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Optimism and Longevity Among Japanese Older Adults

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Abstract

Optimism has been linked to better physical health across various outcomes, including greater longevity. However, most evidence is from Western populations, leaving it unclear whether these relationships may generalize to other cultural backgrounds. Using secondary data analysis, we evaluated the associations of optimism among older Japanese adults. Data were from a nationwide cohort study of Japanese older adults aged ≥ 65 years (Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study; n = 10,472). In 2010, optimism and relevant covariates (i.e., sociodemographic factors, physical health conditions, depressive symptoms, and health behaviors) were self-reported. Optimism was measured using the Japanese version of the Life Orientation Test-Revised (LOT-R). Lifespan was determined using mortality information from the public long-term care insurance database through 2017 (7-year follow-up). Accelerated failure time models examined optimism (quintiles or standardized continuous scores) in relation to percent differences in lifespan. Potential effect modification by gender, income, and education was also investigated. Overall, 733 individuals (7%) died during the follow-up period. Neither continuous nor categorical levels of optimism were associated with lifespan after progressive adjustment for covariates (e.g., in fully-adjusted models: percent differences in lifespan per 1-SD increase in continuous optimism scores =  − 1.2%, 95%CI − 3.4, 1.1 higher versus lower optimism quintiles = − 4.1%, 95%CI − 11.2, 3.6). The association between optimism and lifespan was null across all sociodemographic strata as well. Contrary to the existing evidence from Western populations, optimism was unrelated to longevity among Japanese older adults. The association between optimism, as evaluated by the LOT-R, and longevity may differ across cultural contexts.

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Data Availability

The dataset supporting the conclusions of this article is available in response to the request from the researchers admitted by the JAGES committee.

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Acknowledgements

We are extremely grateful to all JAGES study participants for the use of their personal data, as well as to everyone who participated and cooperated in the survey. In addition, we thank Dr. Ichiro Kawachi for providing comments on a prior version of this manuscript.

Funding

This study used data from JAGES (the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study). This study was supported by Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research [15H01972, 15H04781, 15H05059, 15K03417, 15K03982, 15K16181, 15K17232, 15K18174, 15K19241, 15K21266, 15KT0007, 15KT0097, 16KK0059, 16H05556, 16K09122, 16K00913, 16K02025, 16K12964, 16K13443, 16K16295, 16K16595, 16K16633, 16K17256, 16K17281, 16K19247, 16K19267, 16K21461, 16K21465, 16KT0014, 17K04305,17K34567, 17K04306, 25253052, 25713027, 26285138, 26460828, 26780328, 18H03018, 18H04071, 18H03047, 18H00953, 18H00955, 18KK0057, 19H03901, 19H03915, 19H03860, 19K04785, 19K10641,19K11657,19K19818, 19K19455, 19K24060, 19K20909, 20H00557] from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science); Health Labour Sciences Research Grants [H26-Choju-Ippan-006, H27-Ninchisyou-Ippan-001 H28- Choju-Ippan-002, H28- Ninchisyou-Ippan-002, H29-Chikyukibo-Ippan-001, H30-Jyunkankinado-Ippan-004, 18H04071, 19FA1012, 19FA2001] from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Japan; the Research and Development Grants for Longevity Science from Japan Agency for Medical Research and development (AMED] [JP17dk0110027, JP18dk0110027, JP18ls0110002, JP18le0110009, JP20dk0110034, JP20dk0110037], the Research Funding for Longevity Sciences from National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology [24-17, 24-23, 29-42, 30-30, 30-22, 20-19]; Open Innovation Platform with Enterprises, Research Institute and Academia [OPERA, JPMJOP1831] from the Japan Science and Technology (JST); a grant from the Japan Foundation For Aging And Health[J09KF00804, a grant from Innovative Research Program on Suicide Countermeasures (1-4), a grant from Sasakawa Sports Foundation, a grant from Japan Health Promotion & Fitness Foundation, a grant from Chiba Foundation for Health Promotion & Disease Prevention, the 8020 Research Grant for fiscal 2019 from the 8020 Promotion Foundation [Adopted Number: 19-2-06], a grant from Niimi University [1915010], grants from Meiji Yasuda Life Foundation of Health and Welfare. Dr. Trudel-Fitzgerald is supported by a salary support from the Lee Kum Sheung Center for Health and Happiness. Lastly, this study is supported by the National Institutes of Health [R01-AG053273]. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the respective funding organizations.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Social & Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 677 Huntington Ave., Boston, MA, USA

    Sakurako S. Okuzono, Harold H. Lee, Hayami K. Koga, Laura D. Kubzansky & Claudia Trudel-Fitzgerald

  2. Lee Kum Sheung Center for Health and Happiness, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA

    Harold H. Lee, Fran Grodstein, Laura D. Kubzansky & Claudia Trudel-Fitzgerald

  3. Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA

    Koichiro Shiba

  4. Human Flourishing Program, Harvard Institute for Quantitative Social Science, Cambridge, MA, USA

    Koichiro Shiba

  5. Department of Global Health Promotion, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo, Japan

    Sakurako S. Okuzono & Takeo Fujiwara

  6. Department of Public Health, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita, Japan

    Kokoro Shirai

  7. Department of Social Epidemiology, Kyoto University School of Public Health, Kyoto, Japan

    Naoki Kondo

  8. Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Center, Rush Medical College, Chicago, IL, USA

    Fran Grodstein

  9. Department of Gerontological Evaluation, Center for Gerontology and Social Science, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology, Obu, Aichi, Japan

    Katsunori Kondo

  10. Department of Social Preventive Medical Sciences, Center for Preventive Medical Sciences, Chiba University, Chiba, Japan

    Katsunori Kondo

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  1. Sakurako S. Okuzono
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Contributions

SSO contributed to the study design. SSO and KS contributed the statistical analysis. SSO, KS, CTF, and LK contributed to the interpretation of the data. SSO, KS, and CTF contributed to manuscript writing. All authors contributed to the interpretation of the data and assisted in revising the manuscript. All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Sakurako S. Okuzono.

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CTF is now at Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières and Centre de Recherche de l’Institut Universitaire en Santé Mentale de Montréal.

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Okuzono, S.S., Shiba, K., Lee, H.H. et al. Optimism and Longevity Among Japanese Older Adults. J Happiness Stud 23, 2581–2595 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-022-00511-8

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