquely important for determining ATSMHS.

METHOD

A diverse sample of N = 156 older adults (Mage = 71.5 years, SD = 6.4, range: 60-92) completed questionnaire measures. We used hierarchical linear regression analyses to identify predictors of ATSMHS.

RESULTS

In the final saturated model, female gender, urban residence, personal and vicarious experience with psychotherapy, and higher perceived social support were each associated with more positive ATSMHS. In addition, more positive representations of old age and less negative perceptions of (younger) psychotherapists explained unique variance in ATSMHS over and above the other predictors. The overall model was significant and explained 49% of the variance in ATSMHS.

CONCLUSION

Our findings can be used to inform interventions to improve older adults' ATSMHS. Interventions that seek to improve older adults' representations of their own aging as well as of psychotherapists may be useful for reducing the treatment gap.