The Relationship between Lifestyle, Mental Health, and Loneliness in the Elderly during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The study focused on examining the relationship between well-being and various psychological factors such as loneliness, anxiety, depression, and stress, whilst also considering changes in lifestyle. A total of 108 elderly participants, with an average age of 70.38 years, were enrolled in this quant...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Meregalli Schütz, Daiana, Rossi, Tainá, de Albuquerque, Nathalia Saraiva, Costa, Dalton Breno, Santos Machado, Jéssica, Fritsch, Larissa, Gosmann, Natacha, Costa Mastrascusa, Raul, Sessegolo, Natália, Rodrigues Bottega, Vitória, Wearick-Silva, Luis Eduardo, Moret Tatay, María del Carmen, della Gatta, Francesco, Irigaray, Tatiana Quarti
Format: article
Publication Date:2024
Country:España
Institution:Universidad Católica de Valencia San Vicente Mártir
Repository:RIUCV. Repositorio de la Universidad Católica de Valencia San Vicente Mártir
Language:English
OAI Identifier:oai:riucv.ucv.es:20.500.12466/5475
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12466/5475
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Health promotion
Mental health
Aging
Loneliness
COVID-19
6108 Psicología de la Vejez
Description
Summary:The study focused on examining the relationship between well-being and various psychological factors such as loneliness, anxiety, depression, and stress, whilst also considering changes in lifestyle. A total of 108 elderly participants, with an average age of 70.38 years, were enrolled in this quantitative cross-sectional study. The research employed a battery of assessment tools including a Sociodemographic Data Questionnaire, Mini-Mental State Examination, Positive Mental Health Scale, Stress Perception Scale, Geriatric Anxiety Inventory, Geriatric Depression Scale (reduced version), Loneliness Scale, and International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Descriptive analysis was conducted in order to understand the distribution of scores across these variables, followed by the categorization of participants based on the reported alterations in eating and physical activity behaviors. Correlations between variables were assessed using Spearman correlation and an EBIC-LASSO network analysis. The findings indicated a potential detriment to the well-being of elderly individuals practicing social distancing, evidenced by heightened symptoms of loneliness, depression, anxiety, and stress, alongside the reported changes in dietary patterns and physical activity. The study underscores the importance of understanding the pandemic’s impact on the well-being of older adults and advocates for longitudinal investigations to delineate the evolving effects of social distancing measures across different phases of the pandemic.

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