Elderly Widows Research Articles

Socio-Economic Status and Living Condition of Widows in Rural Bangladesh

This paper aims to understand the socio-economic status and living conditions of rural widows in Parila Union, Paba Upazila, Rajshahi District, Bangladesh focusing on their socio-cultural deprivation, social security, and community participation. The research covered 16 villages and included social surveys that captured the experiences of 201 widows. Drawing on both qualitative and quantitative data, the study reveals the multifaceted challenges widows face, including social isolation, financial instability, and vulnerability to harassment and criticism. The transition from wifehood to widowhood marks a significant shift in a woman's status within the community, often leading to reduced social participation and economic hardship. The findings indicate that while a majority of widows maintain some degree of community involvement, their participation in social and cultural events diminishes post-widowhood due to stigmatization and financial constraints. The study examines the economic, social, and emotional support systems available to these widows, revealing a lack of comprehensive formal support in Bangladesh, with most assistance coming from family and community members. Many widows lack regular financial support, and the government’s widow allowance is insufficient. The study shows that aged widows, while able to coexist within families, are often excluded from decision-making processes and are deprived of respect and medical facilities, increasing their vulnerability. These socio-economic challenges, including economic deprivation, social subjugation, and humiliation, underscore the critical needs of widows and highlight the necessity for improved support systems to enhance their quality of life. Social and cultural participation diminishes post-widowhood due to stigmatization and financial constraints, while security concerns restrict their mobility, especially at night. Additionally, the study highlights the adverse impact on children of widows, who often suffer from bullying and lack of support. Despite these challenges, some widows exhibit resilience, leveraging community ties for support. The study underscores the urgent need for comprehensive support systems to improve the quality of life for widows in rural Bangladesh, addressing both their economic needs and social reintegration.

Integrity vs Despair: A Phenomenological Study on Filipino Widowed Elderly Lived Experiences

This phenomenological study elucidated the lived experiences of seven Filipino widowed elderly in Bulacan through in-depth interviews. Interpretative phenomenological analysis of transcribed interviews yielded multifaceted insights. Findings revealed three domains that were deemed vital in the study: (1) relationship of the widowed elders with their family; (2) aging experience of widowed elders in relation to widowhood; and (3) perception of widowed elders on dying in relation to widowhood. The participants cherished spousal bonds that provided meaning amidst occasional conflicts. Spousal loss impacted physical health, mental well-being, emotions, and social connections. Participants displayed resilience anchored in familial support, faith, and inner contentment, yet regrets and vulnerabilities persisted during bereavement. Reflections on mortality revealed acceptance of death, valuing familial harmony, and aspiring for loved ones’ well-being. This study offers qualitative insights into nuances, challenges, and sources of strength shaping elderly Filipino bereavement experiences. It contributes to scholarly understanding of marginalized elderly Filipinos’ needs, informing supportive interventions, community engagement, and social welfare policies. Recommendations include strengthening support systems and implementing community elderly programs. Further, research on male elderly and mixed-method approaches would be beneficial. The knowledge produced can guide evidence-based services addressing multifaceted demands in grieving spousal loss amidst aging.

Widowhood status, morbidity, and mortality in India: evidence from a follow-up survey.

A known health effect of widowhood is an increased mortality risk among surviving spouses, with gender- and age-specific observations. While morbidity conditions with socio-economic factors may exacerbate the effect of widowhood on mortality, no research has attempted to predict mortality among the widowed over the married population with the presence of morbidity in India. Thus, the present study concurrently examines marital status and health in the Indian setting, bringing substantial empirical evidence to explore the link between marital status, morbidity, and mortality. The study used prospective data from India Human Development Survey (IHDS) wave 1 (2004-2005) and wave 2 (2011-2012). In total, 82,607 individuals aged 25 years and above were considered for the analysis. To present the preliminary findings, descriptive statistics and bivariate analysis were used. Using multivariable logistic regression, the interaction effect of marital status and morbidity status was estimated to predict the likelihood of mortality. Across all socio-economic groups, widowed individuals reporting any morbidity had a higher mortality proportion than married people. Young widowers with any morbidity are more susceptible to increased mortality. Asthma among young widowers and cardiovascular diseases among elderly widowers significantly elevate the probability of mortality. However, older widowed women with diabetes had a lower probability of mortality than older married women with diabetes. The widowers' disadvantage in mortality and morbidity may be attributable to less care-receiving and the greater incidence of unhealthy lifestyle practices during the post-widowhood period, indicating the need for more research.

