Social contact mode and 15-year episodic memory trajectories in older adults with and without hearing loss: findings from the English longitudinal study of ageing

Lists

Rafnsson, Snorri ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7985-912X, Maharani, Asri and Tampubolon, Gindo (2021) Social contact mode and 15-year episodic memory trajectories in older adults with and without hearing loss: findings from the English longitudinal study of ageing. Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, 77 (1). pp. 10-17. ISSN 1079-5014

Preview	PDF Rafnsson,_Maharani_and_Tampubolon_2021_JGPS_Social_contact_mode_and_15-year_episodic_memory_trajectories_in_older_adults_with_and_without_hearing_loss_findings_from_the_English_longitudinal_study_of_ageing.pdf - Accepted Version Download (223kB) \| Preview
Preview	PDF (Supplementary file) JGPS_Supplementary_file_1_figs_tables_FINAL_VERSION_09.02.21.pdf - Accepted Version Download (374kB) \| Preview
Preview	PDF (Supplementary file) JGPS_Supplementary_file_2_technical_background_FINAL_VERSION_09.02.21.pdf - Accepted Version Download (134kB) \| Preview

Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gbab029

Abstract

Objectives: Frequent social contact benefits cognition in later life although evidence is lacking on the potential relevance of the modes chosen by older adults, including those living with hearing loss, for interacting with others in their social network.
Method: 11,418 participants in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing provided baseline information on hearing status and social contact mode and frequency of use. Multilevel growth curve models compared episodic memory (immediate and delayed recall) at baseline and longitudinally in participants who interacted frequently (offline only or offline and online combined), compared to infrequently, with others in their social network.
Results: Frequent offline (B=0.23; SE=0.09) and combined offline and online (B=0.71; SE=0.09) social interactions predicted better episodic memory after adjustment for multiple confounders. We observed positive, longitudinal associations between combined offline and online interactions and episodic memory in participants without hearing loss (B=0.50, SE=0.11) but not with strictly offline interactions (B=0.01, SE=0.11). In those with hearing loss, episodic memory was positively related to both modes of engagement (offline only: B=0.79, SE=0.20; combined online and offline: B=1.27, SE=0.20). Sensitivity analyses confirmed the robustness of these findings.
Discussion: Supplementing conventional social interactions with online communication modes may help older adults, especially those living with hearing loss, sustain, and benefit cognitively from, personal relationships.

Item Type:	Article
Identifier:	10.1093/geronb/gbab029
Additional Information:	This is a pre-copyedited, author-produced version of an article accepted for publication in Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Science following peer review. The version of record is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gbab029. The English Longitudinal Study of Ageing is lodged with the UK Data Archive (https://www.data-archive.ac.uk/). The authors welcome any requests for data or methods used in the present study (please contact the corresponding author). The present study was not preregistered with the Center for Open Science. Findings from this study were presented in part orally at the British Geriatrics Society's Autumn meeting held on 25-27 November 2020.
Keywords:	Social Interactions, Online Social Networking, Cognition, Hearing Loss, English Longitudinal Study of Ageing
Subjects:	Medicine and health
Related URLs:	Publisher Publisher
Depositing User:	Snorri Rafnsson
Date Deposited:	19 Feb 2021 11:23
Last Modified:	06 Feb 2024 16:05
URI:	https://repository.uwl.ac.uk/id/eprint/7682

Downloads

Downloads per month over past year

Actions (login required)

