Association between decreased frequency of seeing friends and the onset of depressive symptoms among community-dwelling older adults: A longitudinal study

Objectives: : Mental health among the older adults has been shown to be affected by reduced social interaction with friends. However, this relationship has not been confirmed in short periods of limited social interaction, such as that experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this study, we investigated the relationship between the development of depressive symptoms and a 6-month decrease in the frequency of visits with friends among community-dwelling elderly in Japan. Methods: : Participants were 491 community-dwelling older adults aged 65 years or older (47.5% female, mean age [standard deviation] = 80.5 [4.7] years) who responded to the March 2020 baseline survey by mail questionnaire and the October 2020 follow-up survey. Results: : The onset of depressive symptoms was observed in 22.8% in about 6 months. The change in frequency of seeing friends, 56.2% remained unchanged, 23.2% increased, and 20.6% decreased. A logistic regression analysis with maintenance of frequency of seeing friends as a reference showed that a decreased frequency of seeing friends was significantly associated with the incidence of depressive symptoms. (odds ratio = 2.26, 95% confidence interval = 1.32-3.86, p = 0.003). Discussion: : A decrease in the frequency of seeing friends over even a short period of time can have a negative impact on older adults' mental health. The findings suggest that in situations where the frequency of seeing friends decreases during a short period of time, maintaining interaction with friends and avoiding face-to-face restrictions is important for maintaining the mental health of older adults.