Impact of Cohabitation during Confinement on Older Adults' Negative Affect: What Specificity of Life as a Couple?

BACKGROUND: Social isolation is a risk factor for older adults' physical and psychological health. The beneficial effect of social connections in times of major health events is undeniable. Nevertheless, it remains unclear whether the positive effect of social support depends on the relationship type. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to investigate the influence of older adults' living conditions on the risk of experiencing negative affect during the first lockdown and post-lockdown. DESIGN: An epidemiological study conducted during the COVID-19 crisis, at the time of the first lockdown, and 2 to 3 months following the lockdown. SETTING: A subset sample of the PACOVID survey, a population-based survey of older adults. PARTICIPANTS: Altogether, 277 participants were included into three groups depending on their living conditions: Group 1 "living alone" (n = 141); Group 2 "living with their spouse" (n = 106); Group 3 "living in cohabitation with relatives" (n = 30). MEASUREMENTS: Mixed logistic regression analyses were used to study the change in the risk of experiencing negative affects over time according to the living conditions. The presence of negative affects during lockdown was assessed using three items from the 20-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale : «Do you feel sad?¼; «Do you feel depressed?; «Do you feel lonely? RESULTS: Participants living with their relatives or partner were significantly less likely to experience negative affect than those living alone during lockdown. Moreover, over time, only those living with their spouse had this lesser risk compared to those living alone. CONCLUSIONS: These findings highlight the protective effect of social support over time and more specifically of that provided by the spouse. Couple functioning ought to be given consideration when studying the impact of health crisis situation on the mental health of older adults.

Older People Facing the Crisis of COVID-19: Between Fragility and Resilience.

The health crisis we are facing is challenging seniors' resources and capacities for adaptation and resilience. The PACOVID survey, set up a few days after containment, investigates their psychological and social experiences with regard to the COVID-19 crisis and to what extent these characteristics, representations and attitudes have an impact on health and mortality. A telephone survey is being carried out on 935 people already followed up in the framework of ongoing epidemiological studies. As we are writing this article, the interviews conducted during the containment have just ended. Even though we will have to wait for the analysis of the results to draw conclusions, words collected by the psychologists during the interviews already illustrate a great heterogeneity in the way older adults lived this experience: social isolation, anxiety, the importance of family and the difficulty of being deprived of it, but also remarkable coping skills and resilience capacities.