Cognitive, psychological and social factors associated with older adults' mobility: a scoping review of self‐report and performance‐based measures

Abstract

Although many factors have been associated with mobility among older adults, there is paucity of research that explores the complexity of factors that influence mobility. This review aims to synthesise the available evidence for factors comprising the cognitive, psychological, and social mobility determinants and their associations with mobility self‐reported and performance‐based outcomes in older adults (60 years). We followed Arksey and O′Malley's five stages of a scoping review and searched PubMed, EMBASE, PsychINFO, Web of Science, AgeLine, Allied and Complementary Medicine Database, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature and Sociological Abstract databases. Reviewers in pairs independently conducted title, abstract, full‐text screening and data extraction. We reported associations by analyses rather than articles because articles reported multiple associations for factors and several mobility outcomes. Associations were categorised as significantly positive, negative, or not significant. We included 183 peer‐reviewed articles published in 27 countries, most of which were cross‐sectional studies and conducted among community‐dwelling older adults. The 183 articles reported 630 analyses, of which 381 (60.5%) were significantly associated with mobility outcomes in the expected direction. For example, older adults with higher cognitive functioning such as better executive functioning had better mobility outcomes (e.g., faster gait speed), and those with poor psychological outcomes, such as depressive symptoms, or social outcomes such as reduced social network, had poorer mobility outcomes (e.g., slower gait speed) compared to their counterparts. Studies exploring the association between cognitive factors, personality (a psychological factor) and self‐reported mobility outcomes (e.g., walking for transportation or driving), and social factors and performance‐based mobility outcomes in older adults are limited. Understanding the additive relationships between cognitive, psychological, and social factors highlights the complexity of older adults' mobility across different forms of mobility, including independence, use of assistive devices, transportation, and driving.

Comparison of Self-Reported and Capacity-Based Measures of Mobility in Community-Dwelling Older Adults in Nigeria: The Mediating Role of Age, Cognitive Status, and Chronic Conditions

“…Nevertheless, studies that explore the underlying mechanism (mediators) between self-reported and capacity-based mobility outcomes are scarce. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to examine the relationship between several self-reported (LEFS, Mänty Preclinical Limitation Scale, LSQ) and capacity-based mobility (SPPB, 6MWT, 10mWT) outcomes in a developing context while exploring the mediating factors chosen from comprehensive mobility determinants ( Kalu et al, 2022a , 2022b , 2023 ). We found the correlation between self-reported (LEFS and Mänty Preclinical Limitation scale) and capacity-based (SPPB and 6MWT) mobility measures ranged from poor to fair, in the expected direction.…”

Association between sociodemographic factors and mobility limitation among older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis protocol

“…Thus, it can be predicted that age-related mobility limitations will increase the burden on social, economic, and healthcare systems [ 2 , 4 ]. Most importantly, studies on older adults’ mobility have been biased towards the biophysical factors, yet sociodemographic determinant is a significant factor in access to health and healthy ageing [ 9 ]. This study will quantify and synthesise the various sociodemographic determinants of mobility in older adults as available in the literature so far and proffer recommendations on the critical directions for future research.…”

“…Webber and colleagues have conceptualised a comprehensive older adults’ mobility model including cognitive, environmental, financial, personal, physical, psychological, and social factors [ 2 ]. However, biophysical, and psycho-cognitive aspects of older adults’ mobility are more frequently researched, creating a literature gap on the implications of the sociodemographic factors [ 9 ]. Exploring the influences of demographic and socioeconomic factors may further our understanding of the risks of mobility limitation in older adults.…”

“…We propose to conduct the first systematic review of the association between sociodemographic factors and mobility in older adults. A recent scoping review [ 9 ] examined the effect of social interactions, cognition, and psychological factors on older adults’ mobility without emphasis on sociodemographic determinants. Therefore, we propose to conduct this review to synthesise the association between sociodemographic factors and performance-based walking outcomes including walking distance, time, and speed among community-dwelling older adults.…”