Time-varying associations between loneliness and physical activity: Evidence from repeated daily life assessments in an adult lifespan sample.

Physical activity is a behavior that promotes physical and mental health; yet physical activity has decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic. To promote health during times of challenge, it is important to identify potential barriers to this key health behavior, such as loneliness. This brief report extends previous research on physical activity and loneliness that mainly focused on between-person differences to examine their time-varying associations at the within-person level using repeated daily life assessments. From April 2020 to August 2020, data were collected from a sample of 139 community-dwelling Canadian adults (M age = 40.65 years, SD = 18.37; range = 18-83 years). Each evening for 10 consecutive days, participants reported their loneliness, number of steps, and minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Results revealed that, in line with our hypotheses, on days when participants reported more loneliness they also engaged in less moderate-to-vigorous physical activity than on less lonely days (estimate = -0.24, p = 0.007); there was a significant negative association between loneliness and daily number of steps (estimate = -18.42, p = 0.041). In contrast, at the between-person level, overall loneliness was not associated with overall physical activity engagement after accounting for within-person differences and control variables (age, sex, day in study). From an intervention perspective, our findings suggest that it is promising to tackle loneliness on a day-to-day basis to increase physical activity one day at a time. This may be especially relevant during times mandating social-distancing, but also at other times when individuals experience greater feelings of loneliness.

Having time to oneself in times of extended togetherness: Solitude experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This study investigated how time to oneself (solitude) is experienced under conditions of extended togetherness with household members during the pandemic. Both structural (living arrangements) and qualitative characteristics (relationship quality and conflict) were examined for their association with solitude desire and daily solitude-affect links. We expected that people living with others and those with more high-quality as well as those with more conflictual relationships would report better affect quality when experiencing solitude. A Canadian adult lifespan sample (N = 141; Mage = 38.43 years, SDage = 17.51; 81% female; 73% White; data collected from April to August 2020) provided information on household size and relationship characteristics and completed repeated daily life assessments of solitude desire, solitude, and affect. Findings show that living arrangements were not associated with an increased desire for solitude or better affect quality from solitude. Individuals reporting higher relationship quality and individuals reporting more conflict showed more favorable affect quality on days when they had time in solitude than individuals reporting lower quality relationships and lower conflict. Findings add to the growing solitude literature by delineating who seeks and benefits from solitude, and under what conditions.

Context Matters: Health Sensitivity in the Daily Lives of Older Adults Living Through the COVID-19 Pandemic.

OBJECTIVES: Throughout 2021, the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic caused renewed restrictions across Germany. Given the growing evidence that the pandemic negatively affects older adults' health and well-being, this study investigated health sensitivity (emotional reactions to momentary health challenges) and its moderators (age, morbidity, perceived COVID-19 risks and worries) among older adults in their everyday lives during the second and third waves of the pandemic. METHODS: Multilevel models were applied to self-reported momentary health and affect data, collected 6 times per day across 7 consecutive days in 104 participants (Mage = 76.35; range: 67-88 years), assessed between April and June 2021 (~300,000 COVID-19 cases in Germany at the time). RESULTS: Health sensitivity was unrelated to age and lower with higher morbidity. Importantly, older adults showed higher health sensitivity in moments when they also perceived a greater risk of contracting COVID-19. DISCUSSION: Findings suggest that sociocontextual factors related to the pandemic modulate emotional reactions to momentary health challenges, thereby underscoring the consequences of COVID-19 for older adults' emotional experiences.

The Role of Relationship Quality for Solitude Experiences during the Pandemic

As time spent at home has significantly increased during the pandemic, reports of household conflict has also risen among people living with others (Usher et al., 2020). One solution to alleviate the potential stress of increased time with others could be carving out time to oneself. The present study investigated how living conditions (e.g., with others vs. alone) are associated with everyday desire for solitude and whether daily solitude experience comes with improved daily emotional well-being in people living with others. Furthermore, it also explored whether relationship quality is associated with solitude experience in a similar manner as living conditions. To do so, we used repeated daily life assessments from a lifespan sample (N = 215;M age = 38.3 years, SD age = 17.5;78 % female) collected during the early pandemic (April to August 2020). Findings indicate that neither living conditions nor relationship quality were directly associated with daily desire for solitude, but higher relationship well-being was related to low preference for solitude when measured as an individual trait. In addition, relationship quality significantly moderated everyday solitude–affect links: higher relationship quality was related to reduced negative affect during solitude, and conflict was related to increased positive and decreased negative affect on solitude as compared to non-solitude days. The results imply that it is the subjective experience of relationships rather than objective living conditions that shape daily affective quality during solitude.

Health Behaviors in Times of COVID: Different Sources of Support for Older Adults

Eating a nutritious diet reduces vulnerability to common chronic diseases. Yet, older adults struggle to meet nutritional guidelines;many have found it particularly challenging to access fresh foods such as fruits and vegetables during the pandemic. Thus, it is vital to better understand how older adults may recruit the help of close others to support healthy dietary intake. This COVID-19 study examines the role of support for promoting fruit and vegetable consumption in daily life. Ninety-seven older adults participated with a close other of their choice (62 % spouse;38% non-spouse Mage partner1 = 72, SD = 5.26, Mage partner2 = 62, SD = 16.38). Both partners completed two daily questionnaires for 10 days. In the morning they reported their intentions for eating fruit and vegetables. In the evening, they noted their consumed fruit and vegetable servings, the extent to which this matched their intentions, and their partners support in doing so. Consistent with previous research, the older participants were, the more they consumed fruits and vegetables. On days when participants received more support from their partner, they were more successful at reaching their dietary goals. Interestingly, initial findings suggest that associations were stronger when support was provided from a non-spouse than if the support came from spouse. Follow-up analyses, with a larger sample, will further examine some of the underlying mechanisms so as to better understand the role of different kinds of support providers during the pandemic and shed light on who may be best suited to provide support.

COVID-19, Time to Oneself, and Loneliness: Creativity as a Resource.

OBJECTIVES: Physical distancing to reduce the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 has increased alone time, with unintended mental health ramifications including increased loneliness, which may be particularly detrimental for older adults. We investigated time-varying associations between daily time to oneself and loneliness, and the role of everyday creativity as a resource. METHOD: 126 adults aged 18-84 completed online questionnaires including a 10-day daily diary module, during which they self-reported alone time, everyday creativity, and loneliness. Data were analyzed using multilevel models, controlling for study day, participation date, gender, and relationship status. RESULTS: Greater average amounts of alone time were associated with greater loneliness, an association that was stronger in old age. In a daily context, individuals reported feeling lonelier on days when they had more time to themselves than usual. This within-person association was weaker with older age. Everyday creativity did not moderate alone time-loneliness associations. However, holding time to oneself constant, participants felt less lonely and less bothered by alone time on days when they were more creative than usual. DISCUSSION: Participating in creative behaviors (e.g., pursuing arts and crafts) might be linked with reduced loneliness. Intervention studies are needed to investigate whether fostering creativity could help promote mental well-being in times when people, especially older adults, are vulnerable to loneliness and associated health risks.