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

Sophie Potter, Sandra Duezel, Ilja Demuth, Denis Gerstorf, Johanna Drewelies and Shevaun Neupert

The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, 2023, vol. 78, issue 6, 1018-1024

Abstract: ObjectivesThroughout 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.MethodsMultilevel 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).ResultsHealth 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.DiscussionFindings 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.

Keywords: Affective reactivity; COVID-19; Physical health (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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