Satisfaction with Meaningful Activities and Sleep in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: Cross-Sectional Study

To examine whether satisfaction with meaningful activities (MA) is associated with self-rated sleep quality and sleep duration among community-dwelling older adults.

Data were drawn from 833 individuals aged ≥65 years who participated in a health survey between 2018 and 2019 in Japan. Sleep quality (good, moderate, or poor) and duration ( < 6, 6-8, or ≥8 h) were assessed through a questionnaire. Participants selected the MA they considered most meaningful from a list of 95 activities in the Aid for Decision-Making in Occupation Choice, and their satisfaction with these MA were measured.

Ordinal logistic regression analysis, with sleep quality or duration as the dependent variable and satisfaction with MA as the independent variable, showed that higher satisfaction with MA was significantly associated with lower odds of poor sleep quality (OR: 0.84, 95% CI: 0.72-0.97, p = .03), but not with sleep duration. However, the association was not significant in sensitivity analyses that reversed the model.

Satisfaction with MA may be associated with better sleep quality in older adults.

Evaluating and enhancing satisfaction with MA may help identify older adults at risk of poor sleep quality, indicating that MA may be useful in supporting sleep.