EXAMINING THE LONGITUDINAL INFLUENCE OF THE PHYSICAL AND SOCIAL ENVIRONMENTS ON SOCIAL ISOLATION AND COGNIT…

Assistance award details

Assistance award identifier

ASST_NON_K00AG068492_075

FAIN

K00AG068492

Recipient

OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY

Awarding agency

Department of Health and Human Services

Funding agency

Department of Health and Human Services

Assistance listing (CFDA)

93.866

Total obligated

$344,842

Period

Sep 15, 2021 – Aug 31, 2026

Fiscal year

2022

Place of performance state

OR

Source file

FY2022_All_Assistance_Full_20261006.zip

Description

EXAMINING THE LONGITUDINAL INFLUENCE OF THE PHYSICAL AND SOCIAL ENVIRONMENTS ON SOCIAL ISOLATION AND COGNITIVE HEALTH: CONTEXTUALIZING THE ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY - PROJECT SUMMARY SOCIAL WELLBEING AND COGNITIVE HEALTH ARE TWO PILLARS OF SUCCESSFUL AGING, AND THEY ARE INTERRELATED. THREE DECADES OF RESEARCH HAVE CONSISTENTLY SHOWN THAT SOCIAL ISOLATION IS ASSOCIATED WITH DECLINES IN COGNITIVE FUNCTIONING. ALTHOUGH EXISTING LITERATURE HAS EXPLORED THE INDIVIDUAL-LEVEL RISK AND PROTECTIVE FACTORS, RESEARCHERS' ATTENTION HAS BEEN LESS PAID TO THE EXTENT TO WHICH PHYSICAL AND SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE LIVING ENVIRONMENT AFFECT SOCIAL ISOLATION AND COGNITIVE HEALTH. THE ECOLOGICAL THEORY OF AGING (ETA) POSITS ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS HAVE SIGNIFICANT INFLUENCES ON HEALTH AND SOCIAL WELLBEING. NEGATIVE PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE ENVIRONMENT WERE HYPOTHESIZED TO BE RELATED TO INCREASED SOCIAL ISOLATION AND COGNITIVE DECLINE LONGITUDINALLY. AN INCREASING AMOUNT OF RESEARCH INVESTIGATED THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN ICT USE AND SOCIAL ISOLATION, YET WHETHER ICT USE WOULD INTERACT WITH THE EFFECT OF ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS ON THE RISK OF SOCIAL ISOLATION HAS NOT YET BEEN EMPIRICALLY TESTED. BESIDES, THE INFLUENCE OF ICT USE ON COGNITIVE HEALTH HAS NOT BEEN WELL UNDERSTOOD. PROMOTING SOCIAL INTERACTION USING TECHNOLOGY-BASED APPROACHES HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO ALLEVIATE SOCIAL ISOLATION AMONG OLDER PEOPLE AND PREVENT COGNITIVE DECLINE. THE PROPOSED DISSERTATION WORK (F99) WILL EXAMINE THE EFFECT OF PHYSICAL AND SOCIAL ENVIRONMENTS OF LIVING ON SOCIAL ISOLATION AND COGNITIVE HEALTH. THE EFFECTS OF ICT USE WILL BE INVESTIGATED WITHIN LIVING CONTEXTS. MULTI-LEVEL MODELING AND STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELING METHODS WILL BE EMPLOYED TO CONDUCT SECONDARY DATA ANALYSIS USING DATA FROM THE NATIONAL HEALTH & AGING TREND STUDY (NHATS) WAVE 5 TO 9. THE POSTDOCTORAL STAGE (K00) IS GUIDED BY THE OVERARCHING AIM OF BUILDING KNOWLEDGE ON THE BEHAVIORAL AND CONTEXTUAL PATHWAYS THAT COULD EXPLAIN THE ASS