Person-environment interaction processes in frailty: a scoping review.

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Environmental Psychology
• Public Health

Background:

• Frailty is an age-related condition increasing vulnerability to stressors.
• Person-environment (P-E) interactions influencing frailty are underexplored.
• Understanding P-E dynamics is vital for older adult health.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize current knowledge on P-E interactions associated with frailty.
• To explore the relevance of the COntext Dynamics in Aging (CODA) framework.
• To propose a refined model of P-E interactions in frailty.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature search (PubMed, Web of Science, CINAHL) from 2001-2024.
• Included 130 studies out of 2,991 screened articles.
• Extracted data on study characteristics, environment/frailty definitions, and conceptual models.

Main Results:

• The COntext Dynamics in Aging (CODA) framework is relevant to frailty research.
• Identified diverse environmental indicators across CODA domains.
• Proposed a refined model of dynamic interplay between individual adaptation and environmental stress, including a spatial-differential perspective ('hierarchical stair' principle).

Conclusions:

• Emphasizes dynamic P-E interactions across spatial levels for adaptation and stress.
• Highlights scarcity of studies on interaction processes and spatial dynamics.
• Proposes a heuristic model for future hypothesis-driven research, advocating for empirical testing of multilevel approaches.