Publications by authors named "Jeffrey Stokes"

Objectives: Discrimination is associated with worse cognitive outcomes, but research is urgently needed to identify modifiable psychosocial resources that may buffer the impact of discrimination on cognition. Purpose in life is one such resource associated with positive health outcomes. However, it is unclear whether purpose in life may buffer the relationship between discrimination and cognition among older adults.

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This study examined the association between COVID-19 concerns and depression among adults in later life. We also examined whether race/ethnic status moderated this relationship. This study used data from the 2020 Using the 8-item CES-D scale, we defined probable depression as having three or more depressive symptoms.

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Purpose in life is an aspect of well-being associated with less subjective stress. The present research sought to expand this literature by testing the association between both dispositional and momentary purpose with stress in daily life using a micro-longitudinal study design. Participants (N = 303) reported their dispositional purpose at baseline and reported their momentary purpose and stress three times a day for 8 days.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study aimed to assess whether one year of subcutaneous immunotherapy (SCIT) would improve nasal responses to cockroach allergens in urban children with asthma who are sensitive to these allergens.
  • - Results indicated that there was no significant improvement in total nasal symptom scores (TNSS) after SCIT compared to a placebo; however, SCIT did result in decreased skin reaction size and increased specific antibody production against the allergen.
  • - Overall, while SCIT showed systemic effects by affecting immune responses, it did not change nasal symptoms or transcriptomic responses during allergen exposure.
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Background And Objectives: Proxy respondents are an important tool in survey research, especially among people with cognitive impairment. However, proxy respondents may be unable to accurately answer subjective survey instruments for cognitively impaired persons. This study investigates the mediating effect of proxy status on the relationship between cognitive impairment and subjectively rated health.

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Bereavement is a common and often challenging experience in late life. Evidence shows that while many older adults manage to adjust well and demonstrate resilience in response to the death of a close person, bereavement puts a substantial minority at risk of adverse mental and physical health impacts including mortality. Current research further indicates that 1) this is the case across different countries and cultures across the globe; 2) that the COVID-19 pandemic posed unprecedented challenges for coping with late-life bereavement; 3) that loneliness and social isolation among bereaved older adults tend to be prevalent and harmful, particularly under pandemic but also in nonpandemic circumstances; and, recently, 4) that bereavement may be a risk factor for cognitive decline in this population.

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Within marriages, loneliness has been linked with individuals' own their partners' cognitive health. Yet little research has situated Black older adults within a relational, dyadic context. This study analyzed longitudinal dyadic data from the Health and Retirement Study (2010-2016;  = 1270 participants from 635 couples) from partners in opposite-sex midlife and older couples where at least one partner reported being Black or African American.

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This article provides an overview of the findings obtained from the Vitamin D Antenatal Asthma Reduction Trial (VDAART) spanning a period of 15 years. The review covers various aspects, including the trial's rationale, study design, and initial intent-to-treat analyses, as well as an explanation of why those analyses did not achieve statistical significance. Additionally, the article delves into the post hoc results obtained from stratified intent-to-treat analyses based on maternal vitamin D baseline levels and genotype-stratified analyses.

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Article Synopsis
  • This study investigates how sociodemographic factors affect employment changes in adult children when their parents are diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and related dementia (ADRD).
  • Using data from the Health and Retirement Study, it looks at adults aged 50-70 over several years to analyze employment shifts tied to parental ADRD.
  • Results show that while overall employment wasn't significantly affected, those with lower education levels faced different challenges: sons were more likely to stop working entirely, while daughters tended to reduce their work hours, particularly as sons aged.
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Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) face several barriers to healthcare, making them less likely to receive numerous routine preventive health screenings. Preventive healthcare is a critical aspect to maintaining health and wellness, particularly for people with complex health needs. This study examines individual and state-level factors associated with mammogram and colonoscopy screenings in mid- and later-life foradults with IDD receiving state services.

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Objectives: Connections between social integration and health throughout the life span are well established, including at the neighborhood level and among older adults. Less explored is how pathways between neighborhood social cohesion and well-being may differ by race/ethnicity or by neighborhood disorder. This study investigates whether perceived neighborhood social cohesion is associated with loneliness in adults aged 50 and older, and whether this association is moderated by race/ethnicity or perceived neighborhood disorder.

