Berit Ingersoll-Dayton

Emotional Support From Parents Early in Life, Aging, and Health

The purpose of this study is to estimate the relationship between receiving emotional support from parents early in life and an individuals health in adulthood. Analysis of data from a nationally representative sample of adults ages 25-74 years suggests that a lack of parental support during childhood is associated with increased levels of depressive symptoms and chronic conditions in adulthood. These associations between early parental support and adult health persist with increasing age throughout adulthood. Personal control, self-esteem, and social relationships during adulthood account for a large portion of these long-term associations. These findings underscore the importance of adopting a life course perspective in studying the social determinants of health among adults.

Religion, social support, and health among the Japanese elderly.

We address three issues in this paper: (1) Is religion related to self-rated health, (2) do these salubrious effects arise because religion encourages people to provide help to significant others, and (3) is the relationship between religion and helping others more evident among older men than elderly women? We analyze the relationships among religion, support giving, and health with data provided by a national probability sample of 2,153 older people in Japan who were interviewed face-to-face in 1996. Greater involvement in religion is associated with providing help to others more often, but these effects emerge for older men only. Regardless of gender, elders who provide assistance to others more often rate their health more favorably than older adults who are less involved in helping others. These results confirm that religion is related to health, and that helping others may explain at least part of the reason for this relationship.

Religious trajectories and transitions over the life course.

This study examined patterns of change and stability in religiosity over the life course. Open-ended interviews with 129 adults aged 65 and older provided a rich source of data for applying a life course perspective to the study of religion. Two theoretical constructs from the life course perspective (i.e., trajectories and transitions) were used as a framework for understanding religion and aging. The interviews were content analyzed to identify: 1) dimensions of religiosity that exhibit change; 2) patterns of religious trajectories; and 3) social forces that promote changes in religiosity. These analyses revealed four distinct patterns: stable, increasing, decreasing, and curvilinear trajectories. Several forces were involved with either increasing religiosity (e.g., child rearing, adverse life experiences) or decreasing religiosity (e.g., disillusionment with church members, adverse life experiences). Directions for future research are discussed.

Psychological well-being Asian style: The perspective of Thai elders

Psychological well-being is animportant aspect of life quality for olderadults. Asian elders may have a distinctlydifferent perspective from Westernersconcerning the meaning of psychologicalwell-being. Using qualitative researchmethods, this study focused on the views of Thai elders. In-depth interviews and focusgroup discussions were conducted with 67 Thaipeople aged 60 and over. Transcripts werecontent analyzed resulting in theidentification of five dimensions ofwell-being: harmony, interdependence,acceptance, respect and enjoyment. Whencompared to research in the United States, someof the dimensions of psychological well-beingwere distinct while others were overlapping. Implications are discussed in relation to thedevelopment of culturally-relevant measures ofwell-being.

Respect for the elderly in Asia: stability and change.

This study analyzes data from seventy-nine focus groups conducted in the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand. The research examined ways in which respect for the elderly is experienced in these four countries, the extent to which respect has changed over time, and the reasons for changes in respect for the elderly. Using qualitative analysis, five distinct dimensions of respect were identified: gestures and manners, tokens, customs and rituals, asking for advice, and obedience. Focus group discussions indicated that changes have occurred on most of these dimensions of respect. The changes were attributed to variations in family structure and function, education, income, and modernization. These findings are discussed in relation to changing definitions of respect and variations in the way in which respect for the elderly is expressed in Asia.

Supportive relationships in later life.

We adopted a multidimensional approach to the study of the social support convoys of older adults. We distinguished between age and gender differences in four specific dimensions of the social support convoy: (a) existence versus functioning of relationships in the convoy, (b) kinds of relationships (i.e., those with children, siblings, and friends), (c) types of social support (i.e., emotional support, respect, and health support), and (d) receipt versus provision of support. Using a national survey of 718 adults, multivariate and univariate analyses of variance were performed to determine age and gender differences in these four dimensions of social support. The multidimensional approach was useful in pinpointing those aspects of the social support convoy affected by aging. We anticipated that the social support convoy would be devastated by aging. Instead, we found that older people received less support (i.e., emotional and health support) in the absence of sibling relationships. Otherwise, the effects of aging had more to do with what the older person contributed to the convoy than with what he or she received. Women had better social support resources than men, particularly within their friendships. We found no evidence, however, that womens social support advantage counterbalanced the effects of aging on the convoy.

Unforgiveness, rumination, and depressive symptoms among older adults

The experience of feeling unforgiven for past transgressions may contribute to depressive symptoms in later life. This article tests a model in which feeling unforgiven by God and by other people have direct effects on depressive symptoms while self-unforgiveness and rumination mediate this relationship. The sample consisted of 965 men and women aged 67 and older who participated in a national probability sample survey, the Religion, Aging, and Health survey. Results from a latent variable model indicate that unforgiveness by others has a significant direct effect on depressive symptoms and an indirect effect via self-unforgiveness and rumination. However, rather than having a direct effect on depressive symptoms, unforgiveness by God operates only indirectly through self-unforgiveness and rumination. Similarly, self-unforgiveness has an indirect effect on depressive symptoms through rumination.

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy With Older Adults: An Exploratory Study

An 8-week mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) group for older adults with depression and/or anxiety is described. This article is based on an exploratory study of this therapeutic approach and changes in participants’ symptoms associated with participation. Pre-post data from 5 MBCT groups showed significant improvements in reported anxiety, ruminative thoughts, and sleep problems and a reduction in depressive symptoms. Case examples are presented to illustrate these symptom changes. Findings showed that this nonpharmacological intervention is acceptable to older adults and is associated with positive changes. Suggestions are provided for both practitioners and researchers interested in using MBCT with older adults.

Religion and the process of forgiveness in late life

In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with 129 elderly people in order to examine the process of religiously motivated forgiveness in late life. In particular, the purpose was to see how older people go about forgiving each other, and to explore the role played by religion in this process. Three major themes emerged from the data having to do with: (1) the factors influencing whether elderly people are willing to forgive others; (2) what transgressors must do to be forgiven; and (3) whether the process of forgiveness is complete (i.e., whether older adults can forget as well as forgive). The implications of these findings for the study of forgiveness and health in late life are explored.

Enhancing Forgiveness: A Group Intervention for the Elderly

This article describes a therapeutic model of forgiveness (Enright, 2001) and discusses its applicability to social work intervention with older adults. A total of 20 men and women, aged 57–82, participated in 2 different forgiveness groups, each of which met weekly for 8 sessions with a 4-month follow-up session. Measures of forgiveness, as well as biopsychosocial functioning, were collected before and after the group intervention. Results indicated that participants experienced long-term improvement with respect to forgiveness and depression, short-term improvement of physical health, and no change in relation to anxiety or social support. Clinical issues that emerged during the forgiveness group are discussed, and suggestions for gerontological social workers are offered.