Intergenerational exchange and mental health in later-life--the case of older Jewish Israelis.

The purpose of this study was to consider the contribution of intergenerational exchange to mental health. Using data from a national sample of Jewish Israelis age 60 and over with children (n = 1799), reciprocal and non-reciprocal exchange patterns were identified and examined in relation to respondents' scores on a 12-item mood scale. Multiple regression analysis controlled for the effects of socio-demographic background, need and intergenerational contact. Unbalanced exchange on the part of the respondents, whether giving more or receiving more, was unrelated to their current mental health. Equal reciprocal exchange was positively associated with mental health, albeit weakly. This positive effect was maintained despite the negative association of poor health with respondents' mental health and the positive association of income, education and contact with children. The analysis demonstrates that reciprocal intergenerational exchange may be a contributory factor to better mental health in later-life, and should be addressed as such.

Examination of the association of age, disability, and mood among Jewish older adults in Israel.

The purpose of this study was to examine the association between chronological age, disability and mental health in later life. Secondary analysis of data from a national probability sample of Jewish persons age 60 and over in Israel (n = 2,079) was employed. Mental health, measured on a 12-item mood scale, was successively regressed on age, sociodemographic characteristics, functional disability and physical health status, and on the interaction of age and disability. A significant negative association between age and mood emerged when confounding variables were not controlled (beta = -0.19). This association remained, to a lesser degree, after sociodemographic variables were entered (beta = -0.11). The addition of disability and health variables reversed the direction of the association (beta = 0.05). Finally, the entry of the interaction term (age x disability) bolstered the net association of age and mood (beta = 0.27). The analysis underscored the interaction of age and disability as a major threat to mental health in current aging cohorts.

Social network type and morale in old age.

PURPOSE: The aim of this research was to derive network types among an elderly population and to examine the relationship of network type to morale. DESIGN AND METHODS: Secondary analysis of data compiled by the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics (n = 2,079) was employed, and network types were derived through K-means cluster analysis. Respondents' morale scores were regressed on network types, controlling for background and health variables. RESULTS: Five network types were derived. Respondents in diverse or friends networks reported the highest morale; those in exclusively family or restricted networks had the lowest. Multivariate regression analysis underscored that certain network types were second among the study variables in predicting respondents' morale, preceded only by disability level (Adjusted R(2) =.41). IMPLICATIONS: Classification of network types allows consideration of the interpersonal environments of older people in relation to outcomes of interest. The relative effects on morale of elective versus obligated social ties, evident in the current analysis, is a case in point.

Subjective well-being among the old-old: the role of health, personality and social support.

The purpose of this study was to devise and test a path model that explains how background variables, physical capacity, and psychosocial resources (locus of control and social network supportiveness) affect three well-being outcome measures--self-rated health, mental health, and life satisfaction--among the old-old in Israel. A sample of European-born persons aged seventy-five and over, drawn randomly from the population registry in the greater Tel Aviv area, was administered a structured questionnaire in personal interviews (N=194). The findings confirm that the relationship between background variables, physical capacity and well-being is differentially mediated by the psychosocial resources, with different variable combinations predicting each of the respective facets of well-being. Moreover, the relative strength of the relationships between locus of control and social network supportiveness and well-being indicate that among the old-old, personality factors may be more consequential than social resources for one's well-being.

The effects of extreme early stress in very old age.

This article examines a community-based sample of Holocaust survivors aged 75 and over, in comparison to persons of similar age and sociocultural background who did not personally experience the Holocaust. The analysis compares respondents' sociodemographic characteristics, interpersonal resources (locus of control and social network), and vulnerability, stratified by gender (n = 194). Assessments of vulnerability (physical health, mental health, and posttraumatic stress disorder--PTSD) are compared across groups. The results reveal almost no differences regarding the sociodemographic and interpersonal variables. Nevertheless, survivors are found to be more vulnerable than the others in the comparison group: (a) male survivors demonstrate a higher prevalence of PTSD, and (b) female survivors indicate greater health-related difficulties and poorer self-rated health.

Formal and informal network factors as sources of morale in a senior center population.

This study examined the relative effects of senior center factors and social network attributes on the morale of a sample of senior center participants in Israel (N = 85), controlling for respondents' background characteristics. The multivariate model accounted for 56 percent of the variance in morale scores. Respondents' health was the primary explanatory factor, followed by selected attributes of participants' informal social networks. The formal network factors had a minor and partly negative effect. The findings suggest that participants' morale was shaped more by the configuration of their interpersonal social networks than by factors related to the senior center environment.

The provision of informal support by elderly people residing in assisted living facilities.

This study examined factors facilitating support giving to members of the social network by elderly Jewish persons residing in assisted living facilities in Israel. A support provision score was regressed on two sets of background control variables: personal characteristics and housing factors; social network variables; and an exchange measure-perceived available support. The hierarchical multivariate results revealed that it was principally the perceived support measure along with two personal characteristics (younger age and nonreligious orientation) that explained the variance in the support provision score (R2 = .52). The findings underscore the importance of reciprocity within the informal networks of this population.

Social network type and health status in a national sample of elderly Israelis.

