Taylor Harry Owen, Wang Yi, Morrow-Howell Nancy
a The Brown School of Social Work , Washington University in St. Louis , St. Louis, MO, USA.
J Gerontol Soc Work. 2018 Aug-Sep;61(6):623-639. doi: 10.1080/01634372.2018.1478352. Epub 2018 May 23.
There are many studies on loneliness among community-dwelling older adults; however, there is limited research examining the extent and correlates of loneliness among older adults who reside in senior housing communities. This study examines the extent and correlates of loneliness in three public senior housing communities in the St. Louis area. Data for this project was collected with survey questionnaires with a total sample size of 148 respondents. Loneliness was measured using the Hughes 3-item loneliness scale. Additionally, the questionnaire contained measures on socio-demographics, health/mental health, social engagement, and social support. Missing data for the hierarchical multivariate regression models were imputed using multiple imputation methods. Results showed approximately 30.8% of the sample was not lonely, 42.7% was moderately lonely, and 26.6% was severely lonely. In the multivariate analyses, loneliness was primarily associated with depressive symptoms. Contrary to popular opinion, our study found the prevalence of loneliness was high in senior housing communities. Nevertheless, senior housing communities could be ideal locations for reducing loneliness among older adults. Interventions should focus on concomitantly addressing both an individual's loneliness and mental health.
关于社区居住的老年人孤独感的研究有很多；然而，针对居住在老年住房社区的老年人孤独感的程度及其相关因素的研究却很有限。本研究考察了圣路易斯地区三个公共老年住房社区中孤独感的程度及其相关因素。该项目的数据通过调查问卷收集，总样本量为148名受访者。孤独感采用休斯3项孤独感量表进行测量。此外，问卷还包含社会人口统计学、健康/心理健康、社会参与和社会支持等方面的测量。分层多元回归模型的缺失数据采用多重插补方法进行插补。结果显示，约30.8%的样本不感到孤独，42.7%的样本中度孤独，26.6%的样本严重孤独。在多变量分析中，孤独感主要与抑郁症状相关。与普遍看法相反，我们的研究发现老年住房社区中孤独感的患病率很高。尽管如此，老年住房社区可能是减少老年人孤独感的理想场所。干预措施应侧重于同时解决个体的孤独感和心理健康问题。
