Hope and healthy lifestyle behaviors in older adulthood

Abstract

Objectives

Hope has been associated with better health and social well-being outcomes, including emotional adjustment, positive affect, life satisfaction, reduced risk of all-cause mortality, and increased physical activity, yet how hope as a construct impacts these health benefits in older adults is not very well-understood. This study examined: (1) the relationship between hope and health behaviors in older adults; (2) how this relationship may differ across different socio-demographic groups; and (3) how hope relates to perceived future selves among older adults.

Methods

The study used cross-sectional data from 711 community-dwelling adults aged ≥55 years (280 men, 431 women). Survey measures included the Snyder Adult Dispositional Hope Scale (ADHS) and the Herth Hope Index (HHI), a health behaviors checklist, self-reported health, and a future self-scale. Data were analyzed using bivariate and multiple regressions.

Results

Hope was positively associated with healthy behaviors in older adults. Participants with higher levels of hope also reported more positive future selves and better health. The associations were similar across different racial/ethnic groups.

Conclusions

This study fills an important gap in our understanding of hope and its association with health behaviors in community-dwelling older adults. These findings highlight a need to promote hope in older adults in order to enhance their sense of well-being.

Keywords:

• Hope
• health behaviors
• Adult Dispositional Hope Scale
• Herth Hope Index
• minority health

Acknowledgement

The authors would like to acknowledge Dugan O’Connor, MS, Research Associate, Mather Institute, for his assistance with data management.

Authors’ contributions

All authors made a substantive intellectual contribution to the manuscript. Specific contributions are as follows: Mushira Mohsin Khan: study design and literature review; data analysis and interpretation; drafting and revising manuscript; final review and submission; Patrick Hill: study design and literature review; data interpretation; drafting and revising manuscript; Catherine O’Brien: study conception and design; literature review; data interpretation; drafting and revising manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.