Social interaction and psychological well-being: comparison across stages of adulthood

Self-reported Everyday Sources of Happiness and Unhappiness in Autistic Adults

PURPOSE

Daily mood can be influenced by a range of experiences. Identifying everyday life experiences that make autistic adults happy and unhappy holds potential to foster positive mood and tackle mental health problems amongst this group.

METHODS

A total of 293 autistic adults between the ages of 18 to 35 years old (mean age of 26.51 years old (SD = 4.62); 43.3% female gender, 4.8% nonbinary) provided open-text responses regarding everyday sources of happiness and unhappiness. Using an iterative process of inductive coding, 14 happy themes and 22 unhappy themes of mood-changing life experiences were identified based on self-report qualitative data.

RESULTS

Common themes across the happy and unhappy domain involved social partners, social interactions, and engagement in recreational and employment activities, with additional distinct themes specific to happy or unhappy mood. Top themes identified in the happy domain emphasizes encouraging quality relationships and positive interactions with others and cultivating supportive work/societal environments to build a sense of achievement and value. Meanwhile, emotional tolls accompanied negative relationships and interactions, underscoring the necessity to provide autistic adults with conflict resolution and coping skills to increase feelings of happiness.

CONCLUSION

Overall, the wide range of sources of happy and unhappy everyday experiences highlights the importance of considering personal preferences in engagement with others and activities in treatment.

Psychosocial Factors Influencing Quality of Life Among Medical Students

OBJECTIVE

This study investigated the influence of psychosocial factors on medical students' quality of life (QOL).

METHODS

A total of 408 medical students participated in this study. We collected data on participants' sociodemographic details, symptoms of depression and Internet addiction, self-esteem, social support, and QOL. QOL was assessed using the World Health Organization Quality of Life-Abbreviated form, which has four domains (physical health, psychological health, social relationships, and environment). A stepwise multiple linear regression model was constructed to identify factors' independent impact on QOL.

RESULTS

Higher levels of depression and Internet addiction were associated with lower scores in all domains of QOL, whereas higher levels of self-esteem and social support were associated with higher scores. Being in third-year versus first-year was associated with higher scores in the physical health and environment domains. Living alone or in dormitories, low or middle socioeconomic status, and insufficient or moderate pocket money were associated with lower scores in the environment domain. Additionally, female students displayed significantly lower scores for physical health, psychological health, and environment than male students, but not for social relationships. There were significant differences in certain domains of QOL due to sociodemographic factors.

CONCLUSION

This study demonstrates the psychosocial factors influencing medical students' QOL. Educational strategies focusing on strengthening self-esteem and social support as well as preventing depression and Internet addiction may contribute to improving medical students' QOL.

Effects of Online Fan Community Interactions on Well-Being and Sense of Virtual Community

Activities in the digital economy driven by information technology have rapidly increased in scope and speed in the aftermath of COVID-19. Meanwhile, social isolation accelerated by quarantine measures has increased concerns about individuals' mental health. However, little is known about the specific consequences of online interactions, especially when applied in online fan community-based relationships. Therefore, we examined the impact of loneliness in the context of COVID-19 on online interaction with other fans and parasocial relationships with celebrities on the Weverse platform. We also examined how these interactions influence mental well-being and the sense of virtual community. With 202 valid data samples acquired from global BTS fandom, this study conducted a partial least squares-structural equation modeling analysis. The empirical results demonstrate a significant positive relationship between loneliness and the extent of online interaction, while no significant impact on parasocial relationships was observed. Both online interaction and parasocial relationships were found to enhance both well-being and SOVC. However, these results were observed to differ between Weverse paid subscribers and free users.

Interventions with Social Integration Components Addressing Psychosocial Outcomes of Young- and Middle-Aged Adult Cancer Individuals: A Systematic Review

BACKGROUND

The majority of adult cancer patients/survivors encounter social challenges (e.g., obtaining social support, maintaining social relationships, feelings of social isolation). This systematic review summarizes intervention studies addressing social integration or social connectedness issues among young- and middle-aged cancer patients/survivors.

