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Friendships, Subjective Age, and Life Satisfaction of Women in Midlife
Abstract
The authors conducted a study of 422 women, ages 31 to 77 years, to explore the relationships among friendship networks, subjective age, and life satisfaction. Friendship network size was related to lower subjective age but not to chronological age. More frequent visits with friends were related to lower subjective age and to higher life satisfaction. Satisfaction with the number of friends and a larger number of friends were related to higher levels of life satisfaction. Subjective age, group belonging, and being someone's best friend were significant predictors of life satisfaction.
... In a study of 422 women aged 31 to 77, the relationship between friendship network, subjective age, and life satisfaction was related to low subjective age but not to chronological age [19]. It was found that the more frequently you visit your friends, the lower your subjective age and the higher your life satisfaction [25]. ...
... Lang [37] also found that the elderly involuntarily decreased their relationships due to the deaths of their spouses or friends in their social network. In addition, the study found that participants perceived their friend network as larger if their subjective age was younger than their chronological age [25]. In particular, women felt that they were younger than their actual age and had a larger friendship network and women with many friends experienced higher life satisfaction [25]. ...
... In addition, the study found that participants perceived their friend network as larger if their subjective age was younger than their chronological age [25]. In particular, women felt that they were younger than their actual age and had a larger friendship network and women with many friends experienced higher life satisfaction [25]. Likewise, existing empirical studies have found that feeling older than one's actual age was associated with increased psychological pain, decreased subjective and objective physical health, and decreased difficulty participating in daily activities [38,39]. ...
Several studies have focused on population aging, with a focus on the relationship between age and the main concepts of the socioemotional selectivity theory, but many do not report consistent results. Therefore, this study sought to better understand how the socioemotional selective theory informs our understanding of the elderly in Korea. More specifically, it aimed at observing how age groups differ in regards to future time perspective, social goals, and friend networks. Data were collected from 271 elderly people (M = 72.98 years old, SD = 5.63) using questionnaires. The statistical program SPSS 25.0 was used to perform descriptive statistical analyses, reliability analyses, and ANOVAs. The findings indicated that the Korean elderly participants perceived their subjective age to be younger than their chronological age. Furthermore, if they perceived their subjective age to be older than their chronological age, they were more likely to report that their network of friends was smaller than they desired. Lastly, depending on their age, the Korean elderly participants reported different priorities of the goals they wished to pursue. These results could help researchers, clinical practitioners, and policymakers to better understand the unique differences in the Korean elderly.
... A considerable body of research has pointed out that a high level of loneliness is a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases [25], disability [26], poor sleep hygiene [27], impaired cognition [28], and impaired physical functioning [22]. These negative effects of loneliness might explain the possible association between feelings of loneliness and subjective age, and in contrast, the negative correlation between size of friendship network and self-perception of age (for example, the finding that women who felt themselves younger than their actual age had larger friendship networks [29]. Moreover, a recent study suggested a plausible causal model of loneliness leading to morbidity and mortality, and found evidence of mediation by subjective health, depressive symptoms, and functional limitations [30]. ...
... With regard to the second and third hypotheses, the results indicate a direct and positive connection between feelings of loneliness and subjective age; the lonelier the participants, the higher was their subjective age. This finding is also consistent with the literature [19,29]. The size of one's social network, the satisfaction related to it, and feeling part of the social network have been found to be associated with subjective age [29,70]. ...
... This finding is also consistent with the literature [19,29]. The size of one's social network, the satisfaction related to it, and feeling part of the social network have been found to be associated with subjective age [29,70]. Researchers have also found that the connection between loneliness and subjective age is bidirectional. ...
Objectives: We examined the effect of loneliness and the role of two mediating factors, depressive symptoms and malnutrition on subjective age among older adults during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, and explored how the pandemic is affecting subjective age. Design: A convenience sample of 201 older adults aged 65 and over was interviewed. Using bootstrapping, we tested the strength and significance of the indirect effect of depressive symptoms and malnutrition (mediators) on the relationship between feelings of loneliness and subjective age. Results: The relationship between feelings of loneliness and subjective age during the COVID-19 pandemic was mediated by malnutrition, but not by depressive symptoms. In addition, the participants felt older during the COVID-19 pandemic compared with the preceding period. Conclusions: An association was found among feelings of loneliness, malnutrition, and subjective age. To overcome these feelings in times of crisis like the pandemic, it is essential to develop new communication methods (technologies for managing and addressing the needs of the older population; technologies to encourage social engagement, and technologies for managing and providing remote medical services) for and with older adults that are effective in reducing loneliness, and to promote good nutrition. Possible practical solutions include new social network technologies for reducing loneliness combined with continued reliance on phone communication as an intervention of psychological support to promote a healthy lifestyle and prevent malnutrition.
