The mediating role of health-related behavior in the relationship between wisdom and depressive symptoms in older Polish adults.

OBJECTIVES: Although studies have shown that wisdom is positively related to mental health in older adults, little is known about its possible mechanisms. The current study examines whether health-related behavior can play a mediating role in the relationships between wisdom and geriatric depressive symptoms. METHODS: The study included 334 Polish older adults aged 60-99 years (M = 71.91; SD = 7.01). The respondents completed the Geriatric Depression Scale, Three-Dimensional Wisdom Scale, Health-Related Questionnaire for Seniors, and a sociodemographic survey. RESULTS: Three-dimensional wisdom and its three dimensions correlated negatively with geriatric depressive symptoms but positively with general health-related behavior and its factors. Health-related behavior acted partially as a mediator between wisdom and geriatric depressive symptoms. CONCLUSION: Wiser seniors tend to take part in more health-promoting behavior, which may prevent depressive symptoms. The findings support the important role played by wisdom in mental health-promoting interventions for older adults.

Anxiety and Stress among American, Chinese, Italian, and Russian Emerging Adults: Does Uncertainty Avoidance Matter?

Levels of anxiety and stress vary throughout the lifespan and across cultures. Uncertainty appears particularly relevant during emerging adulthood, thus potentially affecting both stress and anxiety. Uncertainty as a construct was identified by Hofstede (i.e., Uncertainty Avoidance Index, UAI), who defined it as the extent to which members of a culture feel threatened by ambiguous or unknown situations and tend to avoid them. The UAI was considered as a means to understand cultures in addition to the "classic" distinction between collectivist and individualistic cultures. The present study compared levels of anxiety and stress in 1790 university students (18-21 years old) from two individualistic (Italy and the US) and two collectivistic (China and Russia) countries, with a consideration of country UAI levels. Results showed that country-level UAI scores were associated with levels of anxiety and stress, controlling for age and sex. Italian and Russian students reported greater anxiety than American and Chinese ones. Chinese emerging adults reported the lowest stress levels, followed by American, Italian, and Russian students. The study findings provide initial evidence that anxiety and stress in emerging adults are associated with how a culture deals with perceived instability and uncertainty about the future.

Effects of Wisdom on Mental Health in Old Age: Exploring the Pathways Through Developmental Tasks Attainment and Self-Rated Health.

Purpose: A number of studies indicate a relationship between wisdom and mental health in older adults, which can be explained by different pathways. However, the role of developmental task accomplishment, and of self-rated health in the relationships between wisdom and mental health in later life remain unclear. The aim of the current study is to explore the structure of the relationships between wisdom, developmental task attainment, self-rated health, and positive and negative mental health outcomes (viz. wellbeing and depressive symptoms) in older adults. Methods: The study included 381 Polish older adults aged 60-86 (M= 67.33; SD = 5.08). The respondents completed the Personal Wellbeing Index, Geriatric Depression Scale, Three-Dimensional Wisdom Scale, Developmental Tasks Attainment Questionnaire for Seniors, self-rated health scale and sociodemographic survey. Results: Three-dimensional wisdom, developmental task attainment and self-rated health scores were positive predictors of personal wellbeing and negative predictors of depressive symptoms in older adults. Structural equation modelling revealed that developmental tasks attainment and self-rated health partially mediated the relations between wisdom and mental health in older adults. Conclusion: It can be assumed that wise older adults implement developmental tasks more efficiently and assess their subjective health more favorably, which may strengthen their personal wellbeing and prevent depression. The findings suggest that wisdom plays an important role in healthy aging.

The relationships between wisdom, positive orientation and health-related behavior in older adults.

The concept of healthy ageing, i.e. maintaining health in late life, is closely connected with the role of health behavior. Although health behavior is determined by personal factors, little is known about its relationships with wisdom and positive orientation. Therefore, the aim of the study was to establish relationships between sociodemographic and health factors, personal resources (wisdom and positive orientation) and health-related behavior in late life. The study included 353 Polish seniors aged 60-99 (M = 71.95; SD = 1.45). The respondents completed the Health-Related Questionnaire for Seniors, Three Dimensional Wisdom Scale, Positive Orientation Scale and a sociodemographic survey. Wisdom and positive orientation were associated with general health behavior and all of its factors. Among the sociodemographic variables, attendance in nonformal education courses had the strongest predictive role for health behavior. A hierarchical regression model demonstrated that personal resources significantly determined healthy lifestyle, after controlling for sociodemographic factors. Additionally, mediational analyses revealed that positive orientation acted as a partial mediator between wisdom and health behavior. Our findings extend knowledge about the factors enhancing healthy lifestyle in older adults, indicating that both wisdom and positive orientation may represent valuable personal resources for health-related behavior.

