Biomedical subjects

N Krause

Publications and source records attributed to N Krause.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

PubMed1993

Stress, social support, and psychological distress among the Chinese elderly.

This study examined the relationships among stress, social support, and depressive symptoms with data provided by a large representative sample (N = 2,721) of older adults who live in the People's Republic of China. Many Western investigators believe that elderly people respond to stressful experiences by mobilizing assistance from their significant others. However, recent American studies suggest that this may not always be true, and that when certain stressors arise, older adults may actually receive less support from significant others. The purpose of our study was to evaluate these competing views in a culturally diverse setting. The findings reveal that both perspectives have something to offer and that financial strain (i.e., one kind of stressor) may increase some kinds of assistance (i.e., economic support) at the same time that it erodes other types of support (e.g., emotional support).

Aged↗

PubMed1993

Neighborhood deterioration and social isolation in later life.

The purpose of this study is to test a conceptual model that attempts to show how selected neighborhood characteristics are related to social isolation in later life. This model specifies that older adults with low levels of educational attainment are more likely to experience financial problems and that elderly people who are confronted by financial difficulties are more likely to reside in dilapidated neighborhoods. The model further predicts that deteriorated neighborhoods in turn tend to promote distrust of others and older adults who are more distrustful of others tend to be more socially isolated. Based on data provided by a nationwide survey of elderly people, subsequent analyses revealed strong support for the theoretical sequence described above.

Age Factors↗

PubMed1992

Financial strain, economic values, and somatic symptoms in later life.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether the impact of financial strain on psychological distress depends on the value that older adults place on economic success. Feelings of personal control were specified as an intervening variable in this process. The data came from a nationwide survey of 819 people in Canada who were 55 years of age and older. The findings reveal that financial problems are associated with diminished feelings of control and that these effects are stronger when elderly people value economic achievement highly. In addition, financial strain and diminished feelings of control are related to increased distress regardless of how highly economic success is valued.

Achievement↗

PubMed1992

Providing support to others and well-being in later life.

Although there is now a voluminous literature on supportive social relations in later life, most of this research has been concerned with assessing the beneficial effects of receiving support from others. The purpose of this study is to assess whether giving support to others within informal as well as formal settings might also benefit older help-providers. Findings from a recent nationwide survey of the elderly suggest that giving informal assistance to others (but not formal assistance) appears to bolster feelings of personal control in later life. The data further reveal that greater feelings of personal control are in turn related to lower levels of depressive symptomatology.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed1992

Acculturation and psychological distress in three groups of elderly Hispanics.

The goal of this study was to evaluate the relationship between acculturation and psychological distress in three groups of older adults who have immigrated from Mexico, Cuba, and Puerto Rico. Financial strain and social isolation are specified as intervening mechanisms that are thought to link acculturation with well-being in late life. Data from a recent nationwide survey of older Hispanics suggest that levels of psychological distress tend to vary across Hispanic groups and that these differences may be attributed in part to the complex interplay between educational attainment, language acculturation, financial strain, and social isolation.

Acculturation↗

PubMed1992

Social support among the aged in Wuhan, China.

"This study provides information on supportive social relations in a sample of 2,762 elderly people in Wuhan, China. The elderly concerned were found to be actively engaged in exchanges of social support with their families and kin. They not only receive assistance but also provide a substantial amount of help to others. These supportive ties were highly positive and satisfactory to the great majority of the respondents. Only moderate correlations were found among various dimensions of social support. These results underscore the multi-dimensional nature of social support and suggest that caution needs to be exercised in extrapolating interpersonal exchanges from social embeddedness."

Adult↗

PubMed1992

Cross-cultural variations in depressive symptoms in later life.

