Life satisfaction and awareness of meaningful activities among middle-aged adults: A population-based study

Association Between Occupational Participation and Quality of Life in Japanese Older Adults

Positive associations between occupational participation and quality of life (QoL) are known in various populations, but there are few reports in older adults in Japan. To quantify the association between occupational participation in meaningful occupations and QoL among Japanese community-dwelling older adults. A self-administered questionnaire was sent to 626 older adults. QoL was assessed using the World Health Organization (WHO)-five well-being index, and occupational participation in meaningful occupations was measured with the self-administered occupational performance index. The association between occupational participation and QoL was analyzed. Among 367 participants, significant associations were found between occupational participation in meaningful occupations and QoL. In addition, participants with lower QoL exhibited lower levels of occupational participation in occupational control, occupational balance, and satisfaction of performance domains. There is a positive association between occupational participation and QoL among Japanese older adults. Occupational therapists should prioritize occupational participation to support the well-being of older adults.

Averting older adults' memory function decline via meaningful activities: a follow-up longitudinal study

PURPOSE

The purpose of the study was to investigate the effects of satisfaction with meaningful activities and their performance on the memory function among community-dwelling older adults 3 years later.

METHODS

A longitudinal analysis was conducted on 288 community-dwelling older adults aged 65 years and more who had completed the survey in 2019 and 2022 as participants in the Tarumizu Study. Meaningful activities were assessed in 2019 using the Aid for Decision-Making in Occupation Choice for activities. Satisfaction with and performance of meaningful activities were assessed, and the bottom 25% were classified into two groups: low satisfaction and low performance. Memory function was assessed using the National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology-Functional Assessment Tool in 2019 and 2022. Changes in memory function over 3 years were analyzed by satisfaction and performance of meaningful activities.

RESULTS

Two-way analysis of variance with group (satisfaction with and performance of meaningful activities) and time (2019 and 2022) as factors showed no statistically significant group-time interaction for memory in the satisfaction with meaningful activities group (F = 1.4, p = 0.24). Meanwhile, a statistically significant group-time interaction was observed for memory in the meaningful activity performance group, indicating that high performance of meaningful activities may play a protective role against memory decline (F = 7.4, p = 0.007).

CONCLUSION

Higher performance of meaningful activities may protect against age-related changes in memory. A careful assessment of meaningful activities, and engagement that enhances performance may be useful in designing health support against memory decline.