Observational studyJournal of the American Geriatrics Society2015
Does Mode of Contact with Different Types of Social Relationships Predict Depression in Older Adults? Evidence from a Nationally Representative Survey.
Observational study in Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT04944277 (Assessing Effectiveness of a Text-based Mental Health Coaching Application in Improving Mental Well-Being Among House Officers, IMU Faculty, IMU Corporate Staff and IMU Students in Malaysia), which is not on this map. Cited by 62 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Assessing Effectiveness of a Text-based Mental Health Coaching Application in Improving Mental Well-Being Among House Officers, IMU Faculty, IMU Corporate Staff and IMU Students in Malaysia
Who cites it
62 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Interventions simultaneously promoting social participation and physical activity in community living older adults: A systematic review.Frontiers in public health · 2022Pooled it
- Can changes in social contact (frequency and mode) mitigate low mood before and during the COVID-19 pandemic? The I-CONECT project.Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · 2022Trial
- Childhood Family Violence and Depressive Symptoms in Urban Chinese Women: The Moderating Role of Social Contact Frequency.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Proximity Contacts and Self-perceived Vulnerability to Diseases Among High School Students - A Preliminary Study.Human nature (Hawthorne, N.Y.) · 2026Article
- Partner- and Mode-Specific Social Contact and Poor Mental Health Among Older Adults in Japan: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of the 2024 JACSIS Study.Geriatrics & gerontology international · 2026Article
- L-shaped association between depressive symptoms and the number of close friends: A cross-sectional study.The Journal of international medical research · 2026Article
- Combined effect of living alone and osteoporosis status on the prevalence of depression in Chinese community-dwelling older population: a cross-sectional study.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Association between subjective cognitive decline and life-space mobility in a community-based elderly adults: a moderated mediation model of depression and perceived social support.Aging clinical and experimental research · 2025Article
- Immigrant Status and Social Ties: An Intersectional Analysis of Older Adults in the United States.Journal of immigrant and minority health · 2025Article
- Article
- Posttraumatic stress among refugees: The moderating effect of perceived social support.Journal of migration and health · 2025Article
- Digital Contact as Strain or Support: How Does Type of Contact Shape the Association Between Mother-Child Interactions and Adult Children's Depressive Symptoms in Later-Life Families?The Gerontologist · 2024Article
- Cultural contexts differentially shape parents' loneliness and wellbeing during the empty nest period.Communications psychology · 2024Review
- Sociodemographic Heterogeneity in the Associations of Social Isolation With Mortality.JAMA network open · 2024Article
- Article
- Article
- Article
- Social Isolation and Healthcare Utilization in Older Adults Living With Dementia and Mild Cognitive Impairment in the United States.Innovation in aging · 2024Article
- Family Ties and Older Adult Well-Being: Incorporating Social Networks and Proximity.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2023Article
- Social Isolation and Worsening Health Behaviors Among Older Adults During the COVID-19 Pandemic.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2023Article
2 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectivesTo determine associations between use of three different modes of social contact (in person, telephone, written or e-mail), contact with different types of people, and risk of depressive symptoms in a nationally representative, longitudinal sample of older adults.
designPopulation-based observational cohort.
settingUrban and suburban communities throughout the contiguous United States.
participantsIndividuals aged 50 and older who participated in the Health and Retirement Survey between 2004 and 2010 (N = 11,065). MEASUREMENTS: Frequency of participant use of the three modes of social contact with children, other family members, and friends at baseline were used to predict depressive symptoms (measured using the eight-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale) 2 years later using multivariable logistic regression models.
resultsProbability of having depressive symptoms steadily increased as frequency of in-person-but not telephone or written or e-mail contact-decreased. After controlling for demographic, clinical, and social variables, individuals with in-person social contact every few months or less with children, other family, and friends had a significantly higher probability of clinically significant depressive symptoms 2 years later (11.5%) than those having in-person contact once or twice per month (8.1%; P < .001) or once or twice per week (7.3%; P < .001). Older age, interpersonal conflict, and depression at baseline moderated some of the effects of social contact on depressive symptoms.
conclusionFrequency of in-person social contact with friends and family independently predicts risk of subsequent depression in older adults. Clinicians should consider encouraging face-to-face social interactions as a preventive strategy for depression.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.