ArticleHealth promotion and chronic disease prevention in Canada : research, policy and practice2023
Social isolation, loneliness and positive mental health among older adults in Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Article in Health promotion and chronic disease prevention in Canada : research, policy and practice, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.
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Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed.
- Identifying social prescribing core outcomes using a Delphi approach: findings and future directions.Health promotion and chronic disease prevention in Canada : research, policy and practice · 2026Article
- The role of activity engagement, social connection, and masculinity norms in men's shed outcomes for male mental health: a narrative review.Frontiers in public health · 2026Review
- Factors associated with psychological well-being among older adults attending daycare centers of Kathmandu, Nepal: a cross-sectional path-analytical study.BMC geriatrics · 2025Article
- Effect of COVID-19 on hematological parameters and subsequent risk of anemia and bleeding in middle-aged and elderly patients with type 2 diabetes.Journal of family medicine and primary care · 2025Article
- Coping and positive mental health in Canada among youth and adults: findings from a population-based nationally representative survey.Health promotion and chronic disease prevention in Canada : research, policy and practice · 2025Article
- COVID-19 and Mental Distress and Well-Being Among Older People: A Gender Analysis in the First and Last Year of the Pandemic and in the Post-Pandemic Period.Geriatrics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- General self-efficacy, not musculoskeletal health, was associated with social isolation and loneliness in older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic: findings from the Hertfordshire Cohort Study.Aging clinical and experimental research · 2024Article
- Associations between negative COVID-19 experiences and symptoms of anxiety and depression: a study based on a representative Canadian national sample.Health promotion and chronic disease prevention in Canada : research, policy and practice · 2024Article
- COVID-19 and social distancing: pandemic has altered social relationships and contacts in older adults over 4 years.Frontiers in public health · 2024Article
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5 authors.
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Abstract
introductionSocial isolation and loneliness are associated with poorer mental health among older adults. However, less is known about how these experiences are independently associated with positive mental health (PMH) during the COVID-19 pandemic.
methodsWe analyzed data from the 2020 and 2021 cycles of the Survey on COVID-19 and Mental Health to provide estimates of social isolation (i.e. living alone), loneliness and PMH outcomes (i.e. high self-rated mental health, high community belonging, mean life satisfaction) in the overall older adult population (i.e. 65+ years) and across sociodemographic groups. We also conducted logistic and linear regressions to separately and simultaneously examine how social isolation and loneliness are associated with PMH.
resultsNearly 3 in 10 older adults reported living alone, and over a third reported feelings of loneliness due to the pandemic. When examined separately, living alone and loneliness were each associated with lower PMH. When assessed simultaneously, loneliness remained a significant independent factor associated with all three PMH outcomes (overall and across all sociodemographic groups), but living alone was only a significant factor for high community belonging in the overall population, for males and for those aged 65 to 74 years.
conclusionOverall, social isolation and loneliness were associated with poorer wellbeing among older adults in Canada during the pandemic. Loneliness remained a significant factor related to all PMH outcomes after adjusting for social isolation, but not vice versa. The findings highlight the need to appropriately identify and support lonely older adults during (and beyond) the pandemic.
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