Browsing by Author "Wilson, Donna M."
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- Mentally healthy living after pandemic social distancing: a study of older Canadians reveals helpful anxiety reduction strategiesPublication . Low, Gail; Gutman, Gloria M; Gao, Zhiwei; Bacadini França, Alex; von Humboldt, Sofia; VITORINO, LUCIANO; Wilson, Donna M.; Allana, HunainaBackground: Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, older Canadians werethe most at risk of severe physical harm, including death, and their return topost-COVID life was expected to be especially anxiety-provoking. A studywas conducted to obtain nationally representative evidence of older Cana-dians’ self-perceived anxiety levels and their strategies to manage or miti-gate it as public health restrictions were lifting.Materials and Methods: This study had a cross-sectional descriptivedesign. An e-survey was used to collect data from 1327 Canadians aged60+ stratified by age, sex, and education to resemble the larger generalpopulation. Participants completed the Geriatric Anxiety Scale (GAS-10)and indicated which of the 16 Centre for Addictions and Mental Health’s(2022) Coping with Stress and Anxiety strategies they were using to man-age or mitigate their anxiety when social distancing was lifting. Descriptivestatistics, Pearson correlation, and multiple regression analysis were usedto explore the data.Results: While, on average, older Canadians were mildly anxious, nearlyone-quarter of responders rated their anxiety as severe. Age, sex, perceivedhealth, were statistically significant correlates of anxiety. Six coping strate-gies were associated with significantly lower anxiety scores. Moreover,accepting some fear and anxiety as normal, challenging worries and anx-ious thoughts, and practising relaxation/meditation appeared to increaseanxiety.Conclusion: Older Canadians used multiple strategies to manage or miti-gate their anxiety, and seemingly, with more successful than detrimentaltries. Practitioners have much to learn and understand about older people’smental health promotion efforts after social distancing, now and for futurepandemics
- Suitability of the Attitudes to Aging Questionnaire Short Form for use among adults in their 50s: A cross-sectional e-survey studyPublication . Low, Gail; Bacadini França, Alex; Wilson, Donna M.; Gutman, Gloria M; von Humboldt, SofiaThis cross-sectional e-survey study examines the suitability (reliability and validity) of the 12-item Attitudes to Aging Questionnaire Short Form (AAQ-SF) for use among adults in their 50s. The AAQ-SF instrument was originally designed to capture subjective perceptions of physical change, psychosocial loss, and psychological growth by asking people aged 60 and beyond how they feel about growing older. Our sample comprised 517 people residing in three Canadian provinces. Respondents completed the Attitudes to Aging Questionnaire Short Form, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and a short sociodemographic profile. Our findings replicate the original AAQ-SF structure for physical change, psychosocial loss, and psychological growth, with a promising internal consistency range for the third subscale. In our sample, psychological growth is best represented as ‘Self’ and ‘Generativity’, with a particularly greater capacity to explain variations in scores for item 18 and item 21. Physical change and psychosocial loss scores strongly differed based on perceived health and chronic illness presence. Psychosocial loss and psychological growth were moderately correlated with two aspects of self-esteem. We relate these patterns of findings within the context of prevailing growth and development theory and their perceived implications within the context of COVID-19 and post-pandemic life.