The Sense of Mastery as a Mediator and Moderator in the Association Between Economic Hardship and Health in Late Life

Abstract

This study examines the ways in which the sense of mastery modifies the association between economic hardship experienced at different life stages and late-life depression, anxiety, and physical symptoms. Using data from a sample of 1,167 older adults, ordinary least squares regression techniques were used to estimate the main and mastery-contingent effects of economic hardship. Results underscore the dual role of the sense of mastery in the stress process. First, mastery mediates the effects of both earlier- and later-life economic hardships on elders' current physical and mental health. Second, mastery moderates the health impact of economic hardship, although those patterns depend on the period of economic hardship and health outcome. Integrating the stress process model and a life course perspective, the authors argue that to fully understand protective capacity of psychosocial resources, stressors encountered at different life stages should be taken into account.