Seifert, Alexander
E-Mail-Adresse
Geburtsdatum
Suchergebnisse
Daily TV Use and Meaning in Life Among Older Adults. The Moderating Role of Selective and Compensatory TV Use
Older adults (60+) spend a considerable amount of time watching TV. This can have important implications in terms of their daily sense of meaning in their life. Applying the selection, optimization, and compensation (SOC) model, we argue that the impact of the daily amount of time spent watching TV on daily perceptions of meaning in life is moderated by whether TV is generally used in a compensatory or selective manner. We present data from an intensive longitudinal study with N = 101 healthy older (60+) adults. Data were collected over five consecutive days. Compensatory and selective TV use were treated as a general strategy and thus as a trait-like variable measured in a baseline survey. Results show that the effect of the amount of daily television use on daily perceptions of meaning in life depends on the extent to which TV is generally used in a compensatory fashion as indicated by a cross-level interaction between compensatory TV use (between-person level 2) and daily self-reported TV use (within-person level 1) on daily perceptions of meaning in life. We discuss these findings in terms of both theoretical and methodological considerations.
Retrospective feelings of loneliness during the COVID-19 pandemic among residents of long-term care facilities
The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has had an incisive effect on residents living in long-term care facilities (LTCFs). Local governments have introduced restrictive measures because of the danger posed by this virus. One increasing negative effect of these implementations among residents living in LTCFs is their subjective feelings of loneliness. This study assumed that these measures weighed heavily particularly on residents living in LTCFs, as this group of older people could not decide for themselves whether or how they should be implemented. Thus, this study investigated the retrospectively reported subjective loneliness of residents living in LTCFs. On a large-scale Swiss survey (N = 828; mean age: 87.78, 75% female), residents of 22 LTCFs filled out a questionnaire on their subjective feelings of loneliness during the pandemic. The retrospective loneliness scores of the residents living in LTCFs were found to exceed those reported in other studies focusing on community-dwelling older people. Multivariate regression analyses showed that females, individuals with lower values of joy in life and life satisfaction, and individuals who were not satisfied with the manner in which their care home coped with the COVID-19 measures significantly felt lonelier. Therefore, the subjective feelings of loneliness of residents in LTCFs should be monitored very carefully. As the measures have still not been completely lifted, residents of LTCFs are assumed to still experience social isolation and be at high risk of encountering prolonged feelings of loneliness, which can be detrimental to their mental health and well-being.
Digitally Savvy at the Home Office. Computer Skills of Older Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic Across Europe
Digital skills can be a valuable resource in work life, especially in such times as the current COVID-19 pandemic, during which working from home has become new reality. Although increasing numbers of older employees (aged 50 years and above) are using digital technologies to work remotely, many of these older adults still have generally lower digital skills. Whether the pandemic will be a push factor for the acquisition of computer skills in late working life remains unclear. This study investigated the explanatory factors of the computer skills gained by older workers who were working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic, using representative data for 28 countries from the Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). The analysis of the survey responses of 11,042 employed persons aged 50 years and older revealed that, 13% worked only at home due to the pandemic, while 15% said they worked at home and in their usual workplace. The descriptives indicate that full-time homeworking is more of an option among those with tertiary education and who already have some computer skills. Of the older employees who worked only at home, 36% reported an improvement in their computer skills, whereas of the older workers who worked at home and at their usual workplaces, only 29% reported such an improvement. Our results based on logistic regressions suggest that significantly more women, younger employees, respondents with tertiary educational qualifications, and those whose work was not affected by unemployment or even business closure acquired new computer skills, regardless of whether they were working permanently or only partly from home. The study underlines the importance of investigating the possible digital skills gained from the home office situation resulting from the pandemic.
Digital transformation of everyday lives of older Swiss adults. Use of and attitudes toward current and future digital services
Digital (consumer) services, such as ticket machines, self-checkout, and online reservations, have become increasingly important in modern society. Studies on adoption of these services and openness to using future public digital services (e.g., online voting, online taxes, electronic patient records) have mostly focused on younger adults or nonrepresentative samples among older adults. Therefore, two important questions remain that can best be addressed with representative sampling: To what extent do older adults use or are willing to use current and future digital services in their everyday lives? How do older adults evaluate the ease of use of these services?. The study included data on use of current and future digital services among a large Swiss sample of 1149 people age 65 years and older (mean age: 74.1 years, SD: 6.69). Descriptive and multivariate analyses showed that (a) established services such as cash machines were used more often than new services, such as self-checkout apps or machines. (b) Perceived ease of use is related to age, socioeconomic status, health, and interest in technology. (c) Only 8.9% had an overall positive attitude toward these digital services, and this attitude was predicted by age, gender, socioeconomic status, and interest in technology. (d) Participants were more often open to filing taxes online than voting online, and openness was predicted by age, income, and interest in technology. Today, mainly older adults with a high interest in technology use digital services. Nevertheless, potential for greater use is evident.
IKT-Nutzung im Kontext von Gesundheit und Fitness im Alter
Fitness- und Gesundheitswerte werden heute meist digital mit Wearables und Apps gemessen. Es gibt jedoch kaum Studien, welche die alltägliche Nutzung dieser Selbstvermessungstechnologien bei älteren Personen empirisch erforschen. Der vorliegende Bericht untersucht diese Nutzung anhand von Ergebnissen aus einer repräsentativen Schweizer Bevölkerungsbefragung, bei der 1149 Personen ab 65 Jahren befragt wurden. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass Wearables und Gesundheits-Apps noch eher selten von älteren Personen genutzt werden; dennoch sind hier Nutzungspotenziale erkennbar.