... The relationship between other demographic variables, such as age and gender, and life satisfaction are weak and research has shown that such variables contribute only modestly to the prediction of life satisfaction (Degges-White & Kepic, 2020;Proctor et al., 2009). According to Gómez Berrocal et al. (2020), the exact effect of age and gender on well-being and its components has not yet been determined. ...
... The last predictor analysed was age. Previous studies have found inconsistent results (e.g., Gómez Berrocal et al., 2020;Degges-White & Kepic, 2020;Jebb et al., 2020). In line with such findings, in our study the relationship between age and life satisfaction was not markedly relevant, as only among Iranian men was age a significant predictor of life satisfaction. ...
Life satisfaction is one of the most relevant indicators of psychological health. The present study aimed at extending previous research on life satisfaction by examining its antecedents for men and women in five countries (e.g., Italy, Poland, Romania, the UK, and Iran), with different levels of gender equality, according to the Global Gender Gap Index. Besides traditional variables (i.e., age, self-esteem and income), we also investigated the role of ambivalent sexism and gender identification. Participants were 2561 adults (54% female). Results showed the key role of self-esteem for both men and women and across countries. Gender identification was positively associated with life satisfaction, with the only exception of the more gender egalitarian country, i.e., the UK. Furthermore, in the less egalitarian countries, i.e., Italy and Iran, life satisfaction is also positively related to benevolent stereotypes toward men. Taken together, findings underline the interdependence between personal and contextual dimensions in sustaining life satisfaction, and the role of gender as a significant variable in terms of both the existence of different patterns for men and women and the effects of gender stereotypes across cultures.
The age-adjusted suicide rate in the United States in 2017 (14.0 per 100,000 standard population) was 33% higher than the rate in 1999 (10.5) (1). This NCHS Health E-Stat provides supplemental information on suicide rates by sex, age, and race and ethnicity.
Aging comes with seemingly inevitable changes, but there is a great variability in how young or old people feel and the majority of adults feel considerably younger than their chronological age. Little is, however, known about the individual determinants of this subjective age bias across adulthood. We examined whether the variability in individual’s subjective age can be explained by (a) openness to experience and (b) (non)essentialist beliefs about aging. Specifically, we predicted that individuals who have high (versus low) levels in openness and those who believe that aging is a flexible (versus fixed) process have a younger rather than an older subjective age. Evidence from one cross-sectional (N = 228) and one longitudinal study (N = 3848) confirmed our hypotheses that a more malleable view of aging mediates the effect of openness to experience on subjective age bias. We discuss these findings in the light of social-cognitive and motivational antecedents and mechanisms of subjective aging.
A growing literature shows that doing voluntary work not only helps the wider community but can also improve one’s own well-being. To date, however, few studies have examined the relationship between volunteering and well-being in non-US and especially in comparative data. We study this relationship using two waves of data of 18,559 individuals aged 50 and above from 12 European countries. We analyze life satisfaction impacts of change and stability in volunteering status and in the intensity (frequency) of volunteering, and explore whether these impacts differ according to life stage (age, employment status) and across countries with different norms and supports for voluntarism. Findings show that net life satisfaction is higher among longer-term, recent, and former volunteers than among stable (long-term) non-volunteers. There are no significant life satisfaction differences between the three groups with volunteer experience. Equally, similar levels of life satisfaction are observed among people who have increased and decreased their frequency of volunteering. It thus seems to be the experience and not the dynamics (i.e., change or persistence) of volunteering that is associated with well-being. Findings further suggest life course variation in the association between volunteering and well-being, as the relationship is stronger for older and long-term non-employed (mostly retired) individuals than for their middle-aged and working counterparts. The relationship is also stronger in countries where volunteering is less common and less institutionally supported.
In studies with older adults, future time perspective (FTP) is most frequently assessed using the Carstensen and Lang FTP scale. However, it has been proposed that that this scale is actually composed of three interrelated subcomponents. Within a sample of 189 community-dwelling older adults (aged 60–85), we replicated a three-component structure. We also found that these subscales vary in their relationships to other measures of time perspective (i.e., future time attitudes and perceived life progress), and in their relationships to control beliefs about memory. These findings complement prior research documenting a link between FTP and control beliefs by showing that the magnitude of this association varies across FTP components. Understanding the interplay between FTP and memory control beliefs is also important as both predict important age-related outcomes and may be modifiable via intervention. The reciprocal relationship between these factors and the implications for successful aging are discussed.