A typology of social support networks was examined in relation to five health measures in a national probability sample of Israelis aged 60 and over, using multiple classification analysis (N = 4214). The procedure revealed that the more resourceful diversified and friend and neighbor network types were consistently associated with better scores on measures of basic and instrumental activities of daily living, incontinence, vision and self-rated health, even when controlling for respondents' age, sex and education. The religious family network type, also endowed with considerable support potential, tended to correlate with lower health scores. The narrow family focused network had average health ratings or less, and a moderate support capability. The least resourceful network type, the attenuated network, was most frequently associated with poor health.

The network shifts of elderly immigrants: the case of Soviet Jews in Israel.

This article analyzes the network dynamics of 259 Soviet immigrants, aged 62-92, who arrived in Israel during the recent wave of mass immigration. The study uses a Quick Cluster procedure with structural network characteristics as criterion variables to identify four primary network types among the study population: (1) kin network, (2) family-intensive network, (3) friend-focused network, and (4) diffuse-tie network. The pattern of shifts from pre-immigration network type to post-immigration network type reveals that the primary shifts were from the non-familial based network types to the familial-based types, and within the familial types from a wider kin network to a more restricted family-intensive network. These shifts reflect a move from networks of choice to networks of necessity on the part of many older immigrants.

The influence of organizational and personal characteristics on community planning activity.

The authors identify the influence of organizational and personal characteristics on the tendencies of community organizational workers in Israel to implement planning activities. The research examines these factors in relation to two planning styles, rational and organizational-political, and also distinguishes among factors influencing the tendency for implementation of each style. The principal findings indicate that the tendency of workers to implement rational activities is influenced by mechanical characteristics of the organization. On the other hand, the tendency of the workers to implement organizational-political activities is influenced significantly by organic characteristics--variety and conflict--with the organization. The frequency of use of both styles is influenced by professional education in community organization.

The development of community care policy for the elderly: a comparative perspective.

A comparison of the development of community care for the elderly in the province of Ontario, Canada, and in the State of Israel is presented in the light of the economic constraints currently challenging the expansion of welfare state services. The inquiry identified several common issues regarding the nature of the policy mandate for long-term care delivered in the home, the structure of the service delivery system and matters concerning funding arrangements for community care. Issues that emerged in both settings include the relationship between health and social services in the delivery of care at the local level; the separation of purchaser and provider functions; the question of needs-driven versus service-driven social care provisions; accessibility concerns and the aspiration for one-stop entry to the delivery system; the growing involvement of the private sector in the delivery of domiciliary-based personal care services; and the relative paucity of current efforts to address the needs of family caregivers.

Filial responsibility and informal support among family caregivers of the elderly in Jerusalem: a path analysis.

Informal family caregivers from a sample of 110 hospitalized elderly Jewish Jerusalemites were queried regarding their perceptions of filial responsibility and the supports they provide their parent(s). A path model was examined in which the outcome variable was a measure of the caregivers' expectations of future support. Background variables considered included sociodemographic variables and religiosity of the caregivers, family problems, proximity to the dependent parent, ADL, and length of dependency of the elderly care recipient. The analysis found future expectations of support to be explained principally by perceptions of filial responsibility, that were in turn explained by religiosity of the caregiver. Current support provided was influenced by proximity to the care recipient, ADL, length of dependency, and perceptions of filial responsibility. The implications of these findings for promotion of informal care are discussed.

Ethnicity and informal support among filial caregivers: Analysis of an Israeli sample.

The rate of informal in-home support generally provided by 120 filial relatives of temporarily hospitalized elders in Israel was compared on three measures of ethnicity: (1) ethnic identity (Ashkenazi or Sepharadi), (2) social class and (3) traditional religious orientation. Additional comparisons controlled for caregivers' sociodemographic characteristics and care-related need variables. Multivariate analysis confirmed that traditional religious orientation was the only measure of ethnicity to distinguish between levels of informal support, even when controlling for dependency levels of the care-recipient. The greatest amount of variance in informal support scores, however, was explained by ADL scores and length of dependency, giving support to the leveling effect of dependency. The findings give partial support to the need for ethnicsensitive treatment of informal carers and their elderly relatives.

Social support networks and formal help seeking: differences between applicants to social services and a nonapplicant sample.

Measures of social network strength have been shown to be positively correlated with the health and well-being of a range of populations, including older adults. This study compares the network structure and the support available to a group of elderly applicants for public social service assistance with those of a group of elderly persons who had not sought help (also taking into account predisposing characteristics and functional impairment). The applicant group was found to have significantly smaller networks and less affective support, even when controlling for age and physical capacity.

Canine ehrlichiosis in Connecticut.

The first case of canine ehrlichiosis in Connecticut is reported. A female Brittany spaniel from Milford presented with lethargy, anorexia, fever, petechiae, splenomegaly, thrombocytopenia, anemia, elevated serum alkaline phosphatase, lymphopenia, and hypoalbuminemia. Serologic analysis revealed antibodies to Ehrlichia canis (titer, 1:2,560). This documents a more northern geographic distribution in the United States for this infectious agent than had previously been suspected.

Volunteer ombudsman burnout in long term care services: some causes and solutions.

A study of volunteer ombudsmen in long term care facilities indicates that currently active and "burned out" volunteers differ in their perception of organizational obstacles and desired supervisory supports. Difficulties found in program funding, attitudes on nursing home staff, the frail nature of the population served and the strategic orientation--"contest" or "collaborative"--one assigns to the task of patient representation may have played a critical role in discouraging some of the volunteers to continue to aid the institutionalized elderly.