PKM Usaha Rumahan Pembuatan Jamu Tradisionil Sebagai Upaya Peningkatan Kualitas Produk

The home business of making traditional herbal medicine carried out by Mrs. Khasi'ah as a Community Service Partner whose address is Jalan Penjaringan 3 no.10 Rungkut Surabaya is a business that was founded 40 years ago. Mrs. Khasia'ah is an elderly widow aged 70 years who is able to live independently by making traditional herbal medicine (beras kencur, sinom, kunir asam, cabe puyang, suruh kunci, sambiloto, mengkudu laos) to be marketed around the village every day. The problem found based on observations from Wak Si''s traditional herbal medicine business was that the equipment for grinding ingredients (kunir, jahe, kunci, kencur, etc.) still used a mashing tool in the form of an ancient mortar which caused the process of making herbal medicine to take a long time. Apart from that, the process of making herbal medicine is that when it is finished boiling, it is placed in a bucket made of old plastic (not suitable from a health perspective). Problems also occur when selling around the village, namely the carts used to sell herbal medicine are rotten and the bottles used for herbal medicine are used mineral water bottles which should not be used again. The solutions offered to overcome Mitra's problems are: procuring a blender to mash the ingredients so that the process of making herbal medicine can be done in a shorter time, procuring an aluminum pan to hold the herbal medicine that has been boiled so that it is suitable from a health perspective, making a cart because the existing cart is already rotting, it's time to replace it. and providing drinking containers as a place for herbal medicine to replace used mineral water bottles so that they are suitable as drink containers. The results obtained from this community service program are that the process of refining herbal medicine raw materials can be done more quickly, the process of making herbal medicine is hygienic, adequate carts for herbal medicine and bottles for storing herbal medicine are suitable.

Motivasi Hidup Lansia Yang Kehilangan Pasangan Di Kabupaten Malang

Elderly is a final human development process that is vulnerable to physical, cognitive, and emotional changes so it is necessary to increase motivation in life. Life motivation can be developed through oneself and family social support, especially partners. If there is no partner as social support, then the elderly can experience a decrease in motivation to live which has an impact on mental health and well-being. This study aims to determine the level of motivation of the elderly who have lost their spouse because their partner has passed away. This study uses Goal Setting Motivation. This research method uses qualitative methods with a phenomenological approach. Methods of data collection using the approach of observation and semi-structured interviews. The number of participants in this study were four people in the category of two elderly widows and two elderly widowers who live in Kabupaten Malang. The results obtained are that motivation in the elderly is based on the existence of children and grandchildren and optimism to live longer.

The long-term impact of HIV/AIDS on socio-economic status: a comparative analysis of households headed by HIV-positive and HIV-negative individuals in Western Kenya

ABSTRACT HIV/AIDS is known to have adverse effects on individual and family socio-economic status due to the loss of productive time and over-expenditure in treatment. However, empirical data on how HIV/AIDS affects households’ socio-economic status are insufficient. We linked socio-economic data from a Health and Demographic Surveillance System (HDSS) that implements an HIV/AIDS Longitudinal bio-behavioural survey (LBBS) to understand the long-term impact of HIV/AIDS on households’ socio-economic status between 2010 and 2018. We compared changes in socio-economic status between households headed by HIV-negative and -positive individuals. A logistic regression was used to assess factors that influence socio-economic status. The level of education and household size were not significant predictors of households’ socio-economic status. Households headed by HIV-positive individuals could maintain their baseline socio-economic status (unadjusted RRR = 1.17, 95% CI: 1.01, 1.36) but improvement chances were reduced despite a non-significant association (unadjusted RRR = 0.98, 95% CI: 0.80, 1.20). While HIV/AIDS is known to disrupt economic growth, in this setting, being a male household head, old and widowed reduces chances of improved socio-economic status. The elderly people, widows and widowers are disadvantaged. Consequently, there is a need for special programmes, which seek to empower the identified vulnerable groups economically. .

