Change and stability: Within-person life satisfaction over a 20-year period using data from the HUNT survey.

Background: The aim of the present study was to investigate within-person life satisfaction (LS) dynamics for two age groups, 20-29 and 30-39 years, from 1984 to 1986 and to follow them over a 20-year period. Methods: Data from 1984 to 2008 were extracted from the large, prospective, longitudinal North-Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT), Norway. This paper includes data from more than 14,500 persons. Data were analysed using logistic regression, and LS dynamics were modelled using gender, time and self-rated health. Results: The analyses revealed that about 20% of people in these age groups had a stable level in LS, also known as set point. Long-term LS change, defined as ⩾2 SDs, was reported for 9% and 6% of people in the youngest and oldest age groups, respectively. A large proportion of more than 70% of people had fluctuations in their LS over a 20-year period. A significant decrease in within-person LS was seen for the age groups from 1984-86 to 1995-97 where a significant increase appeared from 1995-97 to 2006-08. For the initial 20-29 age group, the odds of having a higher score increased by 34%, and for the initial 30-39 age group, the within-person LS increase was 81%. Self-rated health was the most crucial variable influencing within-person LS. Conclusions: These findings suggest that a significant proportion of the responders had a long-term within-person LS change over the 20-year period.

Age groups changes in self-rated health: A prospective longitudinal study over a 20-year period using Health Survey of North Trøndelag data.

Background: The aim of the study was to investigate changes in self-rated health (SRH) between different age groups and sexes over a 20-year period. Methods: Data were retrieved from the large longitudinal Health Survey of North Trøndelag, Norway, which includes data collected from more than 190,000 participants aged 20-70+ years between the years 1984 and 2008. Data were analysed using logistic regression and adjusted for sex. Results: From 1984 to 2008, the odds of scoring higher on SRH decreased by 46% in the youngest age group (20-29 years) and increased by approximately 35% in the middle-aged and older age groups (40-70+ years). When considering sex differences, women in most age groups scored lower than the men on their SRH. Conclusions: Our finding suggest a trending shift in SRH, with a reduction in the youngest age group (20-29 years) and an increase in the middle-aged and older age groups (40-70+ years). Despite the sex differences being small, our data indicate that in most age groups, women tend to score lower than men on their SRH. Future studies should focus on these trends to understand better the mechanisms underlying these changes in SRH and to follow future trends to see if the trend is reinforced or diminished.

Has life satisfaction in Norway increased over a 20-year period? Exploring age and gender differences in a prospective longitudinal study, HUNT.

AIM: The aim of the present study was to investigate the change in overall life satisfaction for different age groups and between genders over a 20-year period. METHODS: Data from 1984 to 2008 were extracted from a large prospective longitudinal health study of Nord-Trøndelag (HUNT), Norway. The study included more than 176,000 participants ranging from 20 to 70+ years of age. Data were analysed using logistic regression and adjusted for gender. RESULTS: The analyses revealed an increase in life satisfaction for all age groups from 1984-1986 (HUNT 1) to 1995-1997 (HUNT 2), with the highest levels being reached at 2006-2008 (HUNT 3). For all age groups, the data showed an increase of about 20% for the period from 1984-1986 (HUNT 1) to 1995-1997 (HUNT 2). From 1995-1997 (HUNT 2) to 2006-2008 (HUNT 3), the increase in overall life satisfaction was 16% for the younger age groups, and about 32% for the older age groups (40-69 and 70+ years). Women's scores for overall life satisfaction were higher for nearly all age groups when compared to men using HUNT 3 as a reference. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest an increase in life satisfaction for all age groups from 1984 to 2008, especially for the older age group (40-69 and 70+ years). The data indicate that women score higher on life satisfaction for most age groups as compared to men.