Shielded by Education? The Buffering Role of Education in the Relationships Between Changes in Mental Health and Physical Functioning Through Time Among Older Europeans

Jason Settels

doi:10.1177/07334648241271993

Shielded by Education? The Buffering Role of Education in the Relationships Between Changes in Mental Health and Physical Functioning Through Time Among Older Europeans

Jason Settels^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review

Abstract

This study investigated among older Europeans how physical function limitations lead to depressive symptoms and reductions in quality of life and well-being, and vice-versa. Further examined was how years of education moderate these relationships. These objectives were pursued using a sample of Europeans aged 50+ years (N = 46,492) within waves 5 (2013) and 6 (2015) of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe. The analyses employed conditional change multilevel mixed-effects linear regressions. Mental health was found to affect physical function limitations, and vice-versa. More education significantly reduced only how earlier mental health problems lead to later physical function limitations, plausibly because of the former’s higher controllability. Thus highlighted are education-linked psychosocial resources’ protective effects.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	351-363
Number of pages	13
Journal	Journal of Applied Gerontology
Volume	44
Issue number	3
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1177/07334648241271993
Publication status	Published - Mar 2025
Externally published	Yes

Keywords

depressive symptoms
education
physical function limitations
quality of life
stress process

Access to Document

10.1177/07334648241271993Licence: CC BY-NC

Cite this

@article{1d307f44514f48468b0e236a9c58122d,

title = "Shielded by Education? The Buffering Role of Education in the Relationships Between Changes in Mental Health and Physical Functioning Through Time Among Older Europeans",

abstract = "This study investigated among older Europeans how physical function limitations lead to depressive symptoms and reductions in quality of life and well-being, and vice-versa. Further examined was how years of education moderate these relationships. These objectives were pursued using a sample of Europeans aged 50+ years (N = 46,492) within waves 5 (2013) and 6 (2015) of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe. The analyses employed conditional change multilevel mixed-effects linear regressions. Mental health was found to affect physical function limitations, and vice-versa. More education significantly reduced only how earlier mental health problems lead to later physical function limitations, plausibly because of the former{\textquoteright}s higher controllability. Thus highlighted are education-linked psychosocial resources{\textquoteright} protective effects.",

keywords = "depressive symptoms, education, physical function limitations, quality of life, stress process",

author = "Jason Settels",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} The Author(s) 2024.",

year = "2025",

month = mar,

doi = "10.1177/07334648241271993",

language = "English",

volume = "44",

pages = "351--363",

journal = "Journal of Applied Gerontology",

issn = "0733-4648",

publisher = "SAGE Publications Inc.",

number = "3",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - Shielded by Education? The Buffering Role of Education in the Relationships Between Changes in Mental Health and Physical Functioning Through Time Among Older Europeans

AU - Settels, Jason

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © The Author(s) 2024.

PY - 2025/3

Y1 - 2025/3

N2 - This study investigated among older Europeans how physical function limitations lead to depressive symptoms and reductions in quality of life and well-being, and vice-versa. Further examined was how years of education moderate these relationships. These objectives were pursued using a sample of Europeans aged 50+ years (N = 46,492) within waves 5 (2013) and 6 (2015) of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe. The analyses employed conditional change multilevel mixed-effects linear regressions. Mental health was found to affect physical function limitations, and vice-versa. More education significantly reduced only how earlier mental health problems lead to later physical function limitations, plausibly because of the former’s higher controllability. Thus highlighted are education-linked psychosocial resources’ protective effects.

AB - This study investigated among older Europeans how physical function limitations lead to depressive symptoms and reductions in quality of life and well-being, and vice-versa. Further examined was how years of education moderate these relationships. These objectives were pursued using a sample of Europeans aged 50+ years (N = 46,492) within waves 5 (2013) and 6 (2015) of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe. The analyses employed conditional change multilevel mixed-effects linear regressions. Mental health was found to affect physical function limitations, and vice-versa. More education significantly reduced only how earlier mental health problems lead to later physical function limitations, plausibly because of the former’s higher controllability. Thus highlighted are education-linked psychosocial resources’ protective effects.

KW - depressive symptoms

KW - education

KW - physical function limitations

KW - quality of life

KW - stress process

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85201961640

UR - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39171516/

U2 - 10.1177/07334648241271993

DO - 10.1177/07334648241271993

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85201961640

SN - 0733-4648

VL - 44

SP - 351

EP - 363

JO - Journal of Applied Gerontology

JF - Journal of Applied Gerontology

IS - 3

ER -

Shielded by Education? The Buffering Role of Education in the Relationships Between Changes in Mental Health and Physical Functioning Through Time Among Older Europeans

Abstract

Keywords

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this