Analysis of the Socio-Economic Conditions and Living Arrangements of Aged Widows of Rural Sindh

Abstract This paper presents outcomes of a study that was conducted to assess myriad problems faced by old widows in rural areas of second largest province of Pakistan, Sindh. As already, there is inadequate data on the social, economic and living arrangements of aged widows of Rural Sindh. Through this research survey, gap of information on social, economic, and living arrangements of Sindhi rural aged widows is filled by primary survey data. The sample of 384 Respondents of age 60 and above was chosen by infinite population formula and respondents for collecting data were selected by using convenience sampling technique from the six rural districts of Sindh. Descriptive statistics were applied to analyze data. The results suggest that there is strong preference of son and who is considered as old age protection for aged widows, and even today residing with son is regarded as popular cultural practice in Rural Sindh. The high number of aged widows was economically dependent on their sons. Absence of old age pension, no parallel remuneration and lack of skills in aged widows are some factors which are strongly influencing and creating very severe socio-economic consequences for widows in later age. Also, because of urbanization, the extended family culture is transforming to nuclear family drastically and ultimately, it is affecting largely on the living arrangements of aged widows.

Memory, Trauma and Partition: Reading Sunanda Sikdar’s Dayamoyeer Katha

In recent years the scholastic emphasis on the refugee narratives, which conventionally focused on the loss of lives, homes and resources, is now reimagined as stories of survival and resurrection of people deprived of their homes. Nostalgia for a lost homeland often takes centre stage in refugee narratives. To be physically severed from a space internalised as the safest eternal abode and start afresh is a daunting task. Anchita Ghatak’s translation of Sunanda Sikdar’s Dayamoyeer Katha, A Life Long Ago narrates the life events of Dayamoyee, who chooses to revisit her past, deciding to write about the first ten years of her life in the East Pakistan village of Dighpait following the death of Majamda, a Muslim brotherly figure who sells his cows to come and meet her in India. The return to her childhood’s blissful land unearthed several hidden memories that brought the politics of religion, caste, class, and gender to the forefront. Without paying attention to her aunt’s continuous warnings not to mingle with the Muslim neighbours, Daya found it possible to eat, touch, and have fun with them in her childlike innocence. As the refugees arrive at Dighpait, her aunt remains unwilling to equate them with the native Muslim folk, the ‘bhoomiputra, the “sons of the soil”. Besides the narrator, we also have Snehalata, Daya’s aunt, her foster mother and a child widow. As she narrates how she grieved over the withdrawal of fish and other materialistic pleasures from her daily life rather than her young husband’s demise, we are reminded of the unfair austerity imposed on them in contrast to the elderly widowers who had no restrictions and even remarried occasionally. Characters like Modi bhabi, the woman who lost her mind as her childhood companion Suresh Lahiri left for Hindustan; Mejobhabi, wife of Khalek, who had to be ‘modernised’ to join her husband, now a senior army officer in Pakistan; Sudhirdada, the effeminate male whose murder portrays a show of power in the village, and Gouri, an instance of widow-remarriage needs scholarly attention. The novel further mentions Daya’s mother, the headmistress of a school in Hindustan, and Anita, a leading actress opposite Kishore Kumar, thus representing the educated, empowered women. The very moment of Daya deciding to write about her past is auspicious; it is the moment of finding one’s voice, of illuminating the horrors of the past, and the moment of triumph and healing. Dipesh Chakraborty mentions two aspects of memory: “the sentiment of nostalgia” and the “sense of trauma”, which pervades Dayamoyee’s narrative, but for her, it is equally therapeutic. The proposed paper looks forward to understanding Daya’s notion of her lost motherland and childhood and how the marginalised gender conceptualises home and rootedness. It proposes to analyse the politics of remembering, forgetting and retelling the stories from the point of the female subaltern who consciously buried her past and later chose to speak up, and in the process, portrayed a realistic picture of women during partition.

