Lena Dahlberg

Dalarna University · School of Education, Health and Social Studies

Umbrella reviews (reviews of systematic reviews) are increasingly used to synthesize findings from systematic reviews. One important challenge when pooling data from several systematic reviews is publication overlap, that is, the same primary publications being included in multiple reviews. Pieper et al. have proposed using the corrected covered ar...

Background Persons with dementia encounter time-related problems and significant others often need to provide support in daily time management and use of time assistive technology (AT). Further research has been requested on how time AT for persons with dementia affects the situation of significant others. Moreover, there are a few previous qualita...

Objectives This umbrella review aimed to evaluate whether certain interventions can mitigate the negative health consequences of caregiving, which interventions are more effective than others depending on the circumstances, and how these interventions are experienced by caregivers themselves. Design An umbrella review of systematic reviews was con...

Intergenerational family care provided to older parents by adult children is growing and differs based on gender and socioeconomic status. Few studies consider these elements in relation to both the parent and their adult child, and little is known about the number of care tasks received even though those providing intensive levels of care are at r...

Objectives: Limited and inconsistent findings have been reported on the link between social connections and support and emergency department (ED) visits in older populations. Moreover, the adequacy of informal care for older adults has rarely been considered. This study explored the associations of social connections, social support, and informal...

Purpose of the research: Social exclusion threatens quality of life in older age. However, there is a lack of research on social exclusion from life-course and gender perspectives. We investigated early- and midlife risk factors for old-age social exclusion among women and men. Materials and methods: Two individually linked studies of Swedish na...

This overview of four evidence maps is based on systematic reviews of assessment and interventions in social work practice. The aim was to investigate the evidence and evidence gaps within four important areas for social work research and practice. Descriptive data on search strategies and domains were collected from four evidence maps, on Social A...

Introduction: Persons with dementia experience time-related problems, but there is a lack of instruments evaluating their time processing ability and daily time management. This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the instruments KaTid®-Senior measuring time processing ability, and Time-S© Senior and Time-Proxy© measuring daily...

Several factors associated with loneliness are also considered indicators of social exclusion. While loneliness has been proposed as an outcome of social exclusion, there is limited empirical evidence of a link. This study examines the associations between social exclusion indicators and loneliness in older adults (60+ years) in four Nordic countri...

Introduction: Knowledge of older person's experiences of important values in home care service can facilitate the development and delivery of high-quality services supporting their well-being, dignity and participation in the care provided. To date, few studies have explored older person's values and experiences of home care services. Purpose: T...

This study investigated associations between time processing ability (TPA), daily time management (DTM), and dementia severity. Persons with dementia (PwDs) (n = 53) and their significant others (n = 49) participated in this cross-sectional study. Bivariate analyses were used to investigate associations between TPA and DTM and the dementia severity...

(1) Background: Spouse carers of persons with dementia (PwD) are particularly vulnerable to negative outcomes of care, yet research rarely focuses on their caregiving situation. This study explores factors associated with the positive value and negative impact of caregiving in spouse carers of PwD in Sweden. (2) Methods: The study was a cross-secti...

Objectives To examine the extent to which contextual factors explain emergency department (ED) visits and ED revisits, additional to that explained by individual factors. Design A register-based prospective cohort study. Setting Swedish region of Dalarna. Participants Participants were 16 543 community-living adults aged 80 or older who were res...

Information and communication technology (ICT) can potentially support older adults in making decisions and increase their involvement in decision-making processes. Although the range of technical products has expanded in various areas of society, knowledge is lacking on the influence that ICT has on older adults’ decision-making in everyday situat...

As welfare providers struggle to meet the care needs of persons with dementia (PwDs), most of their needs are being met by a family carers, most often a spouse. The situation for spouse carers is unique, e.g., with grief, loneliness and loss of intimacy combining with stress and poor health. Research is needed to develop adequate support for spouse...

Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, spouse carers of persons with dementia (PwDs) found their care responsibilities overwhelming and had little time to focus on their own lives. To minimize the risk of being infected with Covid-19, older persons are recommended to self-isolate in their homes, while formal support such as respite care and day care ce...

Introduction Informal (unpaid) caregivers play an essential role in caring for older people, whose care needs are often not fully met by formal services. While providing informal care may be a positive experience, it can also exert a considerable strain on caregivers’ physical and mental health. How to best support the needs of informal caregivers...

