Objective: To examine the effect of access to outdoor space and buildings and social or community events on elders’ perceived disconnectedness. Method: Data were from a representative survey conducted as part of an age-friendly community initiative in a large midwestern city in the United States. Hierarchical logistic regression was employed to examine the relationships between environment, engagement, and connection. Results: Having access to ramps to enter buildings reduced the odds of perceived disconnectedness by 79%, participation in social or community events reduced the odds of perceived disconnectedness by 83%. The odds of perceived disconnectedness for elders “not sure” of their access to public buildings were around 6 times that of those without access, holding all else constant. Discussion: Ensuring access to ramps to enter buildings, disseminating information about the accessibility of parks and buildings, and social or community events may reduce elders’ perceived disconnectedness.

Volunteering is often considered an important component of productive and active aging. Although there is a rich body of literature on the predictors and outcomes of volunteering among the general older adults in the United States (U.S.), few studies have explored the unique volunteering experiences of culturally and linguistically diverse older adults. Given the growing number of diverse older adults and the importance of optimizing their contributions to society, this study investigates the challenges and benefits of volunteering among low-income diverse older adults. We conducted eight 90-minute focus groups in six languages (English, Nepali, Khmer, Somali, Russian, and Chinese) with 70 older volunteers attending a Senior Companions monthly training in a U.S. Midwestern metropolitan area. Data analysis followed the Rapid and Rigorous Qualitative Data Analysis (RADaR) technique and thematic analysis through an interactive team approach. Three overarching themes highlighted the challenges of volunteering: (1) transportation, (2) community emergencies and workload, and (3) family caregiving; and three themes reflected the benefits of volunteering: (1) stress-relief, (2) training and information, and (3) peer support and socialization. Study findings shed light on diverse older adults’ unique volunteering experiences with implications for recruitment and retention.

Trust in physicians (TIP) plays a critical role in the health care utilization (HCU) of minority older adults and older immigrants. Although previous studies suggested that TIP was positively assoc...

Having viable alternative transportation options could help individuals stop driving when appropriate. This study employs the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) to understand the barriers and facilitators of alternative transportation among a sample of adults aged 55 and older ( N = 32). Using a daily transportation data collection app, MyAmble, the research team asked participants questions structured around environmental, individual, and behavioral factors as outlined in the SCT framework. Responses were analyzed using directed content analysis. Findings suggest a substantial reliance on motor vehicles and it was evident that many participants had never seriously considered what they would do if they could no longer drive. We posit that SCT principles may be applied to help older adults build self-efficacy to transition to driving cessation when needed.

Older adults' engagement in age-friendly community (AFC) initiatives is considered an essential element of community transformation. However, research on older adults' experiences of engaging in AFC initiatives remains nascent. Based on qualitative interviews with 23 older adult participants from 15 AFC initiatives across four states in the United States (U.S.), our reflexive thematic analysisidentified three themes regarding what participants value from their engagement: (a) social contribution; (b) social connectedness and integration; and (c) staying active and personal growth. Exploring older adults' interest in contributing to, connecting with, and growing in their community can inform recruitment and retention in AFC initiatives.

Objectives: Education is among the most robust predictors of cognitive health outcomes in later life. However, few studies have comprehensively evaluated whether and how much of this effect is explained by occupational exposures. This study aims to determine if and how much pre-retirement occupational exposures (occurring before age 60) mediate the association between education and cognitive function at age 65+. Methods: We use data drawn from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) and Occupation Information Network (O*NET) data. Informed by previous research and theory, we conducted Confirmatory Factor Analyses of occupation-level exposure measures using a longitudinal HRS-O*NET linked data set we created, and we identified 2 latent factors: occupational hazards and occupational complexity. Among initially employed adults (age 51–60 at baseline), we used Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to evaluate the association between education and cognitive function at age 65+, and the role of our 2 occupational factors in mediating this association. Results: The measurement and structural models both had good model fit (TLI, CFI ≥ 0.95, SRMR < 0.08). We found (a) that education remained a critical predictor of cognitive outcomes in later life even when accounting for occupational exposures, and (b) only hazardous exposures mediated the association between education and cognitive function in later life (a2b2=0.02, p = .01), explaining about 17% of the effect of education. Discussion: These findings suggest interventions designed to decrease exposure to hazardous occupational exposures could reduce some of the cognitive disadvantages in later life associated with lower levels of education.