METHODS

We searched the PubMed, CINAHL, and Web of Science databases (January 2000-May 2021) to identify intervention studies that addressed social integration, social connectedness, social support, and social isolation for cancer patients/survivors in young- and middle-aged adulthood (18-64.9 years) through a randomized controlled trial (RCT). We categorized the interventions as technology-based, non-technology-based, and mixed-type (technology- and non-technology-based).

RESULTS

A total of 28 studies were identified. These interventions demonstrated improved social outcomes (e.g., increased social support, decreased loneliness), increased awareness of available cancer-related resources, and better patient-reported outcomes among patients/survivors versus controls. Specifically, the use of internet-based discussion sessions was associated with improved social cohesion and social support. Receiving social support from peers through networking sites was associated with improved physical activity. Additionally, implementing mixed-type interventions led to better social support from peer survivors, less fear of social interactions, and improved social connectedness.

CONCLUSIONS

Using existing technology- and/or non-technology-based platforms to facilitate social connectedness among cancer patients/survivors in young- or middle-aged adulthood can help them cope with stressful life circumstances and improve quality-of-life. Further interventions targeting social integration (e.g., social network interventions) are needed to improve the complex social integration challenges experienced by cancer patients and survivors.

The psychological impact of adult-onset craniopharyngioma: A qualitative study of the experience of patients and clinicians

PURPOSE

Individuals who experience social and emotional difficulties struggle to maintain successful social relationships and incur an increased risk of developing mood disorders. These, in turn, have a significant impact on psychological and physical wellbeing. A small number of medical studies suggest that patients with adult-onset craniopharyngioma (AoC) report poorer quality of life, however, no in-depth psychological research has been carried out. The present study aimed to capture a rich understanding of whether patients with AoC experience a psychological impact from their diagnosis and whether psychological factors may contribute to a poorer quality of life.

METHOD

Both patients with AoC and clinicians with experience of working with patients with AoC were invited to take part in a semi-structured interview. Participants were recruited from three geographically disperse National Health Service (NHS) units across the United Kingdom (UK). Eight patients and 10 clinicians took part in the study. Interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim and analysed using inductive thematic analysis.

RESULTS

Two key themes, with multiple subthemes, were identified: 1) Patients experience psychological impacts of AoC; and 2) Patients also experience common physical symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients and clinicians recognised significant psychological impact as a result of AoC, and these impacts contributed to overall poorer quality of life. Crucially, both parties also felt that further research into psychological impact of AoC was both interesting and useful.

Older People's Usage Pattern, Satisfaction with Community Facility and Well-Being in Urban Old Districts

Community facilities are an important element that supports older people's daily life and promotes their well-being. However, there is a dearth of comprehensive studies on the effect of planning and design of different types of community facilities on older people's usage patterns and satisfaction. This study aims to provide a framework to explore the relationship among the planning of community facilities, older people's usage and satisfaction level and well-being for different types of community facilities. Both spatial analysis and questionnaire survey (n = 497) methods are employed in this study. This study finds that commercial (89.34%), municipal (83.10%) and leisure (88.13%) facilities are most commonly used by older people. This study suggests that older people's frequency of visiting community facilities is mainly affected by the purpose of visiting a community facility. Planning and design quality of the community facility are found to be significantly associated with older people's satisfaction level with using a community facility. In addition, older people's higher satisfaction level and usage level of community facilities could increase their physical and psychological well-being. The findings of this study not only contribute to the knowledge gap of older people's usage and satisfaction with using community facilities but also suggest that planners should aim toward a better distribution of community facilities to improve older adults' well-being.