Feeling younger than one's chronological age-a younger subjective age bias-has been consistently linked to healthy aging. However, little is known about conditions under which such benefits are strengthened. In high-quality relationships, partners affirm individuals' self-views and offer support that can encourage individuals to engage in behaviors compatible with their subjective age. Thus, we hypothesized the benefits of a younger subjective age bias would be stronger among adults in high-quality relationships. Hypotheses were supported in a 10-year longitudinal study of married adults (ages 34-84; N > 600): Relationship quality moderated the effect of subjective age bias on memory performance and heart rate variability, such that individuals in higher-quality relationships showed stronger beneficial effects of a younger subjective age bias. Results suggest psychological and relational resources may work together to jointly influence healthy aging. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
Objectives: Humans often hold structured generalizations about themselves, which include attributes of qualities or characteristics they consider as important to their personal self-definitions. In this regard, holding one’s age as an important defining personal category (high age awareness) was demonstrated to be connected with increased distress in older adults. However, little is known about the manner by which this connection is affected by individuals' perceptions regarding how close they are to their death on the one hand, and their personal resources on the other hand. Accordingly, the current research examined whether the connection between age awareness and depressive symptoms is mediated by subjective nearness-to-death, and whether this mediation is moderated by self-esteem.
Method: A convenience sample of 386 older adults was collected using an online panel survey (age range 60-97, M = 71.62, SD = 6.88). Participants were requested to fill out scales assessing age awareness, subjective nearness-to-death, self-esteem, and depressive symptoms, as well as various sociodemographic scales.
Results: Age awareness was associated with increased subjective nearness-to-death and depressive symptoms. In line with the hypotheses, subjective nearness-to-death mediated the age awareness-depressive symptoms connection, and this mediation was moderated by self-esteem.
Conclusion: Age awareness is an important concept in old age, and is connected with increased depressive symptoms. We discuss this issue in line with Terror Management Theory, and emphasize the relevance of personal resources, such as feeling far from death and holding a positive view of oneself, in this regard.
Social media is increasingly popular among LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) who have a higher risk of depression and dis-identification in China. However, it is unclear whether psychological dependency on social media and social media use behavior have beneficial offline effects. We conducted an online survey of 1391 valid LGBT recruited in China and also interviewed five LGBT Weibo users to better explain some results. We found LGBT with higher levels of depression and dis-identification were more likely to be psychologically dependent on social media. Higher levels of social media dependency were predictive of social media use, and both online social support seeking and offering activities contributed individually as predictor of perceived online social support. Perceived online social support was not negatively related to offline depression and dis-identification, which meant what happens online may stay online. LGBT who has a longer history of using Weibo would be less dependent on social media, perceive less online social support and have better offline psychological wellbeing. The mechanism of how social media use affects offline life of LGBT needs to be further examined. Limitations, future directions and recommendations are discussed.
Menopause is an important life transition in women, and it is associated with significant physical and psychological changes. This study aimed at examining how the menopausal transition influences body image and satisfaction with sexual life. To this aim, body image dissatisfaction, sexual dissatisfaction, and self-esteem were compared in three groups of women with distinct menopausal status (premenopausal n = 142, perimenopausal n = 66, or postmenopausal n = 149), while controlling for depressive and anxiety symptoms and BMI. Using ANOVA between these three groups, we observed that dissatisfaction with body image was significantly higher in the perimenopausal sample compared with its premenopausal counterpart. In the postmenopausal sample, body image improved, as this group displayed body image scores close to the premenopausal level. In addition, sexual dissatisfaction was significantly increased in the perimenopausal and postmenopausal samples, which is compatible with the concept that higher body appreciation positively predicted sexual function. We conclude that body image dissatisfaction reaches a maximum during the perimenopausal phase, before returning to a level nearly identical between the premenopausal and the postmenopausal phases.
Few psychodynamic thinkers have explored friendship from a self-psychological perspective. Many have suspected, but this study is the first of its kind to demonstrate through a rigorous qualitative research process that selfobject needs are, in fact, experienced in friendships. This phenomenological study offers an in-depth exploration of how 13 midlife women experienced their long-term friendships. Factors promoting structure building and cohesion strengthening are present in friendships. Learning how one's client approaches friendships can offer clinical insight into selfobject needs, since one's pattern of approaching relationships is enacted in friendships. Offering a psychodynamic understanding of friendship deepens therapeutic understanding of self.