Objectives Individuals who feel lonely and those who are socially isolated have higher mortality risks than those who are not lonely or socially isolated. However, the importance of loneliness and social isolation for survival is rarely analysed in the same study or with consideration of gender differences. The aim was to examine the separate, mutu...

Introduction People with cognitive impairments often have difficulties in managing their time for daily activities. In older adults with cognitive impairments such as dementia and stroke, these may present as disorientation, poor time awareness, time perception, daily time management and so on. Time-related deficits and associated behaviours impede...

Background Being an informal carer of a person with dementia (PwD) can have a negative effect on the carer’s health and quality of life, and spouse carers have been found to be especially vulnerable. Yet relatively little is known about the care provided and support received by spouse carers. This study compares spouse carers to other informal care...

We contribute to the discussion on social exclusion interrelationships by examining the relationship between material conditions and loneliness, as one potential marker of connections between the social and economic domain. Our analysis focuses on a sample of individuals aged 50+ in the Survey of Health Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). In i...

Multidimensionality is a key feature of social exclusion, that is, exclusion concerns different life domains, and disadvantages in one domain can be interrelated with disadvantages in other domains. Interrelationships across social exclusion domains have implications not only for the experience of the individual, but also for policy, since cutbacks...

The links between loneliness and overall morbidity and mortality are well known, and this has profound implications for quality of life and health and welfare budgets. Most studies have been cross-sectional allowing for conclusions on correlates of loneliness, but more recently, some longitudinal studies have revealed also micro-level predictors of...

Objectives: To effectively reduce loneliness in older adults, interventions should be based on firm evidence regarding risk factors for loneliness in that population. This systematic review aimed to identify, appraise and synthesise longitudinal studies of risk factors for loneliness in older adults. Methods: Searches were performed in June 2018...

Responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of physical distancing risk collateral damage such as increased loneliness. Older adults have been identified as being at higher risk of poor outcomes if infected and in many countries have been subjected to greater restrictions on physical contacts with others. Most research so far points towards an incr...

We contribute to the discussion on social exclusion by examining the relationship between material conditions and loneliness in a sample of individuals aged 50+ in the Survey of Health Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). In its 5th wave, the survey was extended to include specific items related to economic and social deprivation. We use this e...

Social isolation and loneliness have profound implications for quality of life and health and welfare budgets, but interventions to reduce loneliness are limited effective. The aim of this study is to examine the often-ignored impact of macro-level drivers of loneliness, in addition to micro-level drivers by adopting a cross-national perspective. W...

Objectives: This study investigates the association between living alone and mortality over a recent 19-year period (1992–2011). Method: Data from a repeated cross-sectional, nationally representative (Sweden) study of adults ages 77 and older are analyzed in relation to 3-year mortality. Results: Findings suggest that the mortality risk associated...

Background: There is lack of knowledge on how occupational therapists (OTs) assess daily time management (DTM) for persons with dementia (PwDs) and on which aspects affect prescription of time assistive technology (AT). Aim: To explore OTs’ experiences of assessing the need for and prescribing time AT for PwDs. Material and methods: Focus group int...

Social exclusion is complex and dynamic, and it leads to the non-realization of social, economic, political or cultural rights or participation within a society. This critical review takes stock of the literature on exclusion of social relations. Social relations are defined as comprising social resources, social connections and social networks. An...

Background Social exclusion in older adults is associated with lower well-being and poorer health. To date there has been little research on whether the level of social exclusion in older adults changes over time, and its association with gender. Aim To examine trends and gender associations in social exclusion indicators in older adults for the y...

Objectives: To assess the association between baseline characteristics at an index ED visit and ED revisit within 30 days among adults aged ≥ 65 years in two Swedish regions. Methods: This was a register-based prospective cohort study. The sample included (N=16 688; N=101 017) older adults who have had an index ED visit in 2014 at hospital based...

An inclusive neighbourhood is a key facilitator enabling older adults to age in place. Neighbourhoods have been identified as a dimension of social exclusion important to older adults, and it has been argued that older adults are particularly vulnerable to neighbourhood change. The aim of this study was to explore older adults’ experiences of neigh...

Background Today’s older people drink more alcohol than earlier cohorts of older people. Social integration has been identified as an important factor for older people’s drinking, but the association is complex. This study investigates both high and low levels of social integration and their associations with longitudinal patterns of alcohol consum...

