The Role of Optimism on the Relationship Between Activity Limitations and Life Satisfaction Among Middle-Aged and Older Adults in the United States: A Growth Curve Model of Changes Over Time. Academic Article uri icon

abstract

  • Activity limitations can diminish life satisfaction. This study explored the role of optimism on the relationship between changes in activities of daily living and instrumental activities of daily living (ADL/IADL) limitations and life satisfaction over time among middle-aged and older adults. Growth curve modeling accounting for intra- and inter-individual changes in life satisfaction was applied to the 2008–2018 waves of the Health and Retirement Study Leave Behind Survey subsample ( n = 39,122 person-years). After controlling for sociodemographic factors, physical functioning decline adversely affected life satisfaction ( βADL = −0.12, βIADL = −0.13, p < 0.001), but the negative consequences reduced slightly through optimism ( βADL = −0.11, βIADL = −0.12, βoptimism = 0.47, p < 0.001). Increasing optimism could reduce the negative consequences of ADL/IADL limitations on life satisfaction among middle-aged to older adults.

published proceedings

  • J Appl Gerontol

altmetric score

  • 14.85

author list (cited authors)

  • Cheng, K., McMaughan, D., & Smith, M. L.

citation count

  • 0

complete list of authors

  • Cheng, Kent Jason Go||McMaughan, Darcy Jones Dj||Smith, Matthew Lee

publication date

  • April 2022