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Article Synopsis
  • Loneliness impacts both personal and partner's cognitive abilities in older relationships, affecting episodic memory but not verbal fluency.
  • Over time, feelings of loneliness are interconnected; one's loneliness can predict the partner’s memory deterioration, indicating a dyadic influence.
  • While lonelier individuals showed declines in episodic memory, poor memory didn't lead to increased loneliness, suggesting emotional well-being is vital for cognitive health in aging couples.
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Loneliness is linked to many physiological and psychological issues and disproportionately affects older adults. Interpersonal goals (compassion and self-image) are essential to interpersonal relationships; however, how they relate to loneliness in older adults is unknown. We investigated the impact of interpersonal goals on loneliness using the Ecosystem-Egosystem Theory of Social Motivation.

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Article Synopsis
  • Loneliness can affect the health of older people, especially heart-related health, but most research looks at loneliness alone instead of in relationships.
  • Studies show that if one partner feels lonely, it can also impact the other partner's health, especially in older married couples.
  • In this study, researchers found that while a person's own loneliness didn’t affect their health, a retired partner's loneliness was linked to higher health issues like elevated blood sugar (HbA1c) levels.
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Wheezing is common in childhood, although only a small percentage of these children develop asthma. The child's wheezing phenotype and asthma predictive indices help predict the likelihood of a future asthma diagnosis. Viral infections are common in childhood with most wheezing episodes due to respiratory syncytial virus and rhinovirus.

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Caregiving may prove either beneficial or harmful for caregiver well-being, depending on the circumstances surrounding care provision. Using data from the two most recent waves of the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS, 2004-2014;  = 1,100), we examine whether providing care for an adult at both time points (i.e.

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Background: Black and Hispanic children living in urban environments in the USA have an excess burden of morbidity and mortality from asthma. Therapies directed at the eosinophilic phenotype reduce asthma exacerbations in adults, but few data are available in children and diverse populations. Furthermore, the molecular mechanisms that underlie exacerbations either being prevented by, or persisting despite, immune-based therapies are not well understood.

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This study explores factors associated with participation in moderate physical activity and muscle strengthening activity in adults with autism receiving state services (age: 18-78 years). Researchers analyzed the National Core Indicators-In Person Survey (2017-2018) data using multilevel mixed effects logistic regression. Older adults on the autism spectrum engaged in both moderate physical activity and muscle strengthening activity less often than younger adults on the autism spectrum (OR 0.

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The role of loneliness in the bereavement experience has been reported as substantial, with the death of a close person leaving a considerable void in the life of the bereaved. Yet, there is lack of agreement about its precise role and, notably, whether loneliness should be included as a core symptom for diagnosis of grief complications. The ongoing threat of heightened social isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic underlines the need to understand the impact of loneliness, and to accurately chart its prevalence, intensity, duration, and associated difficulties in the context of bereavement.

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Bereaved people suffer from loneliness and loneliness is associated with poor mental health. In this study, this topic is reviewed. An agenda is suggested for future research.

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Objective: This study examined adult grandchildren's experience of losing a grandparent in the context of a multigenerational family.

Background: Although the death of a grandparent in adulthood is often an expected life event, this loss may still result in grief for adult grandchildren. Furthermore, bereavement is not merely an individual experience, but a family one.

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Both experiencing loneliness and having a lonely partner can be psychosocial stressors, with implications for health. Yet, marital support may buffer against the cardiometabolic effects of loneliness. This study examines (1) whether own and/or partner's loneliness predict changes in HbA1c over 4 years and (2) whether marital support moderates these effects.

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Background And Objectives: This study examined associations between exposure to the 2003 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemic and Chinese older adults' depression and inflammation 8 years after the crisis. Further, this study investigated the buffering effects of perceived social support and social participation.

Research Design And Methods: Data were drawn from the 2011 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Survey, including N = 4,341 Chinese adults aged 60 years and older.

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This study examines associations of older husbands' and wives' cognitive functioning with both partners' marital quality. Generalized structural equation modeling analyzed data from 1,432 opposite-sex couples drawn from the 2016 wave of the Health and Retirement Study. Findings revealed that wives' poorer cognitive functioning was associated with wives reporting greater closeness and enjoyment of time with a spouse, whereas husbands' poorer cognitive functioning was associated with wives reporting greater marital strain, lower marital support, lower closeness, and less enjoyment of time with a spouse.

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Asthma remains one of the most important challenges to pediatric public health in the US. A large majority of children with persistent and chronic asthma demonstrate aeroallergen sensitization, which remains a pivotal risk factor associated with the development of persistent, progressive asthma throughout life. In individuals with a tendency toward Type 2 inflammation, sensitization and exposure to high concentrations of offending allergens is associated with increased risk for development of, and impairment from, asthma.

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