The purpose of this study is twofold: to estimate the prevalence of depressive symptoms among older adults in four culturally diverse groups (white Americans, black Americans, Japanese, Taiwanese), and to assess whether there are cross-cultural variations in the way depressive symptoms are manifest. Data from three recent nationwide surveys in the United States, Japan, and Taiwan reveal that the lowest overall levels of depressive symptoms are found among Japanese elderly, followed by Taiwanese, white Americans, and black Americans respectively. Based on previous cross-cultural research, it was hypothesized that the Japanese tend to express depressive symptoms as interpersonal complaints, whereas Taiwanese are more likely to manifest somatic symptoms. In contrast, Americans were expected to express depressive symptoms in the form of depressed cognitions. The findings failed to support these hypotheses. Instead, older Americans tended to have higher scores than Orientals on all three depressive symptom clusters.

Aged↗

PubMed1991

Stress, religiosity, and abstinence from alcohol.

The purpose of this study was to test a conceptual model that attempts to identify psychosocial factors associated with the avoidance of alcohol in later life. This model is based on the life stress literature. Although most researchers maintain that life events are associated with greater alcohol consumption, a basic premise of this study is that certain stressors may be related to abstinence from alcohol in later life. In examining this relationship, the effects of a potentially important coping resource (religiosity) were also considered. Findings from a nationwide survey suggest that although greater health problems are associated with a greater probability that elderly people will abstain from using alcohol, financial difficulties had the opposite effect and were instead related to a lesser probability that older adults would avoid drinking alcoholic beverages. Finally, gender and race were found to exert important effects throughout the model.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1991

Financial strain and psychological well-being among the American and Japanese elderly.

Research in the United States indicates that stressful life events may create psychological distress among older adults by eroding their sense of personal control and by diminishing their feelings of self-worth. The purpose of this study was twofold: (a) to replicate these findings with data provided by a recent nationwide survey of elderly people in the United States (N = 1,523) and (b) to compare these findings with results obtained from a nationwide survey of older adults in Japan (N = 1,517). The findings from both surveys are quite similar. The data indicate that financial strain tends to erode feelings of control and self-worth in both cultures, and the weakening of these personal resources in turn tends to increase depressive symptoms.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1991

Stressful events and life satisfaction among elderly men and women.

The purpose of this study was to examine the interrelationships among stressful events, domain-specific assessments of life satisfaction, and global evaluations of life satisfaction. This research was guided by two competing theoretical formulations. According to bottom-up theory, older adults first assess feelings of satisfaction within specific life domains that are based in part on the experiences (i.e., stressors) they encounter in these areas. The domain-specific views are subsequently synthesized to form an overall sense of satisfaction with life as a whole. In contrast, the top-down theory suggests that a person's ongoing sense of satisfaction with life as a whole predisposes him or her to assess satisfaction with specific domains in ways that are congruent with his or her initial sense of global life satisfaction. Analysis of data provided by older participants in a nationwide survey tends to support the bottom-up perspective.

Aged↗

PubMed1991

Stress and isolation from close ties in later life.

Research on the relationship between life stress and social support suggests that older adults frequently cope with difficult times by turning to significant others for assistance. The purpose of this study is to evaluate an alternative view which suggests that particular kinds of stressful experiences (i.e., financial strain and the fear of crime) may actually promote greater isolation from others. The data reveal that chronic strain tends to promote distrust of others, and that distrust in turn leads to greater isolation from network members. However, the results further reveal that not all stressors are involved in this process. In particular, recent deaths are not related significantly to distrust or to social isolation. Finally, the data indicate that the process leading to less contact with others is more likely to involve older adults in lower social status positions. The impact of social isolation on depressive symptoms is also examined.

Aged↗

PubMed1990

Personality, social support, and psychological distress in later life.

A conceptual model was developed to address 2 issues that have received relatively little attention in the social support literature. First, an attempt was made to assess the interrelationships among 3 types or dimensions of supportive social relations. In addition, the impact of selected psychological and social factors on social support use was examined. Findings from a nationwide survey of older adults in the United Kingdom suggest that social contact tends to increase the amount of received support, and received support in turn tends to bolster perceptions of support availability in the future (i.e., anticipated support). With regard to the second issue, social roles (especially marital status) and social extraversion emerged as potentially important correlates of social support use in later life.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1990

Perceived health problems, formal/informal support, and life satisfaction among older adults.

