Longitudinal effects of subjective aging on health and longevity: An updated meta-analysis.
Level 1 - systematic review of randomized trials
Systematic review and meta-analysis of longitudinal cohort studies
PubMed 36972091 · doi:10.1037/pag0000737
What was done
The authors conducted an updated systematic review and random-effects meta-analysis of longitudinal studies examining the link between subjective aging and health outcomes, searching APA PsycInfo, PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus. They analyzed 99 articles comprising 107 studies with a median sample size of 1,863 adults and a median participant age of 66 years. Moderator analyses evaluated participant chronological age, welfare state status, follow-up length, outcome type, study quality, and measurement approach.
What was found
Subjective aging was significantly associated with longitudinal health outcomes (likelihood ratio = 1.347, 95% CI [1.300, 1.396], p < .001). Substantial heterogeneity was present across studies. Effect sizes did not differ significantly by participant chronological age, welfare state status, follow-up duration, health outcome type, or study quality. However, multi-item measures of self-perceptions of aging demonstrated stronger associations with health outcomes than single-item subjective age measures, particularly for physical health indicators.
Why it matters
This review expands the empirical base fivefold relative to a prior 2014 meta-analysis, confirming a small but consistent longitudinal association between subjective aging perceptions and subsequent health and longevity across diverse settings.
Limits
The underlying studies are observational cohorts, precluding causal inference. The meta-analysis exhibited high statistical heterogeneity across included studies. The abstract notes that mediating pathways and potential bidirectional relationships between subjective aging and health remain uncharacterized.
Cited by
- context Subjective age is a better predictor of longevity than biological or chronological age.