ArticleAmerican journal of epidemiology2019
Optimism and Healthy Aging in Women and Men.
Article in American journal of epidemiology, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 36 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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
36 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 118 citations in OpenAlex.
- Determinants and indicators of successful aging as a multidimensional outcome: a systematic review of longitudinal studies.Frontiers in public health · 2023Pooled it
- The impact of life story groups on enhancing attitudes toward aging in older adults: a mixed methods study.BMC geriatrics · 2025Trial
- Optimism and the time-stable component of self-rated health: A threshold-specific latent growth analysis.British journal of health psychology · 2026Article
- Serial Mediation: How Optimism Reduces and Pessimism Intensifies Chronic Low Back Pain Through Depression and Biological Aging.Biological research for nursing · 2026Article
- Longitudinal Associations of Job Demand-Control Characteristics With Objective and Subjective Cognitive Outcomes in Older Workers: The Health and Retirement Study.American journal of industrial medicine · 2025Article
- The association between metabolite concentrations and wellbeing in adults.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Changes in psychological well-being among older adults: a latent transition analysis from China.BMC public health · 2025Article
- How weather conditions affect well-being: an explanation from the perspective of environmental psychology.Frontiers in public health · 2025Review
- Relationships Between Self-Reported Pain and Optimism Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults.International journal of aging & human development · 2024Article
- Impact of Multicomponent Training Frequency on Health and Fitness Parameters in Postmenopausal Women: A Comparative Study.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Can Creativity and Cognitive Reserve Predict Psychological Well-Being in Older Adults? The Role of Divergent Thinking in Healthy Aging.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Quality of life profiles and its association with predictors amongst Chinese older adults in nursing homes: a latent profile analysis.BMC geriatrics · 2023Article
- The Impact of Rhythmic Physical Activity on Mental Health and Quality of Life in Older Adults with and without Cognitive Impairment: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of clinical medicine · 2023Review
- Receptive and participatory arts engagement and subsequent healthy aging: Evidence from the Health and Retirement Study.Social science & medicine (1982) · 2023Article
- Psychometric Analysis of the Modified Differential Emotions Scale and the Six-Item Life Orientation Test-Revised in a Cohort of Older Women from the Women's Health Initiative.Journal of women's health (2002) · 2023Article
- The Impact of Dance Movement Interventions on Psychological Health in Older Adults without Dementia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Brain sciences · 2023Review
- Positive Psychology Interventions in Medical Populations: Critical Issues in Intervention Development, Testing, and Implementation.Affective science · 2023Review
- Effects of Wisdom on Mental Health in Old Age: Exploring the Pathways Through Developmental Tasks Attainment and Self-Rated Health.Psychology research and behavior management · 2023Article
- Optimism, lifestyle, and longevity in a racially diverse cohort of women.Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · 2022Article
- The Association of Dispositional Optimism and Pessimism With Cardiovascular Disease Events in Older Adults: A Prospective Cohort Study.Journal of aging and health · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Mounting evidence indicates that there are specific associations between higher levels of optimism and healthier behaviors, reduced risk of chronic diseases, and lower mortality. Yet, for public health purposes, it is critical to consider how optimism might be related to a full scope of health conditions in aging-from cognitive to physical health. Using prospective data from the Health and Retirement Study (n = 5,698), we examined whether higher baseline optimism was associated with subsequent increased likelihood of maintaining healthy aging over 6-8 years of follow-up. Optimism was assessed at study baseline (2006 or 2008), and components of healthy aging were assessed every 2 years, defined as: 1) remaining free of major chronic diseases; 2) having no cognitive impairment; and 3) good physical functioning. Hazard ratios were obtained using Cox proportional hazards models, and a range of relevant covariates were considered (sociodemographic factors, depressive symptoms, and health behaviors). After adjusting for sociodemographic factors and depression, the most (top quartile) versus least (bottom quartile) optimistic participants had a 24% increased likelihood of maintaining healthy aging (95% CI: 1.11, 1.38). Further adjustment for health behaviors did not meaningfully change the findings. Optimism, a potentially modifiable health asset, merits further research for its potential to improve likelihood of health in aging.
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.