Je pars de Diary Sow et Cacophonie de Ken Bugul : entre fuite et fugue

Ken Bugul’s and Diary Sow’s novels outline a poetics and an aesthetics of flight as a leitmotif of African women’s writing. The two Senegalese writers convey self-exploration schemes and symbolic itineraries that lead the protagonists, their own alter egos, to liberation. Whether a brilliant young woman full of future promise or a weakening elderly widow, both heroines face the problem of space –inner, Euclidean, sexual, linguistic and maternal–. A space governed by dogmatisms that prevent women from rejoicing in displacement. Cacophonie is the story of a solitude, an errantry and a deconstruction; Je pars is the one of the affirmation of an I-speaker whose utterance is finally aware of its own power.

Prevalence of and Factors Associated with Negative Psychological Symptoms among Elderly Widows Living Alone in a Chinese Remote Sample: A Cross-Sectional Study

(1) Background: Research indicates that most elderly widows are at a high risk of experiencing negative psychological symptoms. It is common for elderly women in rural and remote areas to live alone without family support to cope with stress due to the mass rural-to-urban migration of China’s youth labor force. Such a situation further worsens their psychological health and well-being. However, the prevalence of and risk factors associated with negative psychological symptoms (loneliness, depression, and anxiety) among remote elderly widows living alone in China are currently unclear; (2) Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Hunan Province, China. The loneliness was assessed through the University of California at Los Angeles Loneliness Scale (ULS-8). The depression and anxiety were assessed with the Short Form Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7), respectively. The Chi-square test and correlation analysis were conducted to identify factors associated with negative psychological symptoms. Logistic regression was performed to predict risk and protective factors contributing to loneliness, depression, and anxiety symptoms. The significance level was set as p < 0.05; (3) Results: A total of 271 remote elderly widows living alone were enrolled in the present study. Additionally, 234 valid questionnaires were returned (valid response rate = 86.3%). The prevalence of loneliness, depression and anxiety was 8.1%, 44.0%, and 16.7%, respectively. Acute or chronic medical conditions, marital happiness, being the primary caregiver before widowhood and anticipating the death of the spouse differed significantly in the distribution of negative psychological symptoms. Logistic regression analysis predicted that participants who were satisfied with their marriage had a lower likelihood to experience loneliness, depression, and anxiety (p < 0.05). Being the spouse’s primary caregiver before widowhood was more likely to have symptoms of loneliness (p < 0.01). Those with various acute or chronic medical conditions were more likely to suffer from depression (p < 0.01); (4) Conclusions: Remote elderly widows living alone in China are prone to loneliness, depression, and anxiety symptoms. Being the primary caregiver before widowhood and having many acute or chronic medical conditions are risk factors for loneliness and depression, respectively. Marital happiness is the protective factor against negative psychological symptoms. To accomplish the goal of equitable access to mental health care in China, evidence-based policy and resource development to support psycho-social interventions that prevent and manage negative psychological symptoms for remote elderly widows living alone are urgently needed.

Neuroinflammation and neovascularization in diabetic eye diseases (DEDs): identification of potential pharmacotherapeutic targets.

The goal of this review is to increase public knowledge of the etiopathogenesis of diabetic eye diseases (DEDs), such as diabetic retinopathy (DR) and ocular angiosarcoma (ASO), and the likelihood of blindness among elderly widows. A widow's life in North India, in general, is fraught with peril because of the economic and social isolation it brings, as well as the increased risk of death from heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, depression, and dementia. Neovascularization, neuroinflammation, and edema in the ocular tissue are hallmarks of the ASO, a rare form of malignant tumor. When diabetes, hypertension, and aging all contribute to increased oxidative stress, the DR can proceed to ASO. Microglia in the retina of the optic nerve head are responsible for causing inflammation, discomfort, and neurodegeneration. Those that come into contact with them will get blind as a result of this. Advanced glycation end products (AGE), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), protein kinase C (PKC), poly-ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP), metalloproteinase9 (MMP9), nuclear factor kappaB (NFkB), program death ligand1 (PDL-1), factor VIII (FVIII), and von Willebrand factor (VWF) are potent agents for ocular neovascularisation (ONV), neuroinflammation and edema in the ocular tissue. AGE/VEGF, DAG/PKC, PARP/NFkB, RAS/VEGF, PDL-1/PD-1, VWF/FVIII/VEGF, and RAS/VEGF are all linked to the pathophysiology of DEDs. The interaction between ONV and ASO is mostly determined by the VWF/FVIII/VEGF and PDL-1/PD-1 axis. This study focused on retinoprotective medications that can pass the blood-retinal barrier and cure DEDs, as well as the factors that influence the etiology of neovascularization and neuroinflammation in the eye.

