Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, USA.
Department of Human Ecology, University of California, Davis, Davis, California, USA.
Gerontologist. 2024 Apr 1;64(4). doi: 10.1093/geront/gnad091.
Older adults maintain ties to long-duration social partners, some with whom have regular contact and some with whom have little contact. We asked whether these ties with little contact still offer a sense of connection and security, and buffer the effects of interpersonal stress in daily life. Helping older adults foster these ties may improve their mental health.
Participants (n = 313) aged 65+ completed a baseline interview reporting duration and contact frequency of their closest ties. Then, participants completed ecological momentary assessments every 3 hr for 5-6 days, reporting their social encounters and mood.
We classified ties according to duration (10+ years = long vs shorter duration) and frequency of contact (at least once a month = active vs dormant). Throughout the day, participants were more likely to have stressful encounters with long-duration active ties. Encounters with active ties were associated with more positive mood (regardless of duration) and encounters with long-duration dormant ties with more negative mood. Having more active ties buffered effects of interpersonal stress on mood, but more long-duration dormant ties exacerbated these effects.
Supporting social integration theory, ties with frequent contact were associated with positive mood. Surprisingly, long-duration ties with infrequent contact exacerbated effects of interpersonal stress on mood. Older adults who lack contact with long-duration social partners may be more sensitive to interpersonal stress. Future interventions might focus on phone or electronic media to increase contact with long-duration social partners.
老年人与长期的社会伙伴保持联系，其中一些人经常联系，而另一些人则很少联系。我们想知道，这些很少联系的关系是否仍能让人感到联系和安全，并缓冲日常生活中的人际压力的影响。帮助老年人建立这些关系可能会改善他们的心理健康。
年龄在 65 岁以上的参与者完成了基线访谈，报告了他们最亲密关系的持续时间和联系频率。然后，参与者在 5-6 天内每 3 小时完成一次生态瞬间评估，报告他们的社交接触和情绪。
我们根据持续时间（10 年以上=长 vs 较短）和接触频率（至少一个月一次=活跃 vs 休眠）对关系进行分类。在一天中，参与者更有可能与长期活跃的关系产生有压力的接触。与活跃关系的接触与更积极的情绪有关（无论持续时间如何），而与长期休眠关系的接触与更消极的情绪有关。有更多的活跃关系缓冲了人际压力对情绪的影响，但更多的长期休眠关系则加剧了这些影响。
支持社会整合理论，有频繁联系的关系与积极的情绪有关。令人惊讶的是，长期接触但很少联系的关系会加剧人际压力对情绪的影响。缺乏与长期社会伙伴联系的老年人可能对人际压力更敏感。未来的干预措施可能会集中在电话或电子媒体上，以增加与长期社会伙伴的联系。