The purpose of this study was to assess whether support from formal sources buffers the effects of stress more effectively than assistance that is provided by informal network members. Findings from a longitudinal study of older adults suggests that formal support, but not informal assistance, reduces the deleterious effects of perceived health problems on changes in life satisfaction through time. In the process of evaluating these relationships, an effort was made to match the needs created by a particular type of stress (ongoing perceived health problems) with the benefits provided by a particular type of support (illness-related instrumental support).

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed1990

Measuring social support among older adults.

The purpose of this study is to introduce a measure of natural supportive behaviors for use in studies that examine the relationship between stress, social support, and health among older adults. The index improves on existing measures in three ways: it avoids problems arising from confounding potentially supportive relationships with support that is actually received; the scale also assesses variations in individual support needs; and it measures four distinct dimensions of social support (informational support, tangible help, emotional support, and integration). Based on data from a random community survey of 351 older adults, the basic psychometric properties and the factor structure of the scale are explored. The predictive validity of the scale is demonstrated by showing that the dimensions of support buffer the stressful effects of bereavement on depressive symptoms.

Aged↗

PubMed1989

Satisfaction with social support and depressive symptoms: a panel analysis.

The literature suggests that persons who are dissatisfied with the amount of social support that has been provided to them may subsequently suffer from psychological disorder. At the same time, there is evidence that individuals who initially suffer from emotional disorder may consequently be less satisfied with their social support systems than may persons who enjoy better mental health. The purpose of this study was to test these competing hypotheses with panel data from a community survey of older adults. The findings indicate that changes in satisfaction with support tend to precede changes in depressive symptoms. A number of issues in the analysis of longitudinal data are discussed.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1989

Age differences in the acculturation process.

Age differences were assessed in a conceptual model that seeks to explain how acculturation affects psychological well-being among Mexican Americans. The data were from a national probability sample of 859 persons of Mexican decent. It was hypothesized that low acculturation creates financial stress. Moreover, low acculturation and financial stress were in turn predicted to erode feelings of personal control and self-esteem. Finally, diminished feelings of control and low self-esteem were hypothesized to exert a negative impact on psychological well-being. When data from respondents of all ages was assessed, empirical support was found for all of the hypotheses except the linkage between acculturation and financial stress. However, few age differences emerged in the model. The authors conclude that older Mexican Americans may not be more vulnerable to the stressors associated with acculturation.

Acculturation↗

PubMed1989

Stress and religious involvement among older blacks.

We conducted this study in a nationwide sample of older Black Americans to determine whether religious involvement helps to reduce the negative impact of stressful life events. The major outcome measures were self-esteem and feelings of personal control. Three models of the stress process were evaluated empirically: the suppressor, moderator, and distress-deterrent models. The data provided support for the distress-deterrent model only. The findings from this model indicated that although life stress to erode feelings of self-worth and mastery, these negative effects were offset or counterbalanced by increased religious involvement.

Black or African American↗

PubMed1989

Generational differences in the structure of the CES-D scale in Mexican Americans.

This study examines differences in the structure of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) scale across three generations of Mexican Americans. The covariance structure of the items was viewed as a function of several parameter matrices. Factorial invariance was evaluated by testing a series of hypotheses involving equivalence constraints on one or more parameter matrices. The findings revealed that the proposed 12-item model fits the data within each of the three generations adequately. Although no generational differences in factor loadings were revealed, structural variations of the CES-D in measurement error variances were found. Measurement error variances associated with certain items in the older generation are significantly greater than those in the middle-aged and young generations. In addition, socioeconomic characteristics, acculturation, and health status fail to explain the observed differences in the structure of the CES-D among the three generations.

Adult↗