Role of Social Engagement and Sense of Belonging of Assisted Living Residents. A Descriptive Study

Social engagement;sense of belonging;psychological well-being;depression;social isolation;assisted living residents;older adults;Nursing;Health Sciences;Nursing

Park, InnahStruble, Laura May ;

University of Michigan

关键词: Social engagement;    sense of belonging;    psychological well-being;    depression;    social isolation;    assisted living residents;    older adults;    Nursing;    Health Sciences;    Nursing;   

Others  :  https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/handle/2027.42/147496/innpark_1.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

瑞士|英语

来源: The Illinois Digital Environment for Access to Learning and Scholarship

【 摘 要 】

Background/Purpose: Despite the fact that the society is rapidly aging and the number of individuals moving into assisted living (AL) facilities are increasing, little is known about AL residents’ psychological well-being. This dissertation includes three papers. The purpose was to (1) identify factors known to contribute to social engagement, (2) examine the relationship between social engagement and sense of belonging, and (3) examine the relationship between sense of belonging and psychological well-being of AL residents. Methods: This dissertation includes three papers. The first paper is a systematic review is to identify factors known to contribute to social engagement. Three databases were searched, Ovid Medline, PsychINFO, and Web of Science with search terms of social engagement, interaction, activities, and exchange/support, relationships, and networks of older adults in AL and residential care facilities. Papers 2 and 3 report on a descriptive study conducted with face-to-face interviews with AL residents (n=100). The sense of Belonging Model was used to guide this research. Sense of belonging was measured with the Sense of Belonging Instrument- Psychological, social engagement was measured with the Lubben Social Network Scale and psychological well-being was measured with PROMIS instruments for depression, social isolation, and satisfaction with participation in social roles and activities. Multiple linear regression was conducted to examine the relationships between social engagement and sense of belonging, and sense of belonging and psychological well-being. Results: The systematic review identified factors contributing to social engagement including functional disability, being married, hearing impairment, depression, being male, mealtime seating arrangements, and facility size (small facility). Quantitative results provided evidence that social engagement was the strongest predictor of sense of belonging, controlling for sample characteristics (p < 0.001). A lower level of sense of belonging was associated with higher levels of depression (p = 0.0063) and social isolation (p = 0.0011). Sense of belonging was not associated with satisfaction with participation in social roles and activities. Conclusion: Social engagement played an important role in predicting sense of belonging, which influenced depression and social isolation of AL residents. More work is needed to fully understand residents’ experiences of their social engagement as well as sense of belonging.