Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
Brain Behav Immun. 2020 Feb;84:97-105. doi: 10.1016/j.bbi.2019.11.014. Epub 2019 Nov 20.
Generativity, or concern for and contribution to the well-being of younger generations, plays an important role in successful aging. The purpose of this study was to develop a novel, writing-based intervention to increase feelings of generativity and test the effect of this intervention on well-being and inflammation in a sample of older women. Participants in this study (n = 73; mean age = 70.9 years, range 60-86 years) were randomly assigned to a 6-week generativity writing condition (writing about life experiences and sharing advice with others) or a control writing condition (neutral, descriptive writing). Self-reported measures of social well-being, mental health, and physical health, as well as objective measures of systemic and cellular levels of inflammation (plasma pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α; genome-wide RNA transcriptional profiling), were assessed pre- and post-intervention. The generativity intervention led to significant improvements across multiple domains, including increases in participation in social activities, decreases in psychological distress, more positive expectations regarding aging in the physical health domain, and decreases in pro-inflammatory gene expression. Thus, this study provides preliminary evidence for the ability of a novel, low-cost, low-effort intervention to favorably impact inflammation and well-being in older women.
代际传承，即对年轻一代的福祉表示关心和做出贡献，在成功老龄化中发挥着重要作用。本研究旨在开发一种新颖的基于写作的干预措施，以增强代际传承感，并在老年女性样本中检验该干预措施对幸福感和炎症的影响。本研究的参与者（n=73；平均年龄 70.9 岁，范围 60-86 岁）被随机分配到 6 周的代际传承写作条件（撰写生活经历并与他人分享建议）或控制写作条件（中性、描述性写作）。在干预前后评估了自我报告的社会幸福感、心理健康和身体健康指标，以及系统和细胞炎症水平的客观指标（血浆促炎细胞因子白细胞介素-6 和肿瘤坏死因子-α；全基因组 RNA 转录谱）。代际传承干预措施在多个领域都取得了显著改善，包括增加社交活动的参与度、减少心理困扰、对身体健康领域的老龄化有更积极的预期，以及促炎基因表达的减少。因此，本研究初步证明了一种新颖的、低成本、低投入的干预措施能够有效地改善老年女性的炎症和幸福感。
