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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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Continuous participation in voluntary groups as a protective factor for the psychological well-being of adults who develop functional limitations
— evidence from the National Survey of Families and Households | | Author(s) | Emily A Greenfield, Nadine F Marks |
| Journal title | Journals of Gerontology: Series B, Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, vol 62B, no 1, January 2007 |
| Pages | pp S60-S68 |
| Source | http://www.geron.org |
| Keywords | Voluntary work [elderly] ; Participation ; Well being ; Self care capacity ; Mobility ; Longitudinal surveys ; United States of America. |
| Annotation | Although previous studies have indicated that declining functional health is associated with individuals' poorer psychological well-being, few studies have examined factors that can protect adults from the loss of well-being following functional decline. Guided by continuity theory, this study investigated the extent to which continuous participation in voluntary groups (recreational, religious and civic) buffers individuals against the harmful psychological effects of developing functional limitations. Longitudinal data came from 4646 respondents aged 55-92 in the US National Survey of Families and Households (1987-1993) who reported having no functional limitations at Time 1. Developing functional limitations over a 5-year period was associated with greater increases in depressive symptoms and lower levels of personal growth. Increases in depressive symptoms, however, were less severe in men who were continuously involved in recreational groups. Additionally the association between developing functional limitations and lower levels of personal growth did not hold for men or women who continuously participated in religious groups. Findings suggest that continuous participation in certain types of voluntary groups can moderate the problematic effects of developing functional limitations on psychological well-being, particularly depression. (RH). |
| Accession Number | CPA-070926227 A |
| Classmark | GHH: TMB: D:F:5HH: CA: C4: 3J: 7T |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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