Minor positive effects of health-promoting senior meetings for older community-dwelling persons on loneliness, social network, and social support

Abstract

ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to evaluate the 1-year effect of the health-promoting intervention “senior meetings” for older community-dwelling persons regarding loneliness, social network, and social support.MethodsSecondary analysis of data was carried out from two randomized controlled studies: Elderly Persons in the Risk Zone and Promoting Aging Migrants’ Capabilities. Data from 416 participants who attended the senior meetings and the control group at baseline and the 1-year follow-up in the respective studies were included. Data were aggregated and analyzed with chi-square test and odds ratio (OR) to determine the intervention effect.ResultsThe senior meetings had a positive effect on social support regarding someone to turn to when in need of advice and backing (OR 1.72, p=0.01). No positive intervention effect could be identified for loneliness, social network, or other aspects of social support.ConclusionHealth-promoting senior meetings for older community-dwelling persons have a minor positive effect on social support. The senior meetings might benefit from a revision to reinforce content focused on loneliness, social network, and social support. However, the modest effect could also depend on the lack of accessible social resources to meet participants’ identified needs, a possible hindrance for a person’s capability. This makes it necessary to conduct further research to evaluate the effect of the senior meetings and other health-promoting initiatives on social aspects of older community-dwelling people’s lives, since these aspects are of high importance for life satisfaction and well-being in old age.

The minority strengths model: Development and initial path analytic validation in racially/ethnically diverse LGBTQ individuals

“…Among the strength-based variables and outcomes identified for the minority strengths model, there is theoretical and empirical evidence suggesting specific likely pathways and relationships. Social support has been associated with increased identity pride (Bogart, Lund, & Rottenstein, 2018), self-esteem (Austin & Goodman, 2017;Hoffman, Ushpiz, & Levy-Shiff, 1988;Kong & You, 2013;Rosenberg, 1979), resilience (Earnshaw, Bogart, Dovidio, & Williams, 2015;Thompson, McBride, Hosford & Halaas, 2016), mental health (Pflum et al, 2015;Scandurra, Amodeo, Valerio, Bochicchio, & Frost, 2017), and positive health behaviors (Brown et al, 2016;Gustafsson, Berglund, Faronbi, Barenfeld, & Hammar, 2017). It would make sense then that it is a key variable on the left side of the model exerting an effect on all other variables in the model.…”

Social support for elderly people over 65 years in Spain

“…Many studies have related quality of life to social support (Gustafsson et al. ; Orueta‐Sanchez et al. ).…”

“…Therefore, social support is understood as a protective factor against various phenomena. Many studies have related quality of life to social support (Gustafsson et al 2017;Orueta-Sanchez et al 2011).…”

“…The social support available to older people in the final stage of life will affect their health. Having a good social network can be a protective factor against various diseases (Gustafsson et al 2017). So, the purpose of this study was to investigate the social support available to Spanish people over 65 years of age.…”

Health promotion of frail elderly individuals and at risk of frailty

“…A positive view of aging is established, which fosters self-care, co-responsibility for the health of those involved and the encouragement of a healthy lifestyle. In addition to an educational reinforcement tool, discussions are effective strategies for the health promotion of lonely elderly people who need social support (40) .…”