Investigating adult age differences in real-life empathy, prosociality, and well-being using experience sampling

While the importance of social affect and cognition is indisputable throughout the adult lifespan, findings of how empathy and prosociality develop and interact across adulthood are mixed and real-life data are scarce. Research using ecological momentary assessment recently demonstrated that adults commonly experience empathy in daily life. Furthermore, experiencing empathy was linked to higher prosocial behavior and subjective well-being. However, to date, it is not clear whether there are adult age differences in daily empathy and daily prosociality and whether age moderates the relationship between empathy and prosociality across adulthood. Here we analyzed experience-sampling data collected from participants across the adult lifespan to study age effects on empathy, prosocial behavior, and well-being under real-life circumstances. Linear and quadratic age effects were found for the experience of empathy, with increased empathy across the three younger age groups (18 to 45 years) and a slight decrease in the oldest group (55 years and older). Neither prosocial behavior nor well-being showed significant age-related differences. We discuss these findings with respect to (partially discrepant) results derived from lab-based and traditional survey studies. We conclude that studies linking in-lab experiments with real-life experience-sampling may be a promising venue for future lifespan studies.

Lifetime Prevalence and Sociodemographic Correlates of Multifactorial Discrimination Among Middle-Aged and Older Adult Men Who Have Sex with Men

This study describes multifactorial discrimination (discrimination attributed to multiple social identities) among middle-aged and older adult MSM. MSM aged 40+ years (N = 1,193) enrolled in the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study completed behavioral surveys ascertaining experiences of discrimination and their social identity attributions. Non-proportional odds regressions assessed multifactorial discrimination by age, race/ethnicity, HIV status, and covariates. Twenty-seven percent of participants reported multifactorial discrimination. Adjusted models indicated that middle-aged men were more likely to report multifactorial discrimination compared to older adult men. Racial/ethnic minorities were more likely to report multifactorial discrimination compared to non-Hispanic white participants. These same patterns emerged among the sub-sample of participants living with HIV. To our knowledge, this is the first assessment of multifactorial discrimination in middle-aged and older MSM. Our findings support the deleterious association between multiple-marginalization and multifactorial discrimination. Multilevel interventions targeting interconnected experiences of stigma may improve the health of MSM in transition to older age.

Association of social participation, perception of neighborhood social cohesion, and social media use with happiness: Evidence of trade-off (JCOP-20-277)

Social participation and neighborhood social cohesion are positively associated with health and wellbeing. Given that in-person social interactions have generally dwindled over the past several decades at least in Western countries and social media use has become more common, in this study, we examined whether and how social media use interacts with social participation and neighborhood social cohesion in influencing happiness. Data were gathered from a representative sample of adults in Massachusetts, USA. General linear model was used to estimate the main and interaction effects of social participation, perception of neighborhood social cohesion and social media use on happiness, controlling for sociodemographics, marital status, employment, and self-rated health. Results indicated that both social participation and perception of neighborhood social cohesion were positively associated with happiness whereas social media use was not. However, there was a significant interaction effect of social media use and perception of neighborhood social cohesion on happiness. Compared with people with a high perception of neighborhood social cohesion, those with low perception were more likely to be happy as their social media use increased, suggesting that social media use may be helpful to promote happiness among people who perceive their neighborhoods as less supportive, trustworthy, and close-knit.

Life satisfaction of older Turks living in Australia

OBJECTIVE

This study examined the influence of socio-economic and demographic variables, the frequency of travel to Turkey and years of living in Sydney on the life satisfaction of older Turkish people.

METHODS

This study was conducted with 110 participants of 60 years of age or older, at the New South Wales Turkish Welfare Association in Sydney, Australia. The surveys were administered face-to-face at a date and time these participants went to the Association. The dependent variable of the study was the Life Satisfaction Scale. The study data were analysed using hierarchical regression analysis, and the three sets of regression models were run for each sex.

RESULTS

The research found that in addition to sociodemographic factors, frequency of travel to Turkey, particularly for older women, and their years of living in Sydney had negative effects on life satisfaction. The study results indicate that the frequency of both the male and female participants' visits to Turkey had a strong negative influence on their life satisfaction. Life satisfaction decreased as the frequency of the participants' visits to Turkey and years of living in Sydney increased.

CONCLUSION

These findings support the current literature that shows the effects of the frequency of travel to Turkey and years of living in Sydney, which were considered to influence relationships with social networks, on life satisfaction, and indicates the necessity for a more detailed examination of social network relationships.

Psychological resilience and active social participation among older adults with incontinence: a qualitative study

OBJECTIVES

Incontinence restricts participation in social activities among older adults. However, some older adults participate in social activities despite this condition. This study aimed to describe how older adults with incontinence could be resilient and actively participate in social activities.

