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. 2021 Jan 18;76(2):e10-e16.
doi: 10.1093/geronb/gbaa048.

"We Are Staying at Home." Association of Self-perceptions of Aging, Personal and Family Resources, and Loneliness With Psychological Distress During the Lock-Down Period of COVID-19

Andrés Losada-Baltar  1 , Lucía Jiménez-Gonzalo  1 , Laura Gallego-Alberto  2 , María Del Sequeros Pedroso-Chaparro  1 , José Fernandes-Pires  1 , María Márquez-González  2
Affiliations

"We Are Staying at Home." Association of Self-perceptions of Aging, Personal and Family Resources, and Loneliness With Psychological Distress During the Lock-Down Period of COVID-19

Andrés Losada-Baltar et al. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci. .

Abstract

Objectives: Families are going through a very stressful time because of the COVID-19 outbreak, with age being a risk factor for this illness. Negative self-perceptions of aging, among other personal and relational variables, may be associated with loneliness and distress caused by the pandemic crisis.

Method: Participants are 1,310 Spanish people (age range: 18-88 years) during a lock-down period at home. In addition to specific questions about risk for COVID-19, self-perceptions of aging, family and personal resources, loneliness, and psychological distress were measured. Hierarchical regression analyses were done for assessing the correlates of loneliness and psychological distress.

Results: The measured variables allow for an explanation of 48% and 33% of the variance of distress and loneliness, respectively. Being female, younger, having negative self-perceptions about aging, more time exposed to news about COVID-19, more contact with relatives different to those that co-reside, fewer positive emotions, less perceived self-efficacy, lower quality of sleep, higher expressed emotion, and higher loneliness were associated with higher distress. Being female, younger, having negative self-perceptions about aging, more time exposed to news about COVID-19, lower contact with relatives, higher self-perception as a burden, fewer positive emotions, lower resources for entertaining oneself, lower quality of sleep, and higher expressed emotion were associated with higher loneliness.

Discussion: Having negative self-perceptions of aging and lower chronological age, together with other measured family and personal resources, are associated with loneliness and psychological distress. Older adults with positive self-perceptions of aging seem to be more resilient during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Keywords: Coping; Crisis; Depression; Expressed emotion; Self-efficacy.

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