Bajaj-Mahajan, Amoha
(2019)
The Longitudinal Association of Social Relationship Characteristics With Circulating Markers of Inflammation and Potential Mechanisms in Healthy Older Adults.
Doctoral Dissertation, University of Pittsburgh.
(Unpublished)
This is the latest version of this item.
Abstract
A large body of literature has established an association of social relationship characteristics with premature mortality and recent evidence suggests that systemic inflammation may mediate this association. However, the literature examining the link between social relationships and inflammation using healthy samples is limited by 1) the use of cross-sectional designs, 2) few methodologically rigorous longitudinal studies, 3) cursory measures of social relationships, and 4) failure to explore mechanisms accounting for any significant effects. To address these limitations, the current study used growth curve modeling to test the prospective association of perceived support, social integration, and marital satisfaction with the rate of change of inflammatory biomarkers, CRP and IL-6 in healthy, older adults. In the case of any significant effects, the study planned to test interpersonal (i.e. social interactions), affective (i.e. positive/negative affect), and behavioral (i.e. obesity, smoking, sleep duration) variables as mechanisms of overall effects using mediation analyses. Questionnaire measures of social integration, perceived social support, and marital satisfaction were collected at baseline, inflammatory biomarkers and health behaviors (with the exception of sleep duration) were measured at all 3 time-points, and social interaction characteristics and affect were measured using ecological momentary assessment (EMA) at baseline and 6-year follow up. Results showed no significant prospective association of social integration, perceived support, or marital quality with the rate of change in IL-6 and CRP over a 6-year period. Additionally, perceived social support did not buffer the deleterious effect of chronic stress on the longitudinal changes in these biomarkers. Given lack of direct effects, longitudinal mediation analyses were not pursued. Exploratory analyses testing social interactions as independent predictors of the longitudinal changes in IL-6 and CRP showed that higher frequency of negative interactions with a spouse in daily life was associated with higher initial levels of IL-6, adding to the body of work examining the link between marital quality and inflammation. The non-significant prospective associations in the main analyses may, in large part, be due to the lack of power in the current study, as well as due to homogeneity in social behavior and health characteristics in this sample.
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Details
| Item Type: |
University of Pittsburgh ETD
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| Status: |
Unpublished |
| Creators/Authors: |
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| ETD Committee: |
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| Date: |
24 September 2019 |
| Date Type: |
Publication |
| Defense Date: |
12 June 2018 |
| Approval Date: |
24 September 2019 |
| Submission Date: |
22 August 2018 |
| Access Restriction: |
No restriction; Release the ETD for access worldwide immediately. |
| Number of Pages: |
160 |
| Institution: |
University of Pittsburgh |
| Schools and Programs: |
Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences > Psychology |
| Degree: |
PhD - Doctor of Philosophy |
| Thesis Type: |
Doctoral Dissertation |
| Refereed: |
Yes |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: |
Social Relationships
Inflammation |
| Date Deposited: |
24 Sep 2019 20:07 |
| Last Modified: |
24 Sep 2019 20:07 |
| URI: |
http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/35247 |
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The Longitudinal Association of Social Relationship Characteristics With Circulating Markers of Inflammation and Potential Mechanisms in Healthy Older Adults. (deposited 24 Sep 2019 20:07)
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