View Item

References

Andrade, C., Pereira, C., & Silva, P. (2018). The silent impact of hearing loss: Using longitudinal data to explore the effects on depression and social activity restriction among older people. Ageing & Society, 38(12), 2468–2489. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0144686X17000708
Carstensen, L. L., Fung, H. H., & Charles, S. T. (2003). Socioemotional selectivity theory and the regulation of emotion in the second half of life. Motivation and Emotion, 27(2), 103–123. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1024569803230
Cavazzana, A., Röhrborn, A., Garthus-Niegel, S., Larsson, M., Hummel, T., & Croy, I. (2018). Sensory-specific impairment among older people. An investigation using both sensory thresholds and subjective measures across the five senses. PLoS ONE, 13(8). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0202969
Cohen, S., & Wills, T. A. (1985). Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis. Psychological Bulletin, 98(2), 310–357. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.98.2.310
d’Orsi, E., Xavier, A. J., Rafnsson, S. B., Steptoe, A., Hogervorst, E., & Orrell, M. (2018). Is use of the internet in midlife associated with lower dementia incidence? Results from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. Aging & Mental Health, 22(11), 1525–1533. https://doi.org/10.1080/13607863.2017.1360840
Deary, I. J., Corley, J., Gow, A. J., Harris, S. E., Houlihan, L. M., Marioni, R. E., Penke, L., Rafnsson, S. B., & Starr, J. M. (2009). Age-associated cognitive decline. British Medical Bulletin, 92, 135–152. https://doi.org/10.1093/bmb/ldp033
Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. (2018). A connected society: A strategy for tackling loneliness. GOV.UK. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-connected-society-a-strategy-for-tackling-loneliness
Dickinson, A., & Hill, R. (2007). Keeping in touch: Talking to older people about computers and communication. Educational Gerontology, 33(8), 613–630. https://doi.org/10.1080/03601270701363877
Gonsalves, C., & Pichora-Fuller, C. M. K. (2008). The effect of hearing loss and hearing aids on the use of information and communication technologies by community-living older adults. Canadian Journal on Aging / La Revue Canadienne Du Vieillissement, 27(2), 145–157. https://doi.org/10.3138/cja.27.2.145
Heyl, V., & Wahl, H. (2011). Managing daily life with age-related sensory loss: Cognitive resources gain in importance. Psychology and Aging, 27(2), 510–521. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025471
Holman, J. A., Drummond, A., Hughes, S. E., & Naylor, G. (2019). Hearing impairment and daily-life fatigue: A qualitative study. International Journal of Audiology, 58(7), 408–416. https://doi.org/10.1080/14992027.2019.1597284
Hultsch, D. F., Hertzog, C., Small, B. J., & Dixon, R. A. (1999). Use it or lose it: Engaged lifestyle as a buffer of cognitive decline in aging? Psychology and Aging, 14(2), 245–263. https://doi.org/10.1037//0882-7974.14.2.245
Hunsaker, A., & Hargittai, E. (2018). A review of Internet use among older adults. New Media & Society, 20(10), 3937–3954. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444818787348
Kamil, R. J., Genther, D. J., & Lin, F. R. (2015). Factors Associated with the Accuracy of Subjective Assessments of Hearing Impairment. Ear and Hearing, 36(1), 164–167. https://doi.org/10.1097/AUD.0000000000000075
Kelly, M. E., Duff, H., Kelly, S., McHugh Power, J. E., Brennan, S., Lawlor, B. A., & Loughrey, D. G. (2017). The impact of social activities, social networks, social support and social relationships on the cognitive functioning of healthy older adults: A systematic review. Systematic Reviews, 6(259), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13643-017-0632-2
Lieberman, A., & Schroeder, J. (2020). Two social lives: How differences between online and offline interaction influence social outcomes. Current Opinion in Psychology, 31, 16–21. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2019.06.022
Maharani, A., Dawes, P., Nazroo, J., Tampubolon, G., Pendleton, N., & Sense-Cog WP1 group. (2018). Visual and hearing impairments are associated with cognitive decline in older people. Age and Ageing, 47(4), 575–581. https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afy061
Mick, P., Kawachi, I., & Lin, F. R. (2014). The association between hearing loss and social isolation in older adults. Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery: Official Journal of American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, 150(3), 378–384. https://doi.org/10.1177/0194599813518021
Mousavi-Nasab, S.-M.-H., Kormi-Nouri, R., & Nilsson, L.-G. (2014). Examination of the bidirectional influences of leisure activity and memory in old people: A dissociative effect on episodic memory. British Journal of Psychology, 105(3), 382–398. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjop.12044
Myhre, J. W., Mehl, M. R., & Glisky, E. L. (2017). Cognitive benefits of online social networking for healthy older adults. The Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 72(5), 752–760. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gbw025
Rook, K. S. (2001). Emotional health and positive versus negative social exchanges: A daily diary analysis. Applied Developmental Science, 5(2), 86–97. https://doi.org/10.1207/S1532480XADS0502_4
Sharifian, N., Kraal, A. Z., Zaheed, A. B., Sol, K., & Zahodne, L. B. (2019). The longitudinal association between social network composition and episodic memory in older adulthood: The importance of contact frequency with friends. Aging & Mental Health, 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1080/13607863.2019.1660850
Sommerlad, A., Sabia, S., Singh-Manoux, A., Lewis, G., & Livingston, G. (2019). Association of social contact with dementia and cognition: 28-year follow-up of the Whitehall II cohort study. PLoS Medicine, 16(8). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1002862
Steptoe, A., Breeze, E., Banks, J., & Nazroo, J. (2013). Cohort profile: The English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. International Journal of Epidemiology, 42(6), 1640–1648. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dys168
Tampubolon, G. (2015). Cognitive ageing in Great Britain in the new century: Cohort differences in episodic memory. PloS One, 10(12), e0144907. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0144907
UNESCO Institute for Statistics. (2012). International standard classification of education: ISCED 2011. http://www.uis.unesco.org/Education/Documents/isced-2011-en.pdf
Wallhagen, M. I., Strawbridge, W. J., Shema, S. J., & Kaplan, G. A. (2004). Impact of self-assessed hearing loss on a spouse: A longitudinal analysis of couples. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, 59(3), S190–S196. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/59.3.S190
Wettstein, M., Wahl, H.-W., & Heyl, V. (2018). Visual acuity and cognition in older adults with and without hearing loss: Evidence for late-life sensory compensation? Ear and Hearing, 39(4), 746–755. https://doi.org/10.1097/AUD.0000000000000531
White, M., & Dorman, S. M. (2001). Receiving social support online: Implications for health education. Health Education Research, 16(6), 693–707. https://doi.org/10.1093/her/16.6.693
Zuelsdorff, M. L., Koscik, R. L., Okonkwo, O. C., Peppard, P. E., Hermann, B. P., Sager, M. A., Johnson, S. C., & Engelman, C. D. (2019). Social support and verbal interaction are differentially associated with cognitive function in midlife and older age. Neuropsychology, Development, and Cognition. Section B, Aging, Neuropsychology and Cognition, 26(2), 144–160. https://doi.org/10.1080/13825585.2017.1414769