METHODS

We conducted semi-structured interviews with 11 socially active older adults with incontinence (age 70-90; nine women and two men) at their homes or in private areas of day-service centres in Chiba, Japan. We coded salient narratives by using thematic analysis and extracted themes. Finally, we developed a conceptual model and illustrated the interactions among themes.

RESULTS

We identified seven themes that affected active social participation; five of these pertained to psychological characteristics ('motivation to be socially active', 'psychological stress of incontinence', 'desire to interact with others', 'willingness to perform physical exercise', and 'confidence in managing incontinence') and the remaining two pertained to supporting environmental factors ('assistive devices' and 'accessible toilet'). Three psychological themes ('desire to interact with others', 'willingness to perform physical exercise', and 'confidence in managing incontinence') were intertwined with supporting environmental factors and increased the participants' 'motivation to be socially active'.

CONCLUSION

Older adults with incontinence can actively participate in the society when they have desire to interact with others, willingness to perform physical exercise, and confidence in managing incontinence. These psychological characteristics are important for being resilient in the face of incontinence and for active social participation.

Daily Social Contact in Relation to Sleep: The Role of Age

OBJECTIVES

To examine how social contact during daily activities differs by age and relates to sleep outcomes.

METHODS

Fifty younger (M = 19.9 years, SD = 2.76) and 48 older (M = 67.6 years, SD = 6.63), community-dwelling adults completed the Social Rhythm Metric-17 and daily sleep diary online for 14 days.

RESULTS

Younger adults completed a greater proportion of activities with active others than older adults. Age significantly interacted with the proportion of activities completed alone, β = -.77, p = .04. Alone activities negatively predicted total sleep time in older, not younger adults.

DISCUSSION

Social contact, or lack thereof, is important for sleep, particularly for older adults who may be more prone to aloneness due to life course events.

Patterns of Social Relationships and Psychological Well-being among the Elderly

On the premise that social relationships among elderly adults differ in terms of the most significant, dominant figure, this study aimed to examine: (1) whether there were qualitative differences in supportive functions between family-dominant and friend-dominant affective relationships, and (2) whether “lone wolves”, who were deficient in human resources, had difficulties in maintaining their well-being. A total of 148 Japanese, over the age of 65, both living in communities and in institutions were individually interviewed about their social relationships using a self-report type method, the Picture Affective Relationships test, and their well-being was assessed using Depression, Self-esteem, Life satisfaction, and Subjective health scales. Results showed that there were no differences in psychological well-being between family-dominant and friend-dominant participants, but those who lacked affective figures had lower scores in subjective well-being than did their family-dominant and friend-dominant counterparts. The generalisation of these findings to other cultures is discussed.

Heart rate variability during adolescent and adult social interactions: a meta-analysis

Social interaction skill is important for psychological wellbeing, stress regulation, protection from disability and overall life satisfaction. Increase in activity of the vagus nerve, measured by heart rate variability (HRV), is associated with social interaction skill and decreased stress. In this meta-analysis we collated statistics from thirteen studies consisting of 787 participants who were participating in social interactions while HRV was simultaneously collected. Results revealed that while dyadic social interactions do not increase HRV generally from a baseline state, negative dyadic social interactions decrease HRV in a manner similar to the Trier Social Stress Task. Further, participants with psychopathology do not show cardiac autonomic flexibility during social interactions as indicated by reductions under stress and increases with subsequently positive social interactions. The role of age, gender and HRV index were also examined as potential moderators of HRV. Implications for health and wellbeing resulting from exposure to negative social interactions are discussed.

