Supplementary Material for: Expecting Relocation to a Nursing Home: Longitudinal Links with Functional Limitations, Self-Rated Health, and Life Satisfaction

Introduction: Developing realistic expectations of future old age constitutes an adaptational process which facilitates the anticipation of- and adjustment to challenges, such as relocation to a nursing home. Developing such expectations might minimize negative impacts of relocation. This pre-registered study examined (a) to which extent lower levels and declines in health (i.e., functional limitations and self-rated health) and life satisfaction before relocation were associated with higher levels and increases in expectations to relocate, and (b) to which extent higher expectations to relocate were associated with more positive changes in health and life satisfaction after relocation. Methods: Using data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS; 2006-2018), we selected older adults (aged 65 years and older) who relocated to a nursing home. We used latent growth curve models (LGMs) to assess the longitudinal links between self-reported measures of health, life satisfaction, and expectations to relocate to a nursing home from up to seven years before (n = 1,048) until up to five years after relocation (n = 307). Results: As hypothesized, more functional limitations and lower self-rated health were related to higher expectations of relocation. Surprisingly, changes in expectations to relocate were not related to changes in health and life satisfaction before relocation. Moreover, expectations to relocate were not associated with changes in health and life satisfaction after relocation. Conclusion: The absence of a link between expectations to relocate to a nursing home with changes in health and well-being suggests that these expectations did not constitute adaptational processes before or after this transition.

引言：对未来老年生活形成合理预期属于一种适应性过程，有助于个体预判并应对诸如入住养老院这类生活挑战，此类预期的构建或可降低搬迁（入住养老院）带来的负面影响。本项预先注册研究考察了两个维度：(a) 搬迁前较低的健康水平与健康下降（即功能受限情况与自评健康状况）、生活满意度，与更高的入住养老院预期水平及其增长之间的关联程度；(b) 更高的入住养老院预期与搬迁后健康及生活满意度出现更积极变化之间的关联程度。
研究方法：本研究使用健康与退休研究（Health and Retirement Study, HRS；2006-2018）的数据，筛选了65岁及以上入住养老院的老年群体。我们采用潜在增长曲线模型（Latent Growth Curve Models, LGMs），评估了搬迁前最长7年（样本量n=1048）至搬迁后最长5年（样本量n=307）期间，自评健康状况、生活满意度与入住养老院预期之间的纵向关联。
研究结果：正如假设所言，功能受限程度越高、自评健康状况越差，个体的入住养老院预期水平越高。出乎意料的是，搬迁前的入住预期变化与健康及生活满意度的变化并无关联。此外，入住预期也与搬迁后的健康及生活满意度变化无关。
结论：入住养老院的预期与健康及福祉变化之间不存在关联，这表明此类预期并未在该过渡阶段前后构成适应性过程。