SOCIAL SUPPORT AND LONELINESS AS DETERMINANTS OF THE ONSET OF DISABILITY AMONG PUERTO RICAN OLDER ADULTS

Abstract Background The effect of loneliness and social support on health is poorly understood among older Puerto Ricans. As family size continues to decrease in Puerto Rico due to out-migration, a higher number of older adults have fewer family members to rely on, which may lead to detrimental health outcomes.Method: Using both waves (2002-03 and 2006-07) of the Puerto Rican Elderly: Health Conditions database, we examined the association between social support, living alone, and incident disability among a sample of older adults over 60 years of age residing in Puerto Rico. Disability was defined as the occurrence of difficulties with Activities of Daily Living (ADLs). Results 13.4% of older adults in our sample developed some form of disability. Older adults who developed a disability indicated receiving higher levels of social support (2.04 vs. 1.64) and loneliness (30.7% vs. 22.8%). Using multivariate logistic regression, we found that receiving social support increased the odds of developing a disability by 17% (OR: 1.17; CI: 1.02 – 1.35). Older adults who live alone had 58% higher odds of developing a disability (OR: 1.58; CI: 1.01 – 2.46). Conclusion The presence of social support and loneliness was correlated with a population prone to developing disabilities. Our findings concur with the well-established literature on psychosocial determinants in late life. However, this study represents the first attempt to understand psychosocial measures and disability in Puerto Rico. Public health organizations and healthcare systems must develop new societal mechanisms of support for older adults at risk of developing disabilities.

Volunteer participation is a form of civic engagement that benefits both the individual and society over the life course.Although education, basic skills (e.g., literacy), and race/ethnicity are individually associated with volunteering, detailed interrelations are yet to be explored.Guided by the integrated theory of volunteer work and the notion of productive aging, the goal of this study was to examine the roles of education and adult literacy in the context of volunteering in later life across racial and ethnic groups (Whites, Blacks, Hispanics) in the U.S. Using the nationally representative sample of middle-aged and older adults (age 45+; n = 3,770) from the 2012/2014/2017 Program for International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), structural equation modeling was constructed to evaluate mediation relationships among education, literacy, and volunteering by racial and ethnic groups.Results show no statistically significant mediation (a.k.a., indirect) effect of education on volunteering through literacy, nor was there statistically significant difference in the mediation effect across racial and ethnic groups.However, there were statistically significant differences in the direct effect of education on volunteering between Black adults and White adults [b(Black) = 0.44 versus b(White = 0.24), p < 0.05], as well as Black adults and Hispanic adults [b(Black) = 0.44 versus b(Hispanic) = 0.08, p < 0.05].These findings indicate that higher education was more strongly associated with volunteering among older Black adults, compared to White and Hispanic counterparts.Suggested policy implications include support for the promotion of volunteer participation through culturally and socioeconomically sensitive approaches.

COMPASSIONATE LOVE AND LONELINESS: LATER LIFE MENTAL HEALTH IN THE UNITED STATES
Nirmala Lekhak 1 , Tirth Bhatta 2 , Eva Kahana 3 , and Joel Synder 1 , 1. University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, 2. University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States,3. Case Western Reserve University,Cleveland,Ohio,United States Loneliness is a serious public health problem that affects over 25% of older adults and is associated with an increased risk of depression, cognitive decline, and premature death.Previous research on social support mechanisms that contribute to loneliness has consistently illustrated the role of emotional support in reducing loneliness.However, the importance of compassionate love in reducing loneliness and, as a consequence, improving psychological well-being in later life has received little attention.Neurobiology indicates that the brain regions associated with loneliness and compassion overlap, suggesting that increasing compassion-related emotions may help alleviate loneliness.Using data from a nationwide web-based survey (n=1,861), we examined the influence of compassionate love on loneliness and assessed whether loneliness mediates the relationship between compassionate love and mental health outcomes.Even after controlling for emotional support, estimates from an ordinary least squares regression (OLS) model suggest that older adults who felt loved had significantly lower levels of loneliness (b=-0.84,p< 0.001).Feeling of love also contributed to significantly fewer depressive symptoms (b=-2.03,p< 0.001) and anxiety (b=-1.07,p< 0.001).Loneliness completely mediated the effect of compassionate love on anxiety (b=-0.82,p< 0.001) and significantly mediated its influence on depressive symptoms (b=-1.18,p< 0.001).Our findings underscore the need to design interventions that increase compassionate love to reduce loneliness and improve psychological wellbeing among older adults.Background: The effect of loneliness and social support on health is poorly understood among older Puerto Ricans.As family size continues to decrease in Puerto Rico due to out-migration, a higher number of older adults have fewer family members to rely on, which may lead to detrimental health outcomes.Method: Using both waves (2002-03 and 2006-07) of the Puerto Rican Elderly: Health Conditions database, we examined the association between social support, living alone, and incident disability among a sample of older adults over 60 years of age residing in Puerto Rico.Disability was defined as the occurrence of difficulties with Activities of Daily Living (ADLs).

SOCIAL SUPPORT AND LONELINESS AS DETERMINANTS OF THE ONSET OF DISABILITY AMONG PUERTO RICAN OLDER ADULTS
Results: 13.4% of older adults in our sample developed some form of disability.Older adults who developed a disability indicated receiving higher levels of social support (2.04 vs. 1.64) and loneliness (30.7% vs. 22.8%).Using multivariate logistic regression, we found that receiving social support increased the odds of developing a disability by 17% (OR: 1.17; CI: 1.02 -1.35).Older adults who live alone had 58% higher odds of developing a disability (OR: 1.58; CI: 1.01 -2.46).
Conclusion: The presence of social support and loneliness was correlated with a population prone to developing disabilities.Our findings concur with the well-established literature on psychosocial determinants in late life.However, this study represents the first attempt to understand psychosocial measures and disability in Puerto Rico.Public health organizations and healthcare systems must develop new societal mechanisms of support for older adults at risk of developing disabilities.

EXAMINING THE CUMULATIVE EFFECTS OF SOCIAL ISOLATION AND LONELINESS IN OLDER ADULTS WITH HIV Moka Yoo-Jeong, Northeastern University, Melrose, Massachusetts, United States
Social isolation exists when one has limited or lacks social contact with others and is distinct from loneliness, an affective state on the perception of isolation.Social isolation and loneliness are recognized as risks to well-being among older adults.Less in known about the cumulative effects of social isolation and loneliness in older persons with HIV (OPWH).Using cross-sectional data on OPWH (age ≥50) recruited from an outpatient HIV clinic in Atlanta, GA (N=146), we aimed to 1) describe the overlap between social isolation and loneliness and 2) examine the combined effects