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Weak social networks and restless sleep interrelate through depressed mood among elderly

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Abstract

Purpose

Sleep disturbance is common in late life. While social interaction is a basic human concern, few studies have explored the linkage between interpersonal relationships and sleep disturbance. The present study examines the reciprocal associations between weak social networks outside the household and sleep disturbance in elderly, as well as the underlying mechanisms.

Methods

We utilized data from a nationally representative longitudinal survey of community-dwelling elderly in Singapore (n = 1417; ≥ 60 years). Participants were assessed three times over 6 years (2009, 2011, 2015). Measures included strength of social networks outside the household, restless sleep (sleep disturbance), and the mediating variables of depressed mood, chronic diseases, and cognitive impairment. A cross-lagged mediation analysis was conducted.

Results

Bootstrapping results showed that weaker social networks were related to more restless sleep via more depressed mood. Also, restless sleep was negatively associated with social networks through depressed mood. The other mediators examined were not significant.

Conclusions

Weak social networks and restless sleep reciprocally influence each other through depressed mood. Recognition of this interplay can inform efforts in improving elderly’s sleep quality, social networks, and psychological well-being.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by Singapore Ministry of Social and Family Development; Singapore Ministry of Health’s National Medical Research Council under its Singapore Translational Research Investigator Award as part of the project “Establishing a Practical and Theoretical Foundation for Comprehensive and Integrated Community, Policy and Academic Efforts to Improve Dementia Care in Singapore” (NMRC-STAR-0005-2009), and its Clinician Scientist - Individual Research Grant—New Investigator Grant (NMRC-CNIG-1124-2014); Duke-NUS Geriatric Research Fund. We thank Irene Teo and Rebecca Lau for their comments on the draft of this paper.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Ageing Research and Education, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, 169857, Singapore

    Grand H.-L. Cheng, Rahul Malhotra, Angelique Chan & Truls Østbye

  2. Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, 169857, Singapore

    June C. Lo

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  1. Grand H.-L. Cheng
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Correspondence to Grand H.-L. Cheng.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

Data collection/analysis was approved by the Institutional Review Board at National University of Singapore. All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Cheng, G.HL., Malhotra, R., Chan, A. et al. Weak social networks and restless sleep interrelate through depressed mood among elderly. Qual Life Res 27, 2517–2524 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-018-1895-3

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