Department of Sociology and Department of Psychology, National Chengchi University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Front Public Health. 2021 Aug 17;9:637008. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2021.637008. eCollection 2021.
The social integration of older adults is crucial for understanding their risk of infection and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the social lives of older adults differ, which means they are not all vulnerable to COVID-19 in the same way. This study analyzes everyday time use and social contacts of older adults to inform discussions of their vulnerabilities during the pandemic. Using the 2019 American time use survey ( = 4,256, aged 55 and older), hurdle model regressions were used to examine the relationship between age, gender, and six indicators of the degree of social contact and time use, including (1) time alone, (2) time spent with family members, (3) time spent with non-family members, (4) time spent with people in the same household, (5) number of public spaces visited, and (6) time spent in public spaces. Results showed substantial heterogeneity in everyday time use and social contacts. Time in public places gradually decreased from the oldest-old (85 years or older), old-old (75-84 years), to mid-life (55-64 years) adults. The gaps were not explained by age differences in sociodemographic characteristics and social roles. Compared with mid-life adults, time with family members of the young-old and old-old adults decreased, but time with non-family members increased. Age differences in social roles over the life course partially explained the differences. Should these patterns of time use and social contacts persist during COVID-19; then, such variations in the organization of social life may create different exposure contexts and vulnerabilities to social distancing measures among older adults; such information could help inform interventions to better protect this population.
老年人的社会融合对于理解他们在 COVID-19 大流行期间的感染风险和心理健康至关重要。然而，老年人的社交生活各不相同，这意味着他们并非都以同样的方式容易受到 COVID-19 的影响。本研究通过分析老年人的日常时间利用和社交接触情况，为讨论他们在大流行期间的脆弱性提供信息。 本研究使用 2019 年美国时间利用调查（=4256 人，年龄在 55 岁及以上），采用门槛模型回归分析方法，考察了年龄、性别以及六个社会接触和时间利用指标（1）独处时间，（2）与家庭成员相处时间，（3）与非家庭成员相处时间，（4）与同住者相处时间，（5）光顾公共场所的次数，（6）在公共场所度过的时间）之间的关系。 研究结果显示，老年人的日常时间利用和社交接触存在很大的异质性。在公共场所的时间从最年长的老年人（85 岁及以上）、年长的老年人（75-84 岁）逐渐减少到中年成年人（55-64 岁）。这些差距不能用年龄差异的社会人口特征和社会角色来解释。与中年成年人相比，年轻和年长老年人与家庭成员相处的时间减少了，但与非家庭成员相处的时间增加了。人生历程中社会角色的年龄差异部分解释了这些差异。 如果这些时间利用和社交接触的模式在 COVID-19 期间持续存在；那么，这种社交生活组织的差异可能会为老年人创造不同的社交距离措施暴露环境和脆弱性；这些信息可以帮助制定干预措施，更好地保护这一人群。