Comparing the impact of social support on the life satisfaction of widowed and non-widowed elders.

To compare differences in life satisfaction between widowed and non-widowed elders based on social support. A total of 4,560 widowed and 3,655 non-widowed elders were selected from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS-2018). Ordinal logistic regression models and t-tests were performed using SPSS v20. Both widowed and non-widowed elders had high levels of life satisfaction. Personal characteristics had a significant impact on the life satisfaction of both widowed and non-widowed elders. Endowment insurance, social trust, residence, self-rated health, and living with family had a significant impact on the life satisfaction of widowed elders (p < 0.001), while endowment insurance, government subsidy, and self-rated health significantly impacted non-widowed elders (p < 0.001). Self-rated health had the greatest impact on the life satisfaction of widowed and non-widowed elders (OR = 4.62/4.45), followed by endowment insurance (OR = 1.24/1.32). Social support can significantly improve life satisfaction, but its impact is heterogeneous. Informal social support plays a greater role in improving the life satisfaction of widowed elders, but formal social support plays a greater role in the life satisfaction of non-widowed elders.

Naiste patschker, meeste kapca. Lõuna-Ungari saksa vähemuse käsitsi kootud jalakatted / Women’s patschker and men’s kapca. The hand-knitted hosiery and footwear of the German minority in Southern Hungary

The present study deals with the traditional knitted hosiery and footwear of the German minority living along the river Danube (Danube Swabians) in Southern Hungary.&#x0D; The national costume worn by the ethnic Germans who had settled in East-Central Europe in the 18th century had changed significantly by the 20th century in ways that differed from the changes that had taken place in clothing in Germany itself. The garments worn by populations coming from the various German provinces were unified in a way analogous to linguistic levelling, and by the 19th century they corresponded to the multiethnic (Hungarian, Southern Slavic, German) dimensions of their local culture. As a result of the bourgeois transformation and the emergence of industrialized production following the emancipation of the serfs (in the mid- to late 1800s), men’s clothing lost its ethnic and folk style more quickly, while women’s clothing retained its distinctive peasant character right up until the Second World War. The pattern of a woman’s knitted slippers (tutyi/patshcker) gave away the settlement she belonged to (the women varied their local patterns), her denomination (e.g., the Lutherans and Calvinists left the heels and sides plain, while in the case of the Catholics these parts were patterned), her age (young girls wore brightly colored knitted slippers, married women wore slightly darker colors, elderly women wore dark colors, while elderly widows wore black), and possibly her financial position.&#x0D; Footwear changed more slowly than other items of folk costume, and German efforts towards self-sufficiency played a major role in this. The kapca, or foot wraps, which had formerly been worn externally, were gradually simplified into knitted woolen socks that were worn under civilian-style trousers, while women’s stockings had been shortened to ankle-high tutyis by the 19th century. Although these items, which were specific to ethnicity, denomination, and age, fell out of use after the Second World War, women actively maintained their knitting skills, regularly producing simple items from the available materials for use at home or on their household farms during the decades of Socialism.&#x0D; The phenomenon of visits home by relatives who had resettled in Germany, known as “nostalgia tourism”, as well as changing local community and state representation initiatives, led to the revival of tutyi making. As a result, individuals and communities are strongly attached to their own local patterns and the related antique objects, while there is growing demand among locals – as well as urban intellectuals – for knitting courses and workshops. The production of tutyis primarily for use in folk dance performances and representative events during the past decade, is currently undergoing transformation and is occasionally even marred by conflicts. Although the “specialized” production of these slippers, which remains active today, is carried out by a limited number of people, questions regarding the use and representative function of the items are typically addressed to members of the wider minority community as well.&#x0D; Keywords: hand knitting, footwear, wool, Southern Hungary, German minority

Exploring Resilience among Elderly Widows in Nepal

Many traditional societies still lack a strong social security systems for the elderly people. They generally view elderly people living with family as dependent on the family structure for social support, health and wellbeing. However, widows lack privileges and protection even when they live in traditional joint families, with at least one child and grandchildren. In reality, their resilience plays a significant role in their health and wellbeing as they age. To identify research gap about resilience among elderly widows, this study assessed the situation of 25 elderly widows aged 65 and above residing with their families in Kathmandu district , Nepal and identified key factors bringing about resilience in their day-to-day life. The resilience index comprised of four dimensions: psychological, physical health and fitness, food and nutrition and life support. The findings indicate that financial independence and education are two critical factors that best support resilience in elderly widows. This has far-reaching impacts on vulnerable groups like elderly people, especially elderly widows. The resilience index will be helpful for policy makers, stakeholders and other researchers to study the wellbeing and resilience among older widows.

