Abstract
Visual Impairment and Valued Social Activity in Older U.S. Adults
Shu Xu, PhD, Research Fellow, Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan
Visual impairment (VI), a decline in the physiologic function of the visual system,1 impacts myriad aspects of daily life for older adults. Visual health influences cognition, physical function and falls, independence, and economic wellbeing. Social participation has been found to be related to better functional skills, well-being, health-related quality of life, and survival.2 According to the motivational theory of life-span development,3 older adults with VI may reduce or cease engagement in social activities to avoid discomfort and may downgrade the importance of some activities that are no longer performed as a means of maintaining congruence between their activity values and behaviors.4-5 While studies have shown that older adults with VI experience greater restriction of social participation,6 the relationship between VI and social activity preferences and activity participation is not well-understood. Moreover, because both use of public transportation and driving pose unique challenges for individuals with VI7, the impact of VI on social participation and perceptions of value of activities may be magnified in rural spaces relative to non-rural settings. Yet studies to date have not explored whether the VI-social participation relationship varies in rural versus other settings.
This project will compare gaps in social participation between those with and without VI, while also examining rural-urban differences in the VI-social participation relationship. We will use data from the 2021-2024 National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) to examine cross-sectional and longitudinal associations. NHATS is the only national study of U.S. older adults that includes annual objective measures of visual function.