Community Engagement: An Essential Component of Well-Being in Older African-American Adults

Active engagement in life is a critical factor for successful aging. Research indicates that community engagement is strongly associated with health and well-being in late life. However, less is understood regarding the influence of neighborhood conditions on health and well-being, particularly in older African-American adults. The current study describes a convenience sample of older African Americans (N = 501, mean age = 70.7 [range 55–95] years) living in Detroit. The specific goal is to examine the relationships between their perceptions of neighborhood conditions, level of community engagement, and their health and well-being. Survey findings reveal a sample of highly engaged older African Americans in reasonable health who perceive their neighborhoods favorably. Regression analysis results indicate that community engagement is closely associated with both neighborhood perceptions and well-being in this sample. We propose that community engagement or “participation” mediates the relationship between neighborhood conditions and well-being for older African Americans living in Detroit.

[1]  Ming Wen,et al.  Objective and perceived neighborhood environment, individual SES and psychosocial factors, and self-rated health: an analysis of older adults in Cook County, Illinois. , 2006, Social science & medicine.

[2]  Y. Stern,et al.  Acculturation, Reading Level, and Neuropsychological Test Performance Among African American Elders , 2004, Applied neuropsychology.

[3]  M. Lawton,et al.  The dynamics of caregiving for a demented elder among black and white families. , 1992, Journal of gerontology.

[4]  E. Laumann,et al.  The Social Connectedness of Older Adults: A National Profile , 2008, American sociological review.

[5]  M. Powell Lawton,et al.  Ecology and the aging process. , 1973 .

[6]  D. Roth,et al.  Latent growth models of the longitudinal effects of dementia caregiving: a comparison of African American and White family caregivers. , 2001, Psychology and aging.

[7]  A. Rawls,et al.  Interaction orders of drug dealing spaces: local orders of sensemaking in a poor black American place , 2012 .

[8]  T. Fulmer,et al.  Successful aging. , 2002, The American journal of nursing.

[9]  F. Baum,et al.  Australian Aboriginal Urban Residents’ Satisfaction with Living in Their Neighbourhood: Perceptions of the Neighbourhood Socio-cultural Environment and Individual Socio-demographic Factors , 2012 .

[10]  S. Stark.  Creating Disability in the Home: The role of environmental barriers in the United States , 2001 .

[11]  Rex L. Cannon,et al.  Resiliency and Optimism: An African American Senior Citizen’s Perspective , 2011 .

[12]  B. Mast,et al.  Cerebrovascular Risk Factors and Depressed Mood in Inner City Older Adults , 2003 .

[13]  Mai Stafford,et al.  How do objective and subjective assessments of neighbourhood influence social and physical functioning in older age? Findings from a British survey of ageing. , 2007, Social science & medicine.

[14]  N. Krause.  Neighborhood deterioration, religious coping, and changes in health during late life. , 1998, The Gerontologist.

[15]  R. Crum,et al.  Neighborhood environment and opportunity to use cocaine and other drugs in late childhood and early adolescence. , 1996, Drug and alcohol dependence.

[16]  Susanne Iwarsson,et al.  The home environment and disability-related outcomes in aging individuals: what is the empirical evidence? , 2008, The Gerontologist.

[17]  E Shapiro,et al.  Self-rated health: a predictor of mortality among the elderly. , 1982, American journal of public health.

[18]  J. Rowe,et al.  Successful aging. , 1998, Aging.

[19]  C. Lysack,et al.  A Comparison of Self-Rated and Objectively Measured Successful Aging Constructs in an Urban Sample of African American Older Adults , 2011, Clinical gerontologist.

[20]  Gina S Lovasi,et al.  Neighborhood characteristics and disability in older adults. , 2009, The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences.

[21]  Leslie A Perdue,et al.  Neighborhood environment in studies of health of older adults: a systematic review. , 2009, American journal of preventive medicine.

[22]  J. Holt-Lunstad,et al.  Social relationships and mortality risk. , 2010 .

[23]  G. Rowles.  Place and personal identity in old age: observations from Appalachia , 1983 .

[24]  J. Mortimer,et al.  Determinants of a sense of mastery in African American and White older adults. , 2003, The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences.

[25]  W. Strawbridge,et al.  Successful aging and well-being: self-rated compared with Rowe and Kahn. , 2002, The Gerontologist.

[26]  B. Husaini,et al.  Social density, stressors, and depression: gender differences among the black elderly. , 1991, Journal of gerontology.

[27]  John R. Hipp.  What is the ‘Neighbourhood’ in Neighbourhood Satisfaction? Comparing the Effects of Structural Characteristics Measured at the Micro-neighbourhood and Tract Levels , 2010, Urban studies.

[28]  D Davies,et al.  The community integration measure: development and preliminary validation. , 2001, Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation.

[29]  H. Juon,et al.  Effects of social integration on health: A prospective study of community engagement among African American women. , 2011, Social science & medicine.

[30]  Katherine Cross,et al.  Environmental Factors and Their Role in Community Integration after Spinal Cord Injury , 2007 .

[31]  Y. Benyamini,et al.  Self-rated health and mortality: a review of twenty-seven community studies. , 1997, Journal of health and social behavior.

[32]  S. Gravenstein,et al.  Screening for Depression: Single Question versus GDS , 1994, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

[33]  Timothy B. Smith,et al.  Social Relationships and Mortality Risk: A Meta-analytic Review , 2010, PLoS medicine.

[34]  J. Jackson,et al.  Building a registry of research volunteers among older urban African Americans: recruitment processes and outcomes from a community-based partnership. , 2011, The Gerontologist.

[35]  Social networks and health: it’s time for an intervention trial , 2005, Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

[36]  S. Laditka,et al.  Attitudes on Aging Well Among Older African Americans and Whites in South Carolina , 2009, Preventing Chronic Disease.

[37]  J. Cramm,et al.  The importance of neighborhood social cohesion and social capital for the well being of older adults in the community. , 2013, The Gerontologist.

[38]  I. Yen,et al.  Older People and Social Connectedness: How Place and Activities Keep People Engaged , 2012, Journal of aging research.

[39]  A. Bowling,et al.  Do perceptions of neighbourhood environment influence health? Baseline findings from a British survey of aging , 2006, Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

[40]  Anne Boomsma,et al.  Dimensions Of Well-Being And Their Measurement: The Spf-Il Scale , 2005 .

[41]  C. Lysack,et al.  Environmental Press, Aging in Place, and Residential Satisfaction of Urban Older Adults , 2006 .

[42]  J. Neese,et al.  Recruitment and retention of African American elders into community-based research: lessons learned. , 2000, Archives of psychiatric nursing.