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Biomedical subjects

M A Okun

Publications and source records attributed to M A Okun.

15 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

A comparison of office and adult day care center older volunteers: social-psychological and demographic differences.

Numerous researchers have compared older adults who volunteer with those who do not volunteer on several demographic variables. In contrast, in the present study we compared older adults (minimum age = 55 years old) who volunteered to work for a community organization at an office or in a day care center on social-psychological and demographic predictors. It was hypothesized that day care center volunteers would have higher scores than office volunteers on sympathy, role taking, and self-based salience of volunteer role (i.e., personal identity). In addition, office volunteers were expected to have higher scores than day care center volunteers on other-based salience of volunteer role (i.e., social identity). Discriminant function analysis indicated that day care center volunteers were higher than office volunteers on sympathy whereas office volunteers were higher than day care center volunteers on educational attainment, involvement in clubs and organizations, and role taking.

Aged↗
PubMed1990

A meta-analysis of subjective well-being interventions among elders.

This meta-analysis demonstrated that interventions have a significant (p less than .05) immediate posttreatment influence on elders' subjective well-being but that their beneficial effect dissipates within 1 month. For 28 effect sizes derived from immediate posttreatment occasions (delay = 0 days), the median value was 0.67. Immediate posttreatment effect sizes for control enhancement (M = 1.12), psychoeducational (M = 0.70), and social activity (M = 0.66) treatments were significantly (p less than .05) above zero and not significantly different from each other. In contrast, for 17 effect sizes derived from delayed posttest occasions (delay greater than 0 days), the median value was 0.07. For effect sizes extracted from studies with both an immediate and a delayed posttest, the mean decrease over a 30-day period was 1.02.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1990

Negative daily events, positive and negative social ties, and psychological distress among older adults.

This study examined whether positive and negative social ties moderate the effects of negative daily events on psychological distress of 110 community-dwelling elders age 60-89. In accord with the stress-buffering hypothesis, the effect of negative daily events on psychological distress significantly (p less than .05) decreased as positive social ties increased. Contrary to the stress-amplifying hypothesis, negative social ties did not interact with negative daily events to influence psychological distress, but instead, had a significant (p less than .01) additive effect on it.

Aged↗
PubMed1989

Positive and negative social ties among older adults: measurement models and the prediction of psychological distress and well-being.

The factor structure of positive and negative social ties was studied among 246 older adults who were either recently physically disabled, recently conjugally bereaved, or matched controls. Covariance structure analyses were carried out on a network measure to determine whether positive and negative social ties represent independent domains of social experience, and to assess the degree to which their structure is invariant across groups undergoing major loss transitions. Positive and negative social ties were found to be independent and there was substantial similarity in their factor structure across the three groups. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that, whereas positive social ties were related to psychological well-being, negative social ties were predictive of both psychological well-being and distress. These results demonstrate the importance of assessing both positive and negative ties in explaining the psychological adjustment of older adults.

Affective Symptoms↗
PubMed1989

Life stress and lymphocyte alterations among patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

The relation between life stress and immune parameters was investigated for 33 female rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients interviewed during three routine monthly clinic checkups. Life stress from major and minor events, coping efficacy, and self-reported psychological distress were assessed, and immunofluorescence of T-cells and B-cells was performed on the blood drawn during each visit. Small stressful events were positively related to the proportion of circulating B-cells, psychological distress was inversely related to proportion of circulating T-cells, and major life events were associated with lower T-helper/T-suppressor cell ratios.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1986

Structure of subjective well-being among the elderly.

This article interprets subjective well-being within the framework of cognitive theories of emotion. A model consisting of three recurrent components of expressions of well-being--positive affect, negative affect, and cognition--was compared with two variations of models proposed by Liang. Drawing two random samples of persons with minimum age equal to 65 from the Myth and Reality of Aging in America Survey, lisrel analyses were undertaken on 17 items from the Affect Balance Scale and the Life Satisfaction Index Form A. All models provided an acceptable fit as indicated by ratios of chi-square to degrees of freedom. Implications are noted for the conceptualization and study of subjective well-being.

Affect↗
PubMed1978

Cautiousness and verbal learning in adulthood.

Twenty-two young (age 17-21)and 22 old (age 60-74) men and women participated in an investigation designed to determine the extent to which age differences in omission errors and performance in a serial learning task are accounted for by cautiousness. Age differences were found on the measures of cautiousness, and verbal learning, with young adults making more correct responses and proportionately fewer omission errors on the learning task and taking greater risks on the risk-taking tasks. The results indicated that cautiousness measures accounted for age differences in omission errors but not in performance.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1977

Sex differences in serial learning for aged persons with high verbal ability.

Serial rote learning was examined in men and women with high verbal ability aged 60-74 years. No sex differences were found in total errors, commission errors, or omissions errors. The results are in accord with the findings reported in a study by Wilkie and Eisdorfer (1977) and suggest that high verval ability may, in part, mediate sex differences in serial learning.

Aged↗
PubMed1977

Cautiousness in adulthood as a function of age and payoff structure.

Eighteen young (mean age = 21.50; SD = 2.23) and 18 older (mean age = 68.17; SD = 3.13) adults participated in a vocabulary task involving varying degrees of risk with a payoff structure that varied either directly or inversely with risk. In contrast to prior research using constant payoff structures, the results did not indicate that older adults are more cautious than young adults. Further, for both age groups, risk-taking is a function of payoff structure. The data clearly question the generalization that the elderly are more cautious than young adults and suggest that risk, as a concept, should not be considered independently of payoff.

Adult↗
PubMed1976

Misuse of analysis of covariance in aging research revisited.

Storandt and Hudson's treatment of the issue of which general linear model technique is preferable to use when age effects are confounded is misleading. Contrary to their position that hierarchical ANOVA or step-wise multiple regression is superior to ANCOVA, it is demonstrated, using hypothetical data, that identical amounts of variance can be explained by ANCOVA relative to hierarchical ANOVA and multiple regression. Multiple regression is recommended as the most appropriate technique for a variety of pragmatic reasons concerning calculation of significance tests, the distinction between gross and net effects, and the choice of the metric used in measurement.

Adult↗
PubMed1976

Cautiousness in adulthood as a function of age and instructions.

Forty-eight younger (average CA = 21.71, SD = 3.58) and older (average CA = 69.31, SD = 3.84) males participated in a vocabulary task involving varying degrees of risk under neutral, supportive, and challenging instructions. The results indicated that older adults were more cautious than younger adults. Moreover, they selected tasks at which they would have higher probabilities of success; relative to their younger counterparts, they were less likely to raise their level of aspiration following success. No effect of instructions on cautiousness was found for either age group. The results were interpreted as indicative of the significant age differences in the achievement motivational dispositions of the groups. The findings suggest that older adults choose relatively easy tasks as a means of protecting themselves from engaging in self-evaluation of important ability dimensions.

Achievement↗