The relationship between social support, self-efficacy, and asthma outcomes in older adults

Objective: There has been a call for research examining factors that influence asthma outcomes in older adults because of the notable disparities observed in this age group. Social support and self-efficacy are resources that factor into asthma outcomes. The current study aimed to examine the relationship between these resources (independently and jointly) and asthma control and quality of life. Methods: Older adults with moderate-severe asthma were recruited from NYC. Data were obtained during in-person interviews via validated measures of social support, asthma self-efficacy, asthma control, and asthma quality of life. Linear regression evaluated self-efficacy in the relationship between social support and asthma outcomes. Results: In a sample of 359 older adults (M = 68.04, 47.9% Hispanic, 26.5% Black, and 25.6% other), social support had an inverse association with asthma control. As social support increased, asthma control decreased (β = 0.95, t(356) = −3.13, p =.002). Self-efficacy significantly moderated this relationship (β = 0.01, t(356) = 2.37, p =.018). For individuals with low or moderate asthma self-efficacy, more received social support was associated with worse asthma control (β = −0.33, t(356) = −4.66, p <.0001; β = −0.20, t(356) = −3.21, p =.0014, respectively). For individuals with high self-efficacy, no relationship was found between received social support and asthma control (β = −0.10, t(356)= −1.20, p =.23). For asthma quality of life, higher levels of received social support were associated with worse quality of life (β = −0.88, t(356) = −2.64, p =.009), but this association was not significantly moderated by self-efficacy (β = 0.01, t(356) = 1.90, p =.0582). Conclusions: For older adults with asthma, receiving more social support is associated with worse asthma outcomes, especially for older adults with lower asthma self-efficacy.