The COVID-19 pandemic affected the mobility of older adults even two years after its onset
The study also examined the reciprocal associations between different dimensions of mobility and the effects of physical activity, measured relatively and absolutely with accelerometers, on these associations.
The pandemic affected the mobility of older adults in many ways
At the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, life-space mobility, that is, the area where a person regularly moves, and perceived autonomy in outdoor mobility weakened, while self-reported physical activity increased compared to the baseline two years earlier.
In 2021–2022, life-space mobility and perceived autonomy in outdoor mobility partially recovered but did not fully return to pre-pandemic levels, and physical activity decreased below the baseline.
“During the early stages of the pandemic, outdoor recreation and spending time in nature were still allowed, even though almost all other activities outside the home were restricted,” says Lindeman. “This likely explains the increase in physical activity, despite the decrease in life-space mobility and perceived autonomy in outdoor mobility.“
“The prolonged nature of the pandemic and the aging of participants may explain why the changes seen in 2020 did not fully recover in 2021–2022,” she adds.
Good physical function helped maintain mobility even in exceptional circumstances
At the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, a higher level of physical activity and an increase in physical activity were associated with better physical function. In addition, driving a car combined with good physical function supported greater life-space mobility.
Throughout the study, women had a smaller life-space mobility than men, and they perceived weaker autonomy in outdoor mobility. Additionally, at the beginning of the pandemic, these dimensions decreased more for women than for men. Age, on the other hand, did not have a significant impact on changes in mobility.
“Gender differences may be explained by women’s weaker physical function, less driving, and more cautious attitudes towards the pandemic,” Lindeman suggests.
“Lower mobility levels and a greater decline in mobility – whether due to physical function or gender – is a worrying combination because it may increase isolation and reduce well-being. Therefore, targeted support should be provided to older adults in more vulnerable positions when environmental support for mobility decreases.”
Sufficiently strenuous physical activity supports the maintenance of walking performance
The results of the dissertation also showed that walking performance is crucial for older adults’ physical activity and perceived autonomy in outdoor mobility. Additionally, physical activity that exceeds an individual’s usual walking intensity can help maintain better walking performance. In contrast, absolute physical activity, defined by uniform thresholds for everyone, did not show association with later walking performance.
“Absolute thresholds do not always correspond to a sufficiently demanding level of activity for relatively fit participants, whereas physical activity relative to an individual’s usual walking intensity may better reflect the effort required to maintain walking performance,” Lindeman explains.
The dissertation is part of the Mobility of Older People and COVID-19 Social Distancing (MOBITRANS) research project and is based on data from the Active Aging (AGNES) cohort study, which was conducted between 2017 and 2022. The MOBITRANS project has been funded by the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture, and different phases of the AGNES study by the European Research Council and the Research Council of Finland. The finalization of the dissertation was funded by the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, Ģֱ. The research was carried out at the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences and the Gerontology Research Centre (GEREC), a joint centre of the Universities of Jyväskylä and Tampere.
Lindeman will defend her doctoral thesis “The trajectories of mobility among community-dwelling older people through the COVID-19 pandemic” on 6 June at 12 noon. Her opponent in the public examination will be Professor Paul Gellert (Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany), and the custos will be Professor Taina Rantanen (Ģֱ). The language of the event will be English.
The doctoral thesis is available in the JYX publication archive at
More information:
Katja Lindeman
katja.m.lindeman@jyu.fi
