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Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2014 Sep;69(5):743-62.
doi: 10.1093/geronb/gbu039. Epub 2014 May 13.

Functional limitations and depressive symptoms: a longitudinal analysis of older Mexican American couples

Maria A Monserud  1 , M Kristen Peek  2
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Functional limitations and depressive symptoms: a longitudinal analysis of older Mexican American couples

Maria A Monserud et al. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci. 2014 Sep.

Abstract

Objectives: This study extends previous work on longitudinal patterns of spousal associations between functional impairments and psychological well-being in older couples in 3 important ways: By examining Mexican Americans, by considering a broader range of functional limitations, and by assessing the role of health status, social integration, and socioeconomic resources in these associations.

Method: Drawing on data from 6 waves of the Hispanic Established Population for the Epidemiologic Study of the Elderly (1993-2007), we employed growth curve models to investigate the implications of the spouse's functional limitations for the respondent's age trajectories of depressive symptoms in older Mexican American couples. Models were run separately for husbands and wives.

Results: The spouse's functional limitations were associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms in the respondent. Personal resources can both ameliorate and intensify the adverse implications of the spouse's functional limitations for the respondent's depressive symptomatology. The interplay among these factors can vary by gender and the type of the spouse's functional impairment.

Discussion: Future studies would benefit by examining caregiving patterns in older couples, by distinguishing between different dimensions of social support available to them, and by considering changes in couples' marital quality and social ties over time.

Keywords: Couples; Depressive symptoms; Functional limitations; Growth curve models; Mexican Americans; Older adults..

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Age trajectories of depressive symptoms: The role of spousal activities of daily living (ADL) limitations and other factors.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Age trajectories of depressive symptoms: The role of spousal instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) limitations and other factors.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Age trajectories of depressive symptoms: The role of spousal performance-oriented mobility assessment (POMA) limitations and other factors.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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