Finding

Population Aging Research CenterPopulation Aging Research Center Research Associate Nancy Hodgson is featured in an Penn LDI Blog post: “Social Isolation and Anxiety in Older Adults with Cognitive Impairment: New Findings Reveal Anxiety is Linked to Lack of Connections”.

The COVID-19 pandemic has focused worldwide attention on a concurrent public health crisis —social isolation. Older adults — particularly those with cognitive impairment—may be particularly vulnerable to ill effects from social isolation. In a new study, we found that older adults living with cognitive impairment, such as dementia and mild cognitive impairment, felt lonely and anxious when socially alienated.


The study, The Relationship Between Social Isolation and Anxiety in People With Cognitive Impairment in the United States, was published in the February 2022 issue of The International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry. Authors include Yeji Hwang and Nancy Hodgson.