Exploring the Effects of Gender Differences and Widowhood Status on the Days Spent in Poor Health: A Secondary Data Analysis from India.

The majority of research in India has focused on the impact of widowhood on health status and health care use, while little emphasis has beenpaid to the number of days spent in poor health among widowed population compare to other marital categories. Thus, the current study explores the relationship between widowhood and days spent with poor health outcomes among adultsin India. Additionally, gender differences in the relationship between widowhood and days with poor health outcomes are further studied.The research employed nationally representative cross-sectional data from the 75th round (2017-2018) of the National Sample Survey (NSS). To investigate the associations of marital status (married vs widowed) and other factors with days spent in poor health, a negative binomial regression model was used. Additionally, the interaction model of age and widowhood was estimated separately for men and women.The findings suggest that widowed individuals had consistently prolonged days with an illness, limited activity, and confinement to bed. After adjusting for socioeconomic and demographic characteristics, the findings suggested that widowed women (IRR = 1.141, 95% Confidence interval = 1.01-1.29) were more likely to spend days with limited acitivitiesthan married women. The marital status-age interaction indicated that older widowed women were more likely to have days of restricted activity and confinement to bed than married women, but such link is absent for men.In India, the elderly widow often spends her days confined to bed and prolonged days with limited activity. Policymakers and practitioners in public health should develop effective policies and programmes to enhance the health and well-being of widowed women, particularly those from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds.

The Modulating Effect of Ego Resilience on the Relationship Between Bereavement Stress and Quality of Life in Widowed Elderly Women

본 연구는 배우자 사별 여성 노인의 사별 스트레스와 삶의 질과의 관계에서 자아탄력성의 조절 효과를 알아보고 홀로 된 여성 노인의 삶의 질을 증진하고자 교육 및 프로그램 등 중재 방안의 기초자료 마련에 연구목적이 있다. 이를 위해 S시, B시, C시, I시, D시, G도에 거주하는 배우자 사별 65세 이상 여성 노인 260명을 대상으로 자기기입식 설문조사를 실시하였다. 분석 방법은 SPSS WIN ver 25.0과 SPSS Process macro 3.4를 이용하여 통계분석을 하였다. 연구 결과 배우자 사별 여성 노인의 사별 스트레스가 삶의 질에 영향을 미치는 요인으로 자아탄력성이 높으면 삶의 질이 향상됨을 알 수 있었다. 아울러 사별 스트레스의 감소에 자아탄력성이 조절 효과가 있음을 알 수 있었다. 이러한 연구 결과를 바탕으로 고령사회에서의 배우자 사별로 홀로 지내는 여성 노인을 위한 사별 관리 돌봄 전략을 개발하고 다양한 교육을 제공하는 것은 삶의 질 향상에 기여할 수 있을 것이다. 아울러 실천적 차원에서 지역사회 연계기관과 협력하여 개입방안과 유용한 교육과 사회 &#8228; 문화적 기반과 지원이 수반되어야 할 것이다. 그러나 본 연구는 횡단적 단일시점의 조사연구이었기에 향후 연구에서는 다양한 설계와 연구가 필요하다.

