WHY IS PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING ASSOCIATED WITH THE COMPOSITION OF OLDER ADULT’S CARE NETWORK?
2024
Psychological Well-Being and Care Networks in Older Adults
Sample size: 4837
publication
Evidence: moderate
Author Information
Author(s): Swinkels Joukje, Abbing Jens, Van Groenou Marjolein Broese
Primary Institution: VU Amsterdam
Hypothesis
Care network types differ to the extent that they foster feelings of relatedness, autonomy, and competence, resulting in different levels of psychological well-being.
Conclusion
Receiving no care or care from a partner contributes the most to psychological well-being, while formal care networks are associated with worse outcomes.
Supporting Evidence
- Older care recipients differ in types of care used based on health impairment.
- Loneliness and care sufficiency partly explain differences in psychological well-being.
- The study used mixed-model regression analysis to assess depressive symptoms.
Takeaway
Older people feel happier when they get care from family or friends instead of from paid services.
Methodology
Data from ten waves of the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam were analyzed using mixed-model regression.
Participant Demographics
Older Dutch adults, with a total of 18,434 observations.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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