Background: Social exclusion (SE) is a process that limits participation in society across life domains, and is associated with poor quality of life. Neighbourhood exclusion has been identified as particularly important for older adults. This paper examines the association between SE and well-being in older adults from urban and rural areas, focus...

Background: Age increases the risk of emergency department [ED] visits. Health related quality of life (HRQoL) is often estimated as an outcome of ED visits, but it can be a risk factor of ED visits. This study aims to assess the association of HRQoL with time to first ED visit and/or frequent ED use in older adults during four-year period and if...

Objective To examine the relationship between social factors and planned and unplanned hospital admissions among older people. Data Sources/Study Setting 2011 data from the Swedish Panel Study of Living Conditions of the Oldest Old (SWEOLD) and data from the Swedish National Patient Register until December 31, 2012. Study Design The study had a p...

To live with feelings of loneliness has negative implications for quality of life, health and survival. This study aimed to examine changes in loneliness among older people, both with regard to prevalence rates, and socio-demographic, social and health-related correlates of loneliness. This study had a repeated cross-sectional design and was based...

Sweden is seen as a typical example of a social democratic welfare regime, with universal and generous welfare policies. However, in the last decades, there have been substantial reductions in the Swedish provision of care for older people. This study aimed to examine trends in sources of care-receipt in older people (77+) living in their own home...

The prevalence of urinary incontinence (UI) increases with age and can negatively affect quality of life. However, relatively few older people with UI seek treatment. The aim of this study was to explore the views of older people with UI on the process of seeking help. Older people with UI were recruited to the study from three continence services...

Older people have been identified as being at risk of social exclusion. However, despite the fact that care is commonly required in later life and the majority of that care is provided by informal carers, a connection between social exclusion and informal care-receipt has rarely been considered. The aim of this study was to examine how informal car...

Objectives: The understanding of social phenomena is enhanced if individuals can be studied over longer periods. Regarding loneliness in old age, there is a general lack of longitudinal research. The aim of this study was to examine whether there is an association between loneliness in old age and social engagement 20 years earlier, as stated by l...

Objectives: Longitudinal research on loneliness in old age has rarely considered loneliness separately for men and women, despite gender differences in life experiences. The objective of this study was to examine the extent to which older women and men (70+) report feelings of loneliness with a focus on: (a) changes in reported loneliness as peopl...

Few studies have explored older people's expected future quality of life (QoL), despite evidence that perceptions of one's future influence healthy aging. Research on this topic should embrace a range of potential influences, including perceptions of one's neighborhood and region. This study examined expected QoL in a random sample of the populatio...

There is a lack of research on the everyday lives of older people in developing countries. This exploratory study used structured observation and content analysis to examine the presence of older people in public fora and considered the methods' potential for understanding older people's social integration and inclusion. Structured observation occu...

Objectives Loneliness is an important influence on quality of life in old age and has been conceptualised as consisting of two dimensions, social and emotional. This article describes analyses that sought to produce models of social and emotional loneliness in older people, using demographic, psychological and health, and social variables. Method...

The prevalence of urinary incontinence (UI) increases with age and can negatively affect quality of life. However, relatively few older people with UI seek treatment. The aim of this study was to explore the views of older people with UI on the process of seeking help. Older people with UI were recruited to the study from three continence services...

To examine in depth the views and experiences of continence service leads in England on key service and continence management characteristics in order to identify and to improve our understanding of barriers to a good-quality service and potential facilitators to develop and to improve services for older people with urinary incontinence (UI). Quali...

This paper identifies variations in the age and gender characteristics of informal carers in the UK. The paper is based on the Individual Sample of Anonymous Records, a 3% random sample of the 2001 UK Census. The sample size was 1 825 595. Of this sample, 10% were reported to be carers. The analysis shows that informal caregiving is systematically...

Previous research has shown that different providers of social welfare tend to provide complementary services at a local level, but that there is no complete task specialisation. This means that elements of complementarity theory are challenged, especially the so-called 'principle of matching', i.e. that actors only undertake tasks which match thei...

Many welfare states have met with criticism and it has been argued that they are in crisis. Simultaneously, there has been a greater openness to voluntary work as an alternative to statutory services, for example in Sweden. Sometimes the activities of voluntary organizations have been seen as complementary to those of local authorities; at other ti...

This study investigates the relationship between statutory and voluntary activity in the field of support to family carers of older people in Sweden. The relationship is considered in regard to substitution theory. A survey was conducted comprising 80 local authorities and 358 voluntary organisations. All the local authorities and about a third of...