Measuring Subjective Wellbeing in a School Context: A Polish Version of the Student Subjective Wellbeing Questionnaire.

The Student Subjective Wellbeing Questionnaire is a measure designed to assess adolescents' subjective wellbeing at school. The article presents our work toward adapting the SSWQ to the Polish cultural context. The Polish translation of the SSWQ, the KIDSCREEN-27, and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (STAIC) were administered to 818 students aged 10-16 years, who were in Grades 5-8 of elementary school. As a result of a language adaptation process, a 16-item questionnaire was created, comprising four subscales, like the original version: School Connectedness, Joy of Learning, Educational Purpose, and Academic Efficacy. Confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated that both the SSWQ-PL first-order measurement model, which consisted of the above four fully correlated factors, and its second-order measurement model, which structured these four first-order factors as indicators of one second-order factor (i.e., student subjective wellbeing), showed good data-model fit and high internal consistency with the present sample. Cronbach's alpha for the overall score was .87 and H coefficient was .94. The Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient between the total SSWQ-PL scores at two time points was.88 (p < .01), which suggests that the SSWQ-PL is reliable over time. Results showed that the SSWQ-PL had appropriate convergent and divergent validity with scores from the KIDSCREEN-27 and STAIC, which means it can be a useful measure to assess students' subjective wellbeing in school counseling.

Pathways to healthy aging - Exploring the determinants of self-rated health in older adults.

OBJECTIVE: The decade 2021-2030 has been declared the Decade of Healthy Aging by the United Nations General Assembly, underlining that health is central to the experience of older age and the opportunities that aging brings. Self-rated health (SRH) appears consistent with the state of objective health, and therefore can serve as a simple core indicator of healthy aging. SRH can be affected by psychological and lifestyle factors, and by the developmental and sociodemographic context, which can directly and indirectly influence subjective health status. The aim of the present study was to establish the structure of the relationships between SRH, health-related behavior, subjective wellbeing, developmental tasks attainment and sociodemographic factors in the late-life period. METHODS: The study group consisted of 340 Polish retired seniors, aged 61 to 94 (M = 70.75, SD = 6.48): 88 men (25.9 %) and 252 women (74.1 %). The respondents completed the following measures: 10-point numerical scale for SRH, Health-Related Questionnaire for Seniors, Satisfaction with Life Scale, Developmental Tasks Questionnaire for Seniors and a sociodemographic survey. RESULTS: The group demonstrated a medium level of SRH and other variables. SHR was positively correlated with health-related behavior, wellbeing, developmental tasks attainment and perceived economic status, and negatively with age. Structural equation model revealed that health-related behavior, wellbeing, age and economic status have a direct influence on SRH. Developmental tasks attainment was found to predict health behavior, although no direct relationship with SRH was found. CONCLUSIONS: A broader understanding of healthy aging is achieved by considering the context of its factors. Psychological interventions should promote a healthy lifestyle and adapt it to the late life period to promote health among seniors.

Healthy aging and the University of the Third Age - Health behavior and subjective health outcomes in older adults.

INTRODUCTION: By participating in the University of the Third Age (U3A), retirees are offered the opportunity for activation and development in the later years of life. However, little is known how certain aspects of healthy aging, such as health-related behavior and subjective health outcomes, differ between U3A students and other older adults not taking part in any form of education. To address this, the aim of the present study was to compare selected aspects of healthy aging in a group of U3A members with older adults not taking part in any form of lifelong learning. The study also establishes relationships between the tested variables and predictors of health behavior. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 277 older adults (130 U3A members and 147 non-members) aged 60-92 (M = 68.84, SD = 5.32) completed measures of health behavior, self-rated physical health, self-rated sense of own health responsibility and satisfaction with life. RESULTS: The U3A attendees presented significantly higher scores for general health behavior and some of its components, and declared higher self-rated health than their peers not affiliated to any educational organization. Self-rated health, responsibility for health and satisfaction with life were positively correlated with general health behavior and most of their categories. but the correlation coefficients differed between both groups. A hierarchical regression model demonstrated the predictive roles of attendance in U3A, sociodemographic and subjective factors in health behavior undertaking. CONCLUSIONS: The study results may help to identify older adults who should be targeted in interventions aimed at supporting healthy aging.