Exploring the Causal Interplay of Subjective Age and Health Dimensions in the Second Half of Life

Spuling, Svenja M.; Miche, Martina; Wurm, Susanne; Wahl, Hans‐Werner

doi:10.1026/0943-8149/a000084

Cited by 97 publications

(88 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…Future research on the causality of this relationship is needed to support this hypothesis. Future studies could also investigate the conceptual overlap between subjective (physical) age and health or quality of life dimensions more thoroughly in an age-diverse sample (cf., Spuling et al, 2013) and associated self-regulatory processes (cf., proactive coping: Gamrowska & Steuden, 2014). More thorough investigations of potential model structures (including moderation or mediation) might help to shed more light on a potential (indirect) relationship between the age people feel physically and how active they are, as current findings provide a first indication by the intercorrelations of subjective physical age with common predictors of health behavior change and physical activity, even when controlling for chronological age and health status and checking for multicollinearity.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Overall, subjective age seems to be a promising construct to investigate health and different health domains. This has already been shown on a correlational level for physical and mental health (Barak & Stern, 1986;Kleinspehn-Ammerlahn, Kotter-Grühn, & Smith, 2008) and in a crossed-lagged study with different health domains (i.e., physical health status, functional health, self-rated health, and mental health; Spuling, Miche, Wurm, & Wahl, 2013), indicating that those who feel younger, irrespective of their chronological age, report better health in some domains. Furthermore, subjective age explained between 10% and 15% of variance in health in a study by Hubley and Hultsch (1994).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 96%

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Direct effects of a domain-specific subjective age measure on self-reported physical activity – Is it more important how old you are or how old you feel?

Wienert¹,

Kuhlmann²,

Lippke³

2015

Health Psychology Report

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Research has shown that physical activity is important for healthy aging. At the same time, physical activity and different age factors (chronological and subjective age measures) are interrelated. The present study investigated whether subjective physical age and chronological age are significantly correlated with physical activity over time. participants and procedureA study design with baseline assessment and a 4-week follow-up period was conducted with an online sample (N = 541), aged 25-78 years (M = 39.62, SD = 10.74). Regression analysis with the enter method was used to predict subsequent physical activity by baseline predictors. resultsSubjective physical age correlates with chronological age (r = -.34, p < .001). Subjective physical age predicted subsequent physical activity when controlling for baseline variables (B = -.12, t = -2.43, p = .015) until past physical activity was entered (B = -.06, t = -1.44, p = .150). The final model explained 33% of variance in subsequent physical activity. conclusionsSubjective physical age seems to be more important for physical activity than chronological age. This is an important finding as subjective physical age might be a target for interventions, to enable individuals to become more physically active. Future studies should investigate non-linear relationships between subjective physical age, social-cognitive predictors of physical activity and physical activity behavior.key words subjective age; domain-specific measure; social cognitive predictors for behavior change; online study; self-reported physical activity

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Direct effects of a domain-specific subjective age measure on self-reported physical activity – Is it more important how old you are or how old you feel?

Wienert¹,

Kuhlmann²,

Lippke³

2015

Health Psychology Report

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show abstract

“…Physical health is a strong predictor of subjective age. For instance, good self-rated health explains a large portion of variance of a younger subjective age [6,25] . Furthermore, low disease burden [17] , high peak expiratory flow, high grip strength, and low waist circumference (which are biological markers of aging) are related to younger subjective ages [26] .…”

Section: Predictors and Correlates Of Subjective Agementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Consequently, an important goal in the study of subjective age will be the exploration of cohort differences both in the developmental trajectory of subjective age and in the relationship between subjective age and psychological functioning. Longitudinal studies also allow for the investigation into lagged effects, which can be used to test causal relationships between subjective age and its determinants and outcomes [6] .…”

Section: Study Designsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Specifically, individuals who feel younger than their chronological age report better physical health and functioning [4,5] and fewer depressive symptoms [6] , they show slower cognitive decline [7,8] , and they live longer lives [4,9] . Given the relevance of subjective age, an in-depth analysis of current and future directions in the study of subjective age is warranted.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Looking Beyond Chronological Age: Current Knowledge and Future Directions in the Study of Subjective Age

Kotter-Grühn¹,

Kornadt²,

Stéphan³

2015

Gerontology

197

156

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The notion of the heterogeneity of aging goes along with the awareness that every person experiences aging differently. Over the past years, scholars have emphasized that the assessment of these subjective experiences of aging contributes to our understanding of a range of psychological and physiological processes and outcomes among older adults. One construct frequently used in this context is subjective age, that is, how old or young a person feels. Subjective age has been shown to be an important correlate as well as a predictor of markers of successful aging such as well-being, health, and longevity. However, less is known about the antecedents of subjective age and the mechanisms underlying the relationship between feeling younger and positive developmental outcomes. This article briefly summarizes and critically evaluates the empirical evidence on this topic and makes suggestions on how to address and potentially overcome currently existing theoretical, methodological, and psychometric challenges. Based on the discussion of these challenges, the paper provides directions for future research by outlining underexplored topics such as intraindividual variability and determinants of subjective age, the match between objective age indicators and subjective age, and how subjective age maps on behavior and functioning.

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Psychological risk and protective factors associated with depression among older adults in mainland China: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

Tang

Jiang

Tang

2021

Int J Geriat Psychiatry

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Background: Although geriatric depression is a public health concern in mainland China, findings about its psychological risk and protective factors have been inconsistent, and its prevention programmes have been deficient. To improve interventions for geriatric depression, we designed a study to systematically estimate the effect size of those factors. Methods:To identify psychological risk and protective factors of geriatric depression, we conducted two independent literature searches in English-and Chineselanguage databases, and we used a random effects model to analyse effect sizes. Results:We identified 15 psychological risk and protective factors in 66 studies. The pooled effect sizes between the factors and geriatric depression ranged from 0.129 to 0.567. Self-esteem displayed a large effect size with depression (r = −0.567), whereas medium-to-large effect sizes emerged between geriatric depression and negative perceptions of age (r = 0.452), resilience (r = −0.426), rumination (r = 0.432), neuroticism (r = 0.381), extraversion (r = −0.363), self-efficacy (r = −0.357), sense of control (r = −0.343), and negative coping strategies (r = 0.315). The sample's mean age, the percentage of women sampled, and the research quality of the studies significantly moderated certain associations.Limitations: Large heterogeneity, the inexplicability of causal relationships between the factors and geriatric depression, and the lack of generalisability to special groups limit our findings. Conclusions: Self-esteem and perceptions of age are potential targets for improving interventions for geriatric depression in mainland China, which should continue to be developed and assessed for their effectiveness.

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Exploring the Causal Interplay of Subjective Age and Health Dimensions in the Second Half of Life

Cited by 97 publications

References 32 publications

Direct effects of a domain-specific subjective age measure on self-reported physical activity – Is it more important how old you are or how old you feel?

Direct effects of a domain-specific subjective age measure on self-reported physical activity – Is it more important how old you are or how old you feel?

Looking Beyond Chronological Age: Current Knowledge and Future Directions in the Study of Subjective Age

Psychological risk and protective factors associated with depression among older adults in mainland China: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

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