Reliability and validity of the korean version of the lifespan sibling relationship scale

The sibling relationship and its potential impact on neurodevelopment and mental health are important areas of neuroscientific research. Validation of the tools assessing the quality of the sibling relationship would be the first essential step for conducting neurobiological and psychosocial studies related to the sibling relationship. However, to the best of our knowledge, no sibling relationship assessment tools have been empirically validated in Korean. We aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Korean version of the Lifespan Sibling Relationship Scale (LSRS), which is one of the most commonly used self-report questionnaires to assess the quality of the sibling relationship. A total of 109 adults completed a series of self-report questionnaires including the LSRS, the mental health subscale of the Medical Outcomes Study-Short Form 36 version 2 (SF36v2), the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SLS), and the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale (MC-SDS). The internal consistency, subscale intercorrelations, one-week test-retest reliability, convergent validity, divergent validity, and the construct validity were assessed. All six subscale scores and the total score of the LSRS demonstrated good internal consistency (Cronbach's α=0.85-0.94) and good test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient=0.77-0.92). Correlations of the LSRS with the SF36v2 mental health score (r=0.32, p=0.01) and with the SLS (r=0.27, p=0.04) supported the good convergent validity. The divergent validity was shown by the non-significant correlation of the LSRS with the MC-SDS (r=0.15, p=0.26). Two factors were extracted through factor analysis, which explained 78.63% of the total variance. The three Adult subscales loaded on the first factor and the three Child subscales loaded on the second factor. Results suggest that the Korean version of the LSRS is a reliable and valid tool for examining the sibling relationship.

Developmental changes of neuronal networks associated with strategic social decision-making

OBJECTIVES

One of the important prerequisites for successful social interaction is the willingness of each individual to cooperate socially. Using the ultimatum game, several studies have demonstrated that the process of decision-making to cooperate or to defeat in interaction with a partner is associated with activation of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), anterior insula (AI), and inferior frontal cortex (IFC). This study investigates developmental changes in this neuronal network.

METHODS

15 healthy children (8-12 years), 15 adolescents (13-18 years) and 15 young adults (19-28 years) were investigated using the ultimatum game. Neuronal networks representing decision-making based on strategic thinking were characterized using functional MRI.

RESULTS

In all age groups, the process of decision-making in reaction to unfair offers was associated with hemodynamic changes in similar regions. Compared with children, however, healthy adults and adolescents revealed greater activation in the IFC and the fusiform gyrus, as well as the nucleus accumbens. In contrast, healthy children displayed more activation in the AI, the dorsal part of the ACC, and the DLPFC. There were no differences in brain activations between adults and adolescents.

CONCLUSION

The neuronal mechanisms underlying strategic social decision making are already developed by the age of eight. Decision-making based on strategic thinking is associated with age-dependent involvement of different brain regions. Neuronal networks underlying theory of mind and reward anticipation are more activated in adults and adolescents with regard to the increasing perspective taking with age. In relation to emotional reactivity and respective compensatory coping in younger ages, children have higher activations in a neuronal network associated with emotional processing and executive control.

The risk to enduring relationships following the move to a care home

Aim.  To explore findings from a study which investigated the meanings that older people attributed to their experiences of living in a care home and consequently the risks that they identify in this. Background.  There is evidence from this and other studies that being able to engage in long-time friendships is important to older people. The move to a care home has the potential to disrupt these relationships and there is a risk of breakdown of the friendships that have been valued throughout life. Method.  A hermeneutic inquiry that explored the meaning that eight older people ascribed to their life in the care home. This paper focuses on the narratives that concerned relationships with long-time friends and the risks to these relationships. Results.  The paper highlights the importance of engaging in meaningful relationships with other people. The participant's stories illuminated the importance of maintaining friendships following the move to a care home and how these had had a positive impact on their lives in that setting. With advancing age and increasing frailty the participants were acutely aware that their friendships were vulnerable to breakdown and they implemented a range of strategies to sustain their relationships with these people. Conclusion.  The findings point to the importance of acknowledging the value of long-time friendships to older people and the need to support them in their efforts to sustain these relationships and reduce risks to them.

