What you need to know
The COVID-19 pandemic affected the mental health of Canadians. Researchers looked at social experiences and positive mental health among older adults during the pandemic. More than a quarter of older adults lived alone, and more than a third said they felt lonely during the pandemic. Researchers found that living alone and feeling lonely were both associated with poorer positive mental health (i.e., lower life satisfaction, lower likelihood of having high perceived mental health and a strong sense of community belonging). However, loneliness appeared to play a more significant role in an individual's lower ratings of positive mental health than living by oneself. This was true regardless of gender, age group, or educational background. Among those who lived alone, men and people aged 65 to 74 appeared to be more vulnerable to poorer mental health. These findings underscore the importance of identifying and improving public health care among older adults who suffer from loneliness during and after the pandemic.
What is this research about?
Social isolation and loneliness have been linked to poorer mental health among older adults. However, very little is known about the association between experiences of loneliness and isolation and older adults’ positive mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. The terms ‘social isolation’ and ‘loneliness’ are often used interchangeably because they seem related and have similar effects on one’s health. But there’s a difference: social isolation is when you don’t have enough social contacts, while loneliness is feeling dissatisfied with your social relationships, even if you’re often around people. So people could live alone or not see many people but not feel lonely. On the other hand, some might be around others a lot but still feel lonely. Researchers conducted a study to assess indicators of good mental health, social isolation and loneliness among seniors during the COVID-19 pandemic. They also examined whether isolation and loneliness were each independently related to signs of good mental health.
What did the researchers do?
The researchers examined questionnaire responses collected online and by telephone from two periods in 2020 and 2021 from 5,332 older adults. They measured positive mental health by looking at high perceived mental health, a strong sense of belonging to the local community and satisfaction with life. They then analyzed the data to examine the relationship between social isolation, loneliness and positive mental health, taking into account socio-demographic characteristics (such as gender, level of education, age group, place of residence, immigrant status and racialized group member status) that may influence the experiences of different older adults.
What did the researchers find?
Certain sociodemographic characteristics such as gender, age group and level of education played a role in the experience of social isolation and loneliness. For example, women, people aged between 65 and 74 years old, and those with a high school education or lower were less likely to have a high perceived mental health. Women and those between 65 and 74 years were also less likely to report a strong sense of belonging to the local community. Women and those with post-secondary education also had lower life satisfaction.
The results indicate that, overall, older adults who experienced social isolation or loneliness were less likely to report having positive mental health than those who did not have these social experiences. However, the experience of feeling loneliness was more consistently associated with lower positive mental health than social isolation.
These results underline the importance of considering these factors as distinct experiences when developing strategies to promote and preserve older adults’ positive mental health during periods of crisis, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
Limitations of the research
The authors point out that these findings are based on cross-sectional data, which means they do not allow causal conclusions to be made. For example, feeling lonely might lead to poorer mental health, but it’s also possible that having lower mental health could make someone feel lonely. The data also did not allow the researchers to look at changes in high perceived mental health, life satisfaction and a strong sense of belonging before and after the pandemic. In addition, the correlation between loneliness and positive mental health does not take into account all other possible factors, such as living conditions or resources available to older adults.
How can you use this research?
The findings of this study provide potential implications for public health policies concerning the well-being of older adults, for example:
- Social support programs: Program planners may consider implementing targeted programs to reduce isolation and loneliness among older adults to promote their mental well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.
- Awareness of loneliness: Health professionals and service providers might use these findings to better understand the impact of loneliness on older people and take appropriate action to prevent and improve mental health.
- Public policies: Policymakers could use these findings to inform policies and programs aimed at supporting older adults, focusing on preventing loneliness and promoting mental health with different sociodemographic groups.
- Targeted interventions: Healthcare professionals and social workers can use these findings to design interventions tailored to address the specific needs of older adults, taking account of sociodemographic context and mental health concerns.
About the researchers
Laura L. Ooi, Ph. D. (1); Li Liu, Ph. D. (1); Karen C. Roberts, M. Sc. (1); Geneviève Gariépy, Ph. D. (2,3,4); Colin A. Capaldi, Ph. D. (1)
- Public Health Agency of Canada, Ottawa (Ontario), Canada
- Public Health Agency of Canada, Montréal (Québec), Canada
- Département de médecine sociale et préventive, École de santé publique, Université de Montréal, Montréal (Québec), Canada
- Centre de recherche de l’Institut universitaire en santé mentale de Montréal, Montréal (Québec), Canada