Situation analysis of ‘institutionalized’ and ‘homeless’ elderly widows abandoned in India’s pilgrimage centres: insights into their living conditions and available infrastructural facilities

Background: India is known as a progressive country with multicultural heterogeneity, yet it is nevertheless firmly anchored in religious sentiments, traditional beliefs, and cultural conventions. Upon the demise of husband, some widows are often left destitute, ‘dispatched’ to religious places to spend the rest of their lives. This is a common practice in India, but in actuality, they are compelled to live in ‘homes’ meant for them, surviving on alms and charity.Methods: An exploratory cum descriptive design was used to understand the current living condition of institutionalized and homeless abandoned elderly widows in Vrindavan and Varanasi and to assess the current standard of infrastructural facilities of Old age homes sheltering these vulnerable group of population.Results: Most common facilities that were present in almost all the OAHs/shelter homes across the two cities was cots, mattresses, clothing and linens, hygiene and sanitation maintenance, common hall for visitors, doctors available on call, proper lightening etc. In spite of that, it was disclosed that about 39% of these institutionalized abandoned elderly widows were not satisfied and rated the quality of services and facilities being provided to them as ‘poor facilities’.Conclusions: With the growing incidence of elderly widows being abandoned in major cities and religious places, adequate OAHs/shelter homes in each district across all the states should be maintained for providing shelter, support and protection to the vulnerable destitute.

Widowhood Impairs Emotional Cognition Among Elderly.

BackgroundThe negative impacts of spousal bereavement on the emotional health of the elderly (e.g., depression and anxiety) have been revealed. However, whether widowhood impairs emotional cognition among the elderly is less known. The purpose of this study is to reveal the emotional cognitive deficits among the widowed elderly.MethodsIn this study, we recruited 44 widowed elderly (WE) and 44 elder couples (non-widowed elderly, NWE) and examined their emotional cognition including attention and visual working memory, which were measured by the visual search task and delayed-match-to-sample task, respectively. Three kinds of emotional faces (i.e., sad, angry, and happy) were adopted as the attentional or mnemonic targets.ResultsIt revealed that WE had a general deficit in search efficiency across emotional types, while they showed mnemonic deficits in negative faces but not positive faces. Furthermore, the modeling analysis revealed that the level of depression or state anxiety of the elderly moderated the effects of widowhood on the deficits of mnemonic processing, i.e., the deficits were only evident among WE with the high level of depression or state anxiety.ConclusionThese findings reveal the attentional deficits in sad, angry, and happy faces and the mnemonic deficits in sad and angry faces among elderly who suffer from widowhood and point out the important role of emotional problems such as depression and state anxiety in modulating these emotional cognitive deficits.

Health of Widowed Elderly and Related Factors in China

Background: The widowed elderly are in poor health, but studies mainly focus on their mental health, physiological response, chronic disease, or death. The aim of this study was to investigate the health of the widowed elderly and related factors in China from the three dimensions of self-reported health, objective physical health and mental health. Methods: Data were obtained from the Chinese Longitudinal Health Longevity Survey (CLHLS-2018). 3320 participants aged 65 years and older were selected, included 1573 widowed elderly and 1747 non-widowed elderly. A simplified version of the center for epidemiological research depression scale (CES-D-10) was used to assess depressive symptoms. The differences of depression and chronic diseases between widows and widowers were tested by independent sample t-test. A fully aligned polygonal graphical indexing method and binary logistic regression analysis were used to explore health and related factors of the widowed elderly. Results: Of the 1573 widowed elderly 70.88% were female, 59.19% were aged 80–99, 48.00% and 36.75% were from rural and urban areas respectively, and 92.05% lived with their families. Depressive symptoms were found in 20.15% of widowers and 49.33% of widows, and 60.26% of widowers and 64.75% of widows had more than one chronic disease. Statistically significant differences were found between widowers and widows in the above two. Self-reported health and mental health were slightly better than that of non-widowed elderly, with the exception of objective physical health. The variables of life restriction, physical exercise, life satisfaction and depressive symptoms were significant factors that influenced the widowed elderly health. Conclusions: Strengthening the monitoring and management of negative emotions and physiological functions of the widowed elderly, improving their awareness of physical and mental health and then promoting communication were found to be effective intervention measures.

A case study on the intervention of memory therapy in the psychological problems of rural widowed elderly

As a special vulnerable group in China, the widowed elderly in rural areas are prone to adaptive psychological problems such as loneliness, inferiority and helplessness, anxiety and depression. In this paper, through field investigation and interview, typical rural elderly widows were selected to intervene in social work cases, and the practical application of memorial therapy in rural elderly widows was discussed, in an attempt to provide a reference for the practice model of memorial therapy in this group.