Physical Mobility and Social Integration: Their Relationship to the Well-Being of Older Canadians

Cette étude a exploré le rapport entre la mobilité, l'intégrations sociaux et le bien-être utilisant un sous-ensemble de 754 personnes âgés et non-marriés, demeurant dans la communauté, a été choisi d'une base de donnés d'Enquête Sociale Générale 1985 de Statistique Canada. Aussi, cette étude a regardé les relations de la mobilité l'intégration sociale avec leurs enfants, leurs frères et soeurs, autres membres de famille, et amis proches; et la satisfaction sociale des rapports avec la famille et amis au bien-être. Un design correlational «cross-sectional» a été choisi. L'âge, le sexe, l'état civil et le domicile sont inclus dans une analyse de régression. Aucune interaction significative a été identifée entre l'intégration sociale et la mobilité mais les résultats appuient l'importance de la mobilité et la qualité, par opposition à la quantité des rapports sociaux au bien-être de la personne âgée. Mobilité, satisfaction envers l'amitié, être plus âgée et satisfaction avec les relations de famille étaient identifiés comme les meilleurs variables. Les implications de recherches et pour la pratique sont discutées.

Health and Happiness for Elderly Institutionalized Canadians

Cette étude explore les facteurs déterminants de l'autoévaluation de la santé et du bonheur chez les aîné(e)s vivant en établissement d'après l'Enquête nationale sur la santé de la population de 1994/95. On a établi des modèles distincts de régression de logistique ordinale pour l'autoévaluation de la santé et du bonheur dans un sous-échantillonnage de 780 aîné(e)s vivant en établissement. Les résultats indiquent que les aîné(e)s canadien(ne)s vivant en établissement évaluent leur santé et leur bonheur à divers degrés et que l'on peut prédire les variations en fonction des caractéristiques démographiques, des facteurs de maladie, de l'invalidité et de l'intégration sociale. Une évaluation positive de la santé et du bonheur est toujours associée à un plus grand âge, à un degré réduit de maladie chronique, à un faible degré perçu de difficultés de mémoire et à moins de douleur. Alors que la bonne santé se joint à un plus grand degré d'instruction et de liberté de déplacement, le bonheur se relie à un meilleur réflexe d'agrippement, à une plus forte fréquentation des activités communes de l'établissement et de la communauté et à un horaire plus flexible. Ces résultats entraînent des conséquences importantes puisque plusieurs des facteurs relevés peuvent être modifiés par des programmes de rééducation ou des interventions infirmières.

Social engagement and its relationship to health

Older age is a time of life when major life tasks such as work and raising children have typically been completed. As a consequence, the daily demands for involvement in their social environment have lessened for older adults. It is believed that, because of their many possible benefits, social activities ultimately promote physical and mental health in older age. These propositions have captured the imagination of gerontologists and geriatricians for decades. Surprisingly, the body of relevant research is not plentiful. In this article we selectively review the theory and empirical support surrounding social engagement and its health consequences in older age.

Social relationships and health as predictors of life satisfaction in advanced old age: results from a Swedish longitudinal study

This longitudinal study examines the relationship between family and friend social support, health, and life satisfaction for a single cohort of eighty-year-old persons living in Lund, Sweden. Results indicate that participants who remained in the study are healthier and score higher on life satisfaction when compared with those who either drop-out or die prior to age eighty-three. Even though well-integrated with family and friends, the number of friends decreases significantly from eighty to eighty-three years; those who reported no close friends nearly doubled from eighty to eighty-three years. However, for those with close friends, contact with friends increases with age. In contrast to previous research, a correlational analysis indicates that neither child nor friend support is related to life satisfaction at either eighty or eighty-three years. However, health measures and satisfaction with sibling contact are related to total life satisfaction at age eighty-three only. These findings indicate the multidimensionality of both social support and life satisfaction for the old-old.

Family and friend relationships among older and younger adults: interaction motivation, mood, and quality

This research examined relationships and life satisfaction among older and younger adults. Eighty-two independently-living older adults and ninety-one younger adults completed a variety of measures of their relationships with family and friends. For both groups the quality of relationships was a stronger predictor of life satisfaction than frequency of contact. For elderly people the quality of their relationships with friends was more important to life satisfaction than the quality of their relationships with children. However, in contrast to a common assumption in the literature, relationships with friends were not perceived to be more positive or intrinsically motivated than relationships with children. It was also found that experiences of criticism and intrusion are particularly important to the family relationships of both older and younger adults. The discussion focuses on how elderly people